In 2024, February 14th doesn’t only mark Valentine’s Day but also the release of Madame Web, Sony’s newest Spider-Man spinoff.
Sony’s Spider-Man Universe (SSU) has also seen the releases of Venom, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, and notable box office flop Morbius. Sony Pictures Animation has also released the critically and commercially acclaimed Spider-Verse films, independent of the SSU.
In an age where the more successful Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has struggled with box office success on films like The Marvels, many are questioning why Sony Pictures are risking putting out films with obscure characters like the previously mentioned Madame Web, Morbius and even El Muerto, a film which is currently in development limbo after Puerto Rican rapper and actor Bad Bunny left the project.
When asked what film studios like Sony Pictures have to do to combat “superhero movie fatigue”, Fanshawe Pre-Media student Ryan Boyington says the solution is simple: make quality films.
“Really, what you need is just quality”, Boyington says, “You need to make a quality [movie or] TV Show, disconnected from this bigger universe, and people will watch it if it’s good”. They highlight the Spider-Verse and Guardians of the Galaxy films as specific examples.
Boyington also added that audiences don’t want to see spinoff films with obscure characters, “The difference between a good Spider-Man movie and Madame Web is the fact that Spider-Man is in it”.
As of its release on Wednesday, Madame Web has received largely negative reviews, with critic Cris Parker calling it “An embarrassing mess”, adding that it’s “talented stars [were] wasted on probably the worst comic book movie I have ever seen”. The film is expected to gross around $20-$25 million over six days. The film’s budget is said to be $80 million.
Almost 107’s episode on superhero movie fatigue releases on all podcast platforms on February 21st. You can watch a preview of the episode below:
Comments