The 15 Questions Keeping Hollywood Awake in 2012
'The Dark Knight Rises,' 'Hunger Games,' 'Star Wars' and other titles create some conundrums
1. Can Joss Whedon finally conquer the feature film world with 'Cabin In The Woods' and 'The Avengers'?
Whedon is well-liked in Hollywood, certainly, but he's far better known for the success of "Buffy The Vampire Slayer," "Angel," and even his work on "The Astonishing X-Men" in comics. When he tried to resurrect his prematurely-canceled show "Firefly" with the feature film "Serenity," Universal just couldn't make the audience show up, and Whedon's track record as the writer of "Alien: Resurrection" and a "Wonder Woman" draft that didn't get made haven't exactly turned him into a feature film powerhouse. But "Cabin In The Woods" finally manages to perfectly capture the playful spirit of genre deconstruction that has always made his TV work so much fun, and "The Avengers" has been building good buzz from those who have seen what he's pulled off. This is the moment for him to finally make the move and prove that he's ready to play on a canvass this big, and if "The Avengers" is the mega-hit it should be, Whedon's one of the people who will benefit most.
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Next 41 Commentschrisdvanne
January 18, 2012 at 7:27AM EST Reply to CommentWell, the guy knows how to write a story!
And if Serenity was not a hit at the box-office, it was entertaning.
I hope he will not forget the beautiful and talented Summer Glau when he become a Hollywood mogul. She deserves to be in 3 blockbuster a year.
That Werewolf Guy
January 18, 2012 at 9:35AM EST Reply to CommentI wonder why critics always think that the public doesn't want MIB 3. Pretty much every time I talk to people about it or even sit in a theatre when the trailer plays, they all get very excited about it.
I really think that Melissa McCarthy can have a good running motion picture career. Note that I didn't say "movie star", because the sad truth is: Actors with such a body don't get many big roles. I for myself don't mind. She is hilarious and is a great dramatic actress (I doubt that you saw THE NINES, but if you did, you will agree with me), so in fact she should become something like the female Will Smith or George Clooney in terms of starpower, but I doubt that she will. We can be lucky if she becomes a steady working comedy actress without relying on shooting a million fatty-falls-on-her-ass movies. She might even have a career as "serious" actress in supporting drama roles, but Hollywood is too obsessed with skinny plastic girls, to really give her a chance.
Also you forgot one important question: Will anybody show up to see the SPIDER-MAN reboot? Apart from some fanboys, who are glad that there is now a "dark & brooding" take on the comics with artificial webshooters, the audience reaction seemed to be very negative. They hate the emo hipster TWILIGHT Peter (just like they did in the last movie, only that in that one his styling was at least meant to be funny) and aren't too keen on seeing another origin story with all new actors, instead of a sequel with the familiar ones.
Dave I
January 18, 2012 at 11:05AM EST Reply to Comment"Is 'Prometheus' going to turn out to just be a prequel after all?"
I hope not, and I don't think the distinction is silly at all. When I think of "prequel" I think of something that is directly tied to the movie that ti is supposed to preclude. Prometheus looks like a movie in the same "universe" that comes chronologically before Alien. I do not think it has to directly involve the aliens from said Alien movie or have any link other than being in the same world.
Put it this way. Is a movie about WWI really inherently a prequel to a movie about WWII? I think it can be another story without being a direct sequel. I am fine with the distinction even if it overlaps with Alien so long as it is its own self-contained story/movie/series/etc.
-Cheers
DefRef
January 18, 2012 at 11:10AM EST Reply to CommentANSWERS:
1. Whedon is one of the few names with a "guaranteed quality" seal of approval and everyone associated from him on both sides of the camera - writers like David Fury and Jane Espenson; actors like, well, everyone from his shows - automatically gets a looksee. (e.g. Spike and Cordy on Supernatural this season.) To blame him for the mareting weasels failures is an injustice.
