Dakota Johnson is said to be in hot water with Sony and the team behind Madame Web after angering bosses by making multiple public digs at the Marvel film amid its poor box office performance.
The Fifty Shades Of Gray star, 34, plays the titular superhero in the $80 million production which was torn to shreds by critics and viewers alike after its release on Valentine’s Day.
The film has grossed a paltry $40 million at the domestic box office to date, after scoring one of the lowest superhero debuts in recent memory, taking in a paltry $15.1 million in its opening weekend.
Now, Dakota is reportedly accused of ‘dragging’ the film and not taking ‘any responsibility’ after admitting she hadn’t seen the film herself – before making several damning statements about the production.
“Many people at Sony doubt her star power, and how she responded to this failure will likely come back to haunt her,” an insider told DailyMail.com exclusively.
Dakota Johnson is in trouble with Madame Webb bosses, sources claim, after the actress made several public digs at the Marvel film
They claimed that bosses were fine with Dakota’s costar Sydney Sweeney making a playful joke on Saturday Night Live, but drew the line at Dakota’s constant barbs.
‘IIt’s fine to joke about your movie not doing well and even lean on the bad reviews, like Sydney Sweeney did on SNL with her monologue – but producers and Sony aren’t laughing at Dakota’s constant whining about how they consequences of Madame Web and that she does not take any responsibility for the poor results,” they said.
“Not every movie will work, but there’s a lot of hard work that goes into even bad movies and when your star is on it, it looks bad.”
They continued, “Dakota is looked down upon for her talk about the movie because everyone in production thinks, what if the movie was still the same, but also a box office gem?
“She’d be talking about sequels and probably praising herself for the luck of it.”
During a recent interview with RushDakota – who is reportedly engaged to boyfriend Chris Martin – hinted that she predicted the public reaction.
“Unfortunately, I’m not surprised this happened this way,” she said.
‘But it was definitely an experience for me to make that film. I had never done anything like this before. I’ll probably never do something like that again, because I don’t feel like being in that world. And I know that now.’
She continued, “Sometimes in this industry you sign up for something, and it’s one thing, and then when you make it, it becomes something completely different, and you’re like, ‘Wait, what?’
During a recent interview with Bustle, Dakota — who is reportedly engaged to boyfriend Chris Martin — hinted that she predicted the public reaction to the box office flop.
Disgruntled moviegoers expressed their disgust online, with one person calling the film “a series of misses and wasted opportunities” on X
“But it was a real learning experience, and of course it’s not fun to be part of something that’s torn to shreds, but I can’t say I don’t understand it.”
Dakota plays the titular character Cassandra Webb, a paramedic from New York City
She then seemed to take a stab at movie bosses when she explained, “It’s so hard to get movies made, and in these big movies that are getting made – and it’s even starting to happen with the little ones, and that’s what really scares me makes – decisions are made by committees, and art doesn’t do well when it’s made by committees.
‘Films are made by a filmmaker and a team of artists around them. You can’t create art based on numbers and algorithms. I have long felt that the public is extremely smart, and executives have come to believe that this is not the case.
‘The public will always be able to sniff out bulls**t. Even if films are made with AI, people will no longer want to see them.’
The insider warned that Dakota’s comments could come back to haunt her, but admitted she was just one new movie success away from getting back in the good graces of executives.
“In typical Hollywood fashion, if Dakota’s next movie is a big hit, everyone will kiss her again,” they said. “Not so much right now.”
Dakota, the daughter of Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson, plays Cassandra Webb, a New York City paramedic who has psychic abilities thanks to a mutated gene, similar to the concept of X-Men.
A source told DailyMail.com: ‘Many people at Sony doubt her star power, and how she responded to this failure will likely come back to haunt her.’
The Sony Pictures production scored one of the lowest superhero box office debuts in recent memory, essentially thwarting a potential franchise at the studio
Her character is faced with the task of protecting three women from an enigmatic opponent.
The film belongs to Sony’s Spider-Man universe, clearly separate from the Disney-owned Marvel Cinematic Universe.
This film could now potentially be one of the final collaborations between Sony and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, following Disney’s acquisition of Marvel.
Indeed, critics called the film ‘as stupid and schlocky as the worst of the genre‘ and a ridiculous thing‘ – with the film debuting with a 12 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Disgruntled moviegoers also expressed their disgust online, with one person calling the film “a series of misses and missