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There are a number of reasons that DC’s latest film, Shazam! Fury of the Gods, performed poorly, grossing just $30.5 million and Canada.
Reviews were brutal for a production with an estimated budget of $125 million, and probably didn’t care much for “Shazam!” The sequel that started with the original “Shazam!” It ended up with $140 million domestically for a modest 2.6x revenue from its debut.
It can be plain difficult to get DC fans to care for.
“Shazam!” starring Zachary Levi is usually a bit outside of DC’s main galaxy, and the sequel is a follow-up to the previous Warner Bros. regime and doesn’t play into the future of the franchise. making it rather sluggish The loss of the lame duck changes strategy.
Such situations make it difficult for viewers to invest their time in movies. Even with millions of marketing departments behind it. (Though there have been complaints across town that Warner Bros.’s media spending has started too late.)
Superhero fans want a story that connects. which is the case with James Gunn and Peter Safran created for Warner Bros. Discovery long before it took over DC.
But there’s a broader problem: superhero movies have serious quality and quantity issues.
After last weekend’s dismal box office results. I also flashed back to a comment Gunn made to an entertainment reporter back in January explaining his vision for the future of DC.
One of the most refreshing parts of that talk. Given to Warner Bros. in Burbank, Gunn’s acknowledgment that the similarity of superheroes in Hollywood is an important fact. And it’s not a disturbing illusion that only originality-starved film critics get lost in the industry. Blockbuster Creative Desert
“Superhero fatigue can be real. When movies start to get too repetitive and too similar,” Gunn said during the Q&A. Following his and Safran’s plans for DC Studios and its expanding film and television universe,
This type of film can’t sustain itself by telling the same old story — “good guy, bad guy, giant thing in the sky” — the “Guardians of the Galaxy” filmmakers say over and over again. Superhero movies need more moral complexity. They want movies that “It’s not just pretending it’s another genre,” it’s actually comedy, horror, and drama about superpowers.
In addition to the diversity Quality control is also an important factor. As we mentioned earlier with Marvel’s challenge kicking off in Season 4, if audiences are still getting mediocre superhero content, it’s worth it. and a theater with more and more content That would have a negative effect on the art form.
Kevin’s previous unattainable operation. Feige at Disney Since the end of the Infinity Saga brought about some truly critical events, including the most recent “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” and “Thor: Love and Thunder.” Recent controversial issues
Opening weekend grosses for Marvel films are still critic-proof, as far as anyone can tell, but the latest “Ant-Man” was down 70% the weekend following its release.
Victoria Alonso, the longtime Marvel executive responsible for visual effects and post-production, just left the studio, Disney confirmed Monday. The reason for her departure was not stated. which is a rare example of high turnover at Feige stores.
Yes, Marvel is still the most successful operation in the film industry. nevertheless The important thing is if the movie turns out well. Although at first this may not always be the case. at some point loss of goodwill from fans adversely affect the business As we saw from the Zack Snyder era of Warner Bros.’s less comebacks, even DC’s “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” and the first “Suicide Squad” were big business despite their terrible alert. anyway The effect didn’t materialize until much later.
The dire need to get it right is why DC hasn’t been given any chances on “Superman: Legacy,” with the studio officially confirming last week that Gunn will direct the film in July 2025, in addition to an upcoming film. Write a screenplay
Gunn spoke at a January event about the importance of making sure the script was top-notch before shooting, rather than throwing hundreds of millions of dollars into the film when it was. “The script is only two-thirds of the way done, and we have to finish it” while we’re making the movie.
That kind of rushed production This was followed by costly reshoots. Driven by the desire to set a release date months or years in advance. Gunn called this the main reason the quality of film has “deteriorated” over the past few decades. He said it wasn’t just a superhero problem.
When asked if the new Superman movie is the first Clark Kent/Kal-El standalone since 2013’s Man of Steel, Gunn replied, “A lot.” There’s an eight to 10 year plan here and there. The entertainment company has a mixed history of building interconnected franchises without making successful and beloved films.
Even Marvel didn’t plan anything like that. At least in the beginning
This is a dramatic and much-needed moment of change for DC. There’s a reason DC’s new leadership is willing to push heavyweights like Patty Jenkins, Henry Cavill, and Dwayne Johnson, the latter of whom spoke during the “Black” tour. Adam” about the direction of the DC franchise, as if he was confident that he would played a huge part in it.