2. LiLo is over. She has thrown her career and life away on self-indulgence and lying to herself and the world. Instead of partying, she should be doing indie movies to rehabilitate her image, but that would require work and she simply thinks that because she's still getting invited to a few parties and isn't serving hard jail time, she's still the prom queen. She isn't. In the 8 years she's been effing off, a legion of bright, talented, NON-SCREW-UP actresses have arrived led by Emma Stone, who has single-handedly eaten LiLo's career alive. Add in Jennifer Lawrence, Carey Mulligan, Kristen Stewart, Dakota Fanning (and her baby sis Elle), and others who are slipping my mind at the moment and what's left for a dedicated train wreck like LiLo?
3. This is madness. Will Smith has one movie that only made THREE TIMES its budget and produces a movie with his son that grossed nine times its budget and his career is on deathwatch? He's only like the most popular movie star around; the only one who can reliably open a movie these days. Unreal.
4. This presumes the audience is too stupid to know that these movies are fake. Yeesh. They'll always do well on video because they lo-fi visuals don't suffer blown up on the big screen and it's more immediate. And cheaper.
5. Finally an item that makes sense. No, American Pie is probably dead on the big screen. Somehow humanity will have to persevere.
6. So what if Prometheus is an Alien prequel? It's not as if it promised to love you forever and then boinked your best friend. It looks cool. End of discussion.
7. Imagine this scene: "Hey, let's go see Seth McFarlane's new movie with Marky Mark and a cussing teddy bear." Can't do that? Exactly. Perhaps Universal should've noticed how well Mike Judge's live-action films do before committing?
8. Worrying about which Lincoln movie will dominate is like wondering whether Blue Valentine or Friends With Benefits will alter the Earth's orbit since they're both, like, you know, about couples.
9. Act of Valor was shot relatively (heh) cheaply with Canon 5D DSLRs and looks terrific and Relativity is going to push it hard with four Super Bowl ads. Add in word of mouth from real people in the Flyover - not the military-hating Left Coast crowds - and it could be a sleeper. Mirror, Mirror looks dreadful, though.
10. The Three Stooges will bomb. Then again, people are seeing those Alvin and the Chipmunks movies that poor Jason Lee has had to appear in as part of his sentence for serial killing hobos - oh, he's doing these willingly? - so what do I know?
11. Titanic will win because despite the revisionist hating, more people like it than the Yippee! Menance.
12. Unless it sucks - and then perhaps not even if that - Dark Knight Rises should surpass its predecessor. Look at what Pirates 4 made. Quality is irrelevant and people want to see how the story ends.
13. Why does any movie have to be "the next [insert other franchise name here]" in the first place. It only makes studios reek of desperation, leading to misfires like Percy Jackson and the Olympians: Please Think We're the Next Harry Potter.
14. Akira will never be worth making as long as Hollywood insists on casting gringo actors who are too old and too white. The title alone screams "ASIAN!" so unless they're willing to change that, too, why bother. Sometimes the PC whining over "whitewashing" is just noise, but in this case justified. It's as if Hollywood doesn't even know what they're remaking.
15. Melissa McCarthy can become the younger, cuter (in a Rubenesque way) version of Kathy Bates. As long as she doesn't just play her Bridesmaids character over and over, she will become an icon for BBW everywhere.
storymark I find it highly unlikely that Dark Knight Rises will surpass Dark Knight, regardless of how good it turns out to be. Even setting Ledger's death and those who saw it for that reason aside, the Joker is an icon. Bane is a villain that most people are unaware of. Even your example of Pirates 4 is off, as it was the lowest grossing of the series, and most certainly did not surpass any of its predecessors.
January 18, 2012 at 12:34PM ESTDefRef People go to see Batman movies, not Batman's Nemesis movies. There is also Catwoman in TDKR. It will make money.
January 18, 2012 at 2:21PM ESTPirates 4 was the 2nd highest grossing film of the series in worldwide numbers, only $23 million behind Pirate 2, both over a billion dollars.
Astaroth
January 18, 2012 at 11:10AM EST Reply to CommentI really dislike it when people compare the Hunger Games to Twilight. The two are entirely different stories, and Hunger Games is much more complex than Twilight could ever hope to be. One is a pathetic romance story about a love triangle between a vamp, a wolf, and an incredibly stupid teenager, while the other is about war, oppression, political intrigue, and what happens when kids are forced into that violent world. There isn't a comparison.
storymark The content may be different, but the primary audience and the source medium is the same. On those grounds, it's an apt comparison.
