The Real Reason Why Madame Web Was a Flop – It's Not Superhero Fatigue

Summary

• So far, Madame Web is the biggest flop of 2024.
• A general trend in the industry may be to blame for the movie's poor performance – not superhero fatigue.
• Madame Web isn't what its star had in mind when she signed on for the role.

After the huge success of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, which grossed $691 million at the box office, many people expected Sony's Madame Web to be the next hit. However, when the movie premiered exactly one month ago, it proved to be a flop.

Earning around $97 million worldwide, Madame Web barely made back its $80 million budget. While it may seem that the film has fallen victim to the superhero movie fatigue that has tarnished the reputations of many recent releases such as The Marvels and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantimania, that doesn't seem to be the case, as the Sony film received mostly negative reviews from both critics and audiences, who unanimously called out the production for its treatment of the source material and its rather twisted and uninvolving storytelling.

The Root of All Evil

Dakota Johnson, who played the title character in Madame Web, wasn't surprised by the film's failure. According to the actress, there's a specific reason why more and more productions are underperforming these days.

'Decisions are being made by committees, and art does not do well when it's made by committee. Films are made by a filmmaker and a team of artists around them. You cannot make art based on numbers and algorithms,' Johnson shared in a recent interview.

The actress is adamant that audiences should be treated with respect – as smart and very shrewd people who won't respond to mediocrity and will recognize a lousy job when they see one, whether it's done by a human or an AI.

Why Did Madame Web Fail?

Dakota Johnson portrayed Cassandra Webb in the movie, but interestingly enough, she wasn't the first actress considered for the role. Remarkably, Sony targeted even more prominent actresses like Amy Adams and Charlize Theron to play the title character. But eventually the company came to Johnson, who was cast in early 2022. And apparently the Madame Web we have isn't the movie the actress signed on for, so its failure has to do with the inconsistency of the idea itself.

'Sometimes in this industry, you sign on to something, and it's one thing and then as you're making it, it becomes a completely different thing, and you're like, "Wait, what?" But it was a real learning experience, and of course it's not nice to be a part of something that's ripped to shreds, but I can't say that I don't understand,' Dakota Johnson explained.

Before Madame Web, the actress had no experience with superhero movies, so she didn't know what to expect from the production or what it was supposed to be. Now, with the Sony film under her belt, Johnson doubts she will ever do a superhero movie again, as the genre has proven not to be her cup of tea.

Source: Bustle.