Gunn and Safran also have a number of successor films to watch before 2025. DC has a $200 million “The Flash” set to release in June after it premieres at CinemaCon next month, Gunn calls. it said “Probably one of the greatest superhero movies ever made” and there will certainly be interest in Ezra Miller’s controversial element.
Of course, “Fury of the Gods” suffered from Warner Bros. Jason Kilar-Ann Sarnoff’s fall into the void (where Gunn said “nobody cared about the mint” and the intellectual property was handed over). Goes on like “The Party”) and whatever the DC Universe looks like under the new management team approved by David Zaslav.
But what if the movie doesn’t do well? Corporate strategic planning doesn’t do much for them.
what we write
— Alright: Writers enter into tense contract negotiations with Hollywood studios. Discussions between the writers and the studio are being closely watched. Many in Hollywood feared that negotiating a new contract this year could lead to a strike.
— Is AI the future of Hollywood? How does advertising square with reality?. At SXSW, the annual tech sponsors’ summit. All eyes are on the AI and especially The definition of an emerging sector for entertainment
— What does Netflix’s Nancy Meyers drama say about the state of Hollywood rom-com cinema?Netflix pulls out of ‘Paris Paramount’ after budget conflict How much is the right price for a romantic comedy genre in 2023? Warner Bros. is now looking to acquire the project.
— His L.A. podcasting company is at a crossroads. It’s now owned by Jesse Thorn’s employees. Despite receiving an offer from a large conglomerate to sell his podcast business The host of “Bullseye With Jesse Thorn,” the millennial “Fresh Air” show with Terry Gross, also chose to sell his company to his employees.
— The owner of the nation’s largest regional sports network files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Sinclair’s Diamond Sports Group says it will continue televised games on its Bally Sports channel during bankruptcy proceedings. Unit battles are the clearest sign of the unraveling of how the local sport is broadcast.
— Jen Psaki asks questions on MSNBC. President Biden’s former press secretary takes on a new role as the Sunday cable host of the show that will also be available on NBC’s Peacock stream.
— ABC’s Oscars TV Show Has Highest Viewership Rating Since 2020 With 18.8 Million Viewerslast year’s smacking scandal And the winner of Best Picture that impressed viewers, “Everything Everywhere All at Once” brought many TV viewers to the event this year.
number of weeks
one more week Another big tech company’s job cuts: Amazon announced 9,000 job cuts on Monday, in addition to the 18,000 jobs previously disclosed.
Amazon Studios is not popular here. But workers are being cut off from cloud computing units Amazon Web Services (CEO Andy Jassy), advertising, HR and Twitch, a streaming platform for live-streaming video games and writing. Other web video programs
This apparently involves a broader struggle in the tech sector amid post-pandemic losses and an advertising slowdown. Facebook owner Meta recently reported a second cut, eliminating 10,000 positions.
Twitch is laying off approximately 400 jobs. “Like many companies, our business is affected by the current macroeconomic environment. And the user and revenue growth was not what we expected,” Twitch’s new CEO, Dan Clancy, wrote in a blog post.
Amazon bought Twitch for $970 million in 2014 as a way to engage with the growing world of gaming and esports, but as Twitch grew, it didn’t become Amazon’s YouTube. Emmett Shear C. Twitch’s former EO left last week to take on the mentor role. He said he wanted to stay at home to raise his son.
the best of the web
— Tilda Swinton is on top of COVID mask rules (diversity).
— Missed this earlier this month: Behind the scenes of making “Shakespeare in Love” (Airmail)
– Center of Fox News, Sidney Powell lawsuits and “wackadoodle” emails (Washington Post)
— Haters Will Hate: Taylor Swift’s $150 Million Real Estate Empire (Wall Street Journal)
— Kal Penn on “Daily Show” hosting and comedy acts, “I don’t apologize for being funny or reading The Economist.” (Esquire)
filming
The latest on-location shooting information from FilmLA.
in the end …
Every time “The Wire” star Lance Reddick appears in a movie or TV show, it’s the same thing. Whether in the “John Wick” or “Lost” franchises, this project is made even better because of his presence. He died on Friday the 60th.