January 18, 2012 at 12:38PM ESTSarah Ikr!!?? Twilight is so gay.. This coming from me, who used tto be obsessed with it. The Hunger Games will be a much bigger hit, because guys will actually like it because of the action... And even more girls because of the romance triangle of Peeta, Katniss, and Gale.
January 18, 2012 at 8:00PM ESTstorymark
January 18, 2012 at 1:02PM EST Reply to CommentI don't see "Seven Pounds" as any kind of turning point for Smith. What other star could have gotten a movie about suicide, released at Christmas, to over $100 million?
zietiagam Lifetime gross $69 million on budget of $55 million not counting distribution and advertising (all through the Christmas season)? That's not $100 million.
January 18, 2012 at 2:51PM ESTDaniel Broadbent @ Zietiagam - if you count foreign Box Office, Seven Pounds came away with $168,000,000. Source: Box Office Mojo: $70 million US, $98 million foreign.
January 22, 2012 at 6:57PM ESTZeiram_p
January 18, 2012 at 2:00PM EST Reply to CommentI really h hope that they don't make Hunger Games too much like Twilight and that it turns out to be a decent movie. I refuse to read the books before seeing the movie. After watching the movie studios turn I am number four, Percy Jackson, and Eragon into streaming piles of horse manure I'm afraid of being disappointed again. Each of those had the potential to kick start multi-movie franchises similar to Harry Potter and Twilight, but failed because they didn't stay true to the source material.
mjkbk
January 18, 2012 at 3:04PM EST Reply to Comment"Alien Resurrection" and "Wonder Woman"? Guess you forgot about Joss Whedon's Oscar nomination as a co-author of the "Toy Story" screenplay......
zachary
January 18, 2012 at 4:41PM EST Reply to Commenthttp://needGod.com
blue_flames lol
January 18, 2012 at 9:23PM ESTPrettok
January 18, 2012 at 5:42PM EST Reply to CommentLindsay Lohan may keep looking to Downey Jr. as a model for career rehab, but she's forgetting something. People liked RDJ. They wanted to seehim suceed. LiLo hasn't engendered any of the same good will during her career.
Also, RDJ (and Drew Barrymore, and Charlie Sheen, and.Keifer Sutherland) all come from industry families. They are hometown kids whose childhoods were messed up by Hollywood. The industry keeps giving them more and more second chances out of guilt and loyalty and responsibility. Lohan is white trash from Long Island. Hollywood doesn't owe her jack. Why take good roles away from Carey Mulligan, Jessica Chastain, and Emma Stone just to give Lilo her umpteenth opportunity to screw up?
jimmymagitti
January 18, 2012 at 10:06PM EST Reply to CommentDisagree w #3. Will Smith usually makes good flicks that perform well. He's a great actor and seems to enjoy the sci fi action genre. Works for me.I think MI3 looks okay. Definitely looks better than part 2.
potty break
January 19, 2012 at 1:17AM EST Reply to CommentI think "Prometheus" has to distance itself from "Alien" because THE aliens won't be in it. If you call it an "Alien" prequel there's a certain expectation. This way they can go there own way and any "Alien" DNA is a bonus. But it sounds like it will be the first of a two-part lead up to the original "Alien".
Jason
January 19, 2012 at 7:12AM EST Reply to CommentAt this point, I'm thinking the only way Lindsey Lohan's career recovers is if she becomes Tarantino's latest reclamation project.
And "Act of Valor" will not bomb. All they have to do is say "It's got Navy SEALs in it" and it'll do $40 million, minimum. (which Wiki tells me the budget was $15M to $18M).
That Werewolf Guy Sorry, but apart from Travolta, nobody ever had his or her career resurrected by appearing in a Tarantino movie. Quick! Name any big movie that Pam Grier made after JACKIE BROWN! Carradine after KILL BILL? Kurt Russell? (although in all fairness, he deliberately seems to work less these days and at least stays away from DTV garbage). Most of the time, getting role in one of QTs movie only means to be remembered by the public for a for months and then having to shoot hundreds of cameos and supporting roles in really awful DTV and SyFy original movies.
January 19, 2012 at 7:53PM ESTDave Would you accept Robert Rodriguez? Lindsey Lohan did a fine job in "Machete." And "Machete" was a great comedy.
