Black Widow movie: MCU risky ventures still have people in doubt
By Tony Smejek
Black Widow movie adds Star Wars 9 art director on board for Marvel flick. People are still skeptical of the studios’ risk-taking behavior. History proves time and again otherwise.
The Black Widow movie is slated for 2020 and more crew people are hopping on board. The project is rumored to start production in February. Now, Star Wars: Episode IX’s art director Jim Barr is also joining the production crew, according to HN Entertainment. He already has notoriety in the MCU via Avengers: Infinity War, so with a backing from an already experienced set of talent, why the doubt?
Social media sphere expresses skepticism for risk-taking
Fans in the social media sphere seem to still have their doubt with an R-rated Black Widow movie, according to a compilation of tweets put together by Complex. The online site reports in the headline that people have their “thoughts” on the idea, but from what I read in the tweets, it sounds more like doubt and skepticism, which prompted me to express my “thoughts” to prove otherwise.
I am guessing some people aren’t entirely familiar with the success of the previous MCU hits. I believe Marvel Studios’ mantra is about breaking ground and delving into an unexplored area of the entertainment industry. It looks like some people fail to recognize the company’s vision. But I feel with greater risk come greater rewards.
Successful projects prove otherwise.
Guardians of the Galaxy
People doubted a Guardians of the Galaxy on-screen adaption. I was even skeptical because I personally think that was a point where people weren’t too familiar with these galactic characters. I’ve thought characters like Thor or the Hulk are well-known household names.
A DC equivalent would be Superman and Batman. I could say, “Everyone knows who THEY are!”. Am I right?
More from Movies
- The story of a French emperor: Here’s where Napoleon will stream after theaters
- The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes honors its origins and far surpasses them
- Thanksgiving movie death toll: Why [SPOILER] is still alive
- No, Thanksgiving is not streaming yet (But here’s where it’ll land)
- Trolls Band Together soundtrack guide: Which songs play in the movie?
An adaptive take of a talking raccoon and tree was the most brought up point in an argument regarding this risky decision. However, Marvel Studios was able to pull it off and the studio’s president Kevin Feige was willing to take that risk. He addressed this just prior to the film’s release, citing that they “wanted to introduce this new universe in the summer when people bemoan sequels and retreads and reboots and do something that’s fresh and original”.
The one thing about Marvel Studios is their ability to be able to afford to experiment with their visions. This of course brought forth several financial successes which likely allowed for that. Feige was also looking to the big picture that the success of this movie would usher into other films exploring the cosmic side of the MCU.
Deadpool
Enter Deadpool, an obviously R-rated flick that received grand acceptance and sidesplitting laughs. That is at least what I gathered from reviews, opinions, and of course my peers sitting with me in the audience. Disney CEO Bob Iger even assured people when the FOX buyout occurred that there’d be no problem keeping Ryan Reynold’s character within the R-rated category, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
That said, why would a Black Widow movie be any less of a success. In fact, I would say this is quite on par with Deadpool when making comparisons.
Deadpool was a rather risky venture itself as he was an unconventional character that has never been done before on the big screen. In fact, he’d likely be an even bigger risk than Guardians because he breaks the fourth wall in the comics and shamelessly wallows in raunchy humor. I found that Wade Wilson’s fourth wall breaking antics on the big screen to be a resounding success, evidenced by belly laughs from the audience.
Iron Man
Enter Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark. The celebrity was considered an un-insurable risk due to his drug abuse history and in the late 2000s, director Jon Favreau would step into unfamiliar territory. The only science-fiction related project I recall him partaking in prior to Iron Man was a Jumanji-like equivalent, Zathura: A Space Adventure. I do admit, the director is of considerable talent and I had been impressed with his other projects like Chef, Jungle Book, and some of the characters he’s played.
