'Fantastic Four' Cast and News Update: Studio Feud Continues; A Look at Past Director and Studio Feuds
After "Fantastic Four" disappointed opening weekend, it seems the feud between 20th Century Fox and director Josh Trank has continued.
In a recent article by the Hollywood Reporter, it was revealed that the troubled film had many issues from the onset. According to the article, Trank was resistant to being helped during the writing process and was also closed off from the rest of the production team. According to crew members, "He holed up in a tent and cut himself off from everybody. Literally, there was a tent on the Louisiana set. He built a black tent around his monitor. He was extremely withdrawn."
However, not all the blame was placed on the director. Crewmembers noted that the film was made for the wrong reasons as Fox wanted to retain the rights to the franchise. According to that crew member, the film was "ill-conceived, made for the wrong reasons and there was no vision behind the property."
This is not the first feud between a studio and a director, and it will definitely not be the last. Last year there was a much publicized feud between Harvey Weinstein and director Olivier Dahan over the cut of "Grace of Monaco." After a disastrous screening at the Cannes Film Festival, the film was re-edited but released on Lifetime.
Weinstein also had a feud with director Bong Joon-ho over the cut of the film, "Snowpiercer," that would be released. Weinstein wanted the film to be shortened, but director Joon-ho refused to cut the movie. While the director ultimately won, the Weinstein Company did not keep its promise to release the film nationwide and switched the distributor to Radius TWC.
Other feuds have included Doug Liman and Universal for "The Bourne Identity" and the much publicized feud between Marc Foster and Paramount over the ending of "World War Z." Ultimately some of these films ended in success, but "Fantastic Four" was a complete disaster.
As for Fox retaining rights to the property, that is definitely not the first time. For example "The Amazing Spider-Man" was made in 2012 in order for Sony to keep the rights to the franchise. After Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire left the franchise, plans for fourth, fifth and sixth installments were scrapped. As a result, the studio decided to reboot the franchise hoping to retain the fanbase but also to capture a new base.
The plan was to also create a new type of Spider-man, and as a result the studio hired an indie director. While the 2012 film was a success, the disappointing box office to the sequel in 2014 threw Sony's plans for a third film as well as Sinister Six spinoff out the window. Sony attempted to expand the Spider-man world in the same way that Marvel did with the Avengers but ultimately failed. As a result, the company is now teaming up with Marvel to make the next film. Additionally, Spider-man will appear in the new "Captain America" film.
Fox has plans for a new installment in 2017, but based on the box office, it is likely the sequel will be canceled. For one thing Trank is unlikely to return, and the director will have a hard time opening doors in the studio world. The director was already fired from a Star Wars film, and the terrible publicity on this Fantastic Four film has tarnished his reputation.
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