January 19, 2012 at 8:26PM ESTGabriel
January 19, 2012 at 12:28PM EST Reply to CommentRidley has gone on record to say its an Alien prequel, but whether or not the studio still denies it; It's still one of the must-see movies of 2012. I still can't wait to see it no matter if its an Alien Prequel or not.
esense
January 19, 2012 at 7:19PM EST Reply to CommentNo Will Smith is a joke
Kyle
January 19, 2012 at 8:30PM EST Reply to CommentDarnit Will, you da man, why the heck would you do an M. Night movie???
The Indecider
January 20, 2012 at 12:29AM EST Reply to Comment1. I really hope so, Whedon is a damn good director when it comes to ensemble casts so he should have his work cut out for him with Avengers, not so sure about his horror film though
2. [insert hysterical laughter here] Yeah no, I can see Lilo becoming the real life version of Charlize Theron's character in "Young Adult" and that's being optimistic
3. The question isn't so much "is he still popular" but can he draw the same kind of audience he did ten years ago? This really will depend on the marketing and the press for MIB 3
4. The sudden crop of "Found footage films" will test the patience of audiences, especially after the dreck that was "The Devil Inside." Most likely though, these types of films will ultimately be forced to exclusive availability on Video On Demand services
5. It will probably do well in the first few weeks with no real big competition and from lasting nostalgia from people old enough to remember the original cast, other than that it will probably be pretty forgettable
6. It will probably be only very loosely related to the Alien franchise with the plot structure being almost identical to the Alien franchise
7. No, moving on...
8. They're set to release on opposite ends of the year, so it doesn't really matter which one anyone prefers
9. Probably not, "Mirror Mirror" may well be the nail in the coffin for them
10. NO.
11. Titanic, people aren't going to forget Jar Jar and pod racing that easily, not to mention James Cameron's name has become synonymous with a "3-D done well"
12. This one is really up in the air, I'm inclined to say no just because of how monumentally successful The Dark Knight was, but after seeing midnight ticket sales sell out so fast for the final installment I'm not so sure anymore. The fact that it's being marketed heavily already as the LAST batman movie from Nolan will probably have a big impact
13. I really don't get the similarities between this and Twilight. I'm a twentysomething straight male and I really dig the Hunger Games, it doesn't have characters that are two-dimenstional cut outs that spend half the book staring into the distance, it doesn't desecrate the image of a monster movie, and it's not f***ing twilight. It's got a stellar cast behind it, as well as a respected director in Gary Ross (Pleasantville, Seabiscuit) so hopefully it can find success.
14. Dear god, I just want them to give up on Akira. It's perfectly fine as a anime/manga series, it does not need to be adapted yet again. Hell, just setting it in America instead of Japan pretty much destroys any relevancy/ties to the original material.
15. She is well on her way, hopefully she doesn't end up like Zach Galifnakis, playing the same character over and over again
Chris
January 20, 2012 at 4:03AM EST Reply to CommentI'm so excited for Joss. He's so great at pushing boundaries, finding new stories to tell in creative ways while maintaining a genuine, unforced human element. My favorite thing he does may be the way he effortlessly write witty, smart dialogue that you just can't help but love. Forget the painfully wooden dialogue of George Lucas. Expect even talking scenes where nothing else is going on to be a riot with snappy interplay between actors. His cast always seems to love him and it leads to great performances. Hopefully things finally come together for him here and he reaches the level of success he been on the cusp of for years.
FannyTD
January 20, 2012 at 11:52AM EST Reply to CommentThey are making a mistake trying to make The Hunger Games the new Twilight saga. It is much more gore, violent, profound and agressive. And the girl isn't stupid, nor her life is directed by the boys she likes. The only similarity is a saga about a girl who's in a love triangle. But, being very different from no-personnality-i-obviously-come-from-a-fan-fiction-Bella-Swan, Katniss almost doesn't care about those guys until the 3rd book. I'm kinda tired of people comparing it to Twilight.
As for all those questions, why not add "WILL THEY FINALY MAKE THE ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT MOVIE, FOR CHRISTSAKE?"