Blade
Did everyone forget about Blade at this point? He seems to be overlooked as this half human/half vampire does not fall in within the realm of a superhero. He’s unique in his own sense and had proven successful in 1998 when it was released during a time when Marvel Comics had lost considerable readership. This was around the same time the mature-based Marvel Knights comics were released in an effort to “redefine the books they sold” in the paper-bound industry. This attempt was made in order to re-ignite interest in Marvel Comics, according to a piece via The Hollywood Reporter.
Feige further reinforced this in a recent exclusive by JoBlo by not leaving out both the 2000 X-Men movie and the Blade flick for they date back beyond the launching of Iron Man in 2008. He mentioned his 17-year tenure with Marvel which goes beyond the celebrated 10 year anniversary of the MCU.
He even gave thought to give the legacy half-vampiric character yet another movie. If any comparisons can be made that are MOST similar, it is between Blade and Black Widow. Deadpool is comedic and I’m guessing a Black Widow movie will have a more shared tone with that of the Wesley Snipes flick.
"“We think it would be cool. Someday. My tenure at Marvel started 17 years ago, and there were two things that sort of launched the modern era. One was X-Men, which was the first thing that people said, “Oh, there’s life here.” But a few years before that, there was Blade“."
Doubt of an R-rated MCU flick
A Black Widow movie has been given doubt via the Complex site compilation, one of which mentioned the studios experimenting with an R-rating. It seems some people in the general Internet population aren’t familiar with Deadpool being a MAJOR experiment and risk. Guess how that turned out?
Steve Sonneveld of the Don’t Call Me Sweetheart show gave his take regarding the studios’ experimentation.
"“I sincerely hope the MCU isn’t experimenting with an R rating on Black Widow just so they can blame it on being a female-driven film if it fails”."
It would seem Steve believes Marvel would go as far to place blame on THAT? I’m not sure how he can even speculate such a thing, but opinions are opinions. This just gives the studios another chance to prove the doubtful otherwise. He’s hoping the MCU isn’t experimenting, when in fact that’s all they’ve been doing is breaking ground and exploring the unexplored of big screen adaptations.
Another ventured to say that an R-rating won’t benefit anyone. Of course, kids won’t be able to see it alone, but don’t forget they can still be accompanied by an adult, most likely a comic book fan/parent.
But I think that argument doesn’t hold much water because it’s not relevant to the entertainment value of the project. Don’t forget, there was a Marvel Knights version of Black Widow, so who knows that particular run of comics could inspire the on-screen adaption, yes?
In conclusion, I can understand people having their doubts in any unexplored area of show business or just life occurrences in general. People are entitled to their opinions, but I think people need to be educated if an entity has historically done well with previously-done risks.
I do recall that George Lucas mentioned in an interview that the bigwigs of his era weren’t keen on investing in sci-fi because it was so expensive. Marvel Studios gained some financial traction with its previous movies, so I would venture to say they had the finances to take risks on movies like Guardians, Deadpool, and so on.
Marvel movies are delving into Phase 4, which means exploring characters unfamiliar with movie goers as opposed to hardcore comic book geeks. I am thinking though, that Marvel Studios’ agenda is to get the mainstream familiar with even the most obscure of characters.
ComicBook.com reported on this very thing via a “Marvel Studios: First Ten Years” publication where Feige had pretty much summed up his company when it comes to risk taking in one quote and attributed it to a gut check. I feel what Kevin said here can lay this argument to rest.
"“We believe that what we’re working on has value. The risks and creative chances that we’re taking are in service to creating something an audience will respond to, something unique and different. I believe deeply that’s what filmgoers want – to be surprised and to have expectations exceeded. You don’t know until it’s out, but all we’ve done since Phase One is go with our gut.”"
I can compare the MCU to that of Star Trek. Captain Kirk was all about teaching young people taking a command position that risk is part of the job if you are sitting in the captain’s chair.
Do you feel that this is a risk like any other risk that the studios have taken? Do you feel it will achieve success just like any of the other previous risky ventures? Share in the comments below.
The Black Widow movie is projected for a 2020 release.