Thrank They already are making it. Not only a movie but they are shooting ten episodes(which apparently will be aired on Netflix) as a precursor to a summer 2013 movie release. Look it up it's really happening:)
January 21, 2012 at 8:40AM ESTapril
January 22, 2012 at 11:49AM EST Reply to CommentThe Hunger Games is not Twilight! I know the studio is making it sound that way because they are greedy and want to cash in on Twilight's inexplicable success but it really pisses me off.
The Dark Knight Rises will be amazing but The Dark Knight was so great there will be people who are expecting too much and will be let down.
april
January 22, 2012 at 11:50AM EST Reply to CommentWrite a comment...The Hunger Games is not Twilight! I know the studio is making it sound that way because they are greedy and want to cash in on Twilight's inexplicable success but it really pisses me off.
The Dark Knight Rises will be amazing but The Dark Knight was so great there will be people who are expecting too much and will be let down.
Ole
January 22, 2012 at 6:25PM EST Reply to CommentFor fuck's sake, can people please stop thinking that TDK was Heath Ledger's last film? That "honor" belongs to The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus, which came out later the same year, but was a box office failure. So how does that fit in with your logic that TDKs success was "hinged" on "the actor's much-publicized untimely death"?
Fontaine
January 22, 2012 at 11:10PM EST Reply to CommentThe Dark Knight came out in 2008, not 2009.
Fontaine
January 22, 2012 at 11:10PM EST Reply to Comment'The Dark Knight' was released in 2008, not 2009.
fontaine
January 22, 2012 at 11:11PM EST Reply to Comment"The Dark Knight" was released in 2008, not 2009.
guestuser
January 23, 2012 at 10:06AM EST Reply to CommentThe Dark Knight was released in 2008, not 2009.
guestuser
January 23, 2012 at 10:07AM EST Reply to CommentThe Dark Knight was released in 2008, not 2009.
Louise Gee
January 23, 2012 at 7:05PM EST Reply to Comment2. She's dunzo. There are a lot of actresses her age that manage to stay away from the bottle and drugs, who are frankly more talented anyway.
3. Men in Black 3 will be huge because people love sequels, and none more than ones they've had to wait forever for, and yes Will Smith is still a big movie star.
5. No. These movies always sucked and always will suck.
7. I hope it bombs. I really don't like Seth McFarlane he seems so arrogant and Family Guy hasn't been funny for years. I'm so sick of his "Look what I can get away with" type comedies.
8. I think they both look awesome! Can't wait to see both.
9. It doesn't look too good. Act of Valor might be okay, but I think Mirror, Mirror will probably bomb, not least because of the fact that a much more exciting looking Snow White movie (with well known actresses like Kristen Stewart and Charlize Theron and super hot Chris Hemsworth (LOVE HIM!)I mean Mirror, Mirror has Julia Roberts and although she's made some good movies in the past, I think it's pretty obvious she's on her way out as far as Hollywood relevance goes.
10. I'm actually kind of rooting for this one. Who knows, maybe it will be awesome!
11. Titanic. I'm sure plenty of men will pay handsomely to see Kate Winslet's (then barely legal) boobs naked in 3-D!! ;D
12. It's possible. It looks awesome!!
13. I don't think it will be as big as Twilight, and certainly not as big as say, Harry Potter, but it will probably make some decent coin. Although I don't think the Twilight crowd will be as into it as they're hoping. It's much more action/ adventure and political than Twilight which is just a straight up romance with some pish-posh plot thrown it to give the story a plot.
15. I hope she is a huge star. She is wonderful and truly funny. Also, she seems really down to earth which is always like-able.
biji m.
January 24, 2012 at 1:16AM EST Reply to Commentdude, here's a question that should be keeping hollywood awake - how about "will most ANY semblance of your hundred year old crap-factory be gone in TWENTY years of just ten??" i ask because i just saw the, uh, "preview" for 'battleship'. (transforming alien robots - from hasbro, the toy company that shat three 'transformers' filcks on you). how fitting the movie's about large boats, cos hollywood seems to be currently busy stocking the silverware on the ####ing titanic.
ronjon104
January 25, 2012 at 11:41AM EST Reply to Commentgreat site! really has various profiles to visit! keep it up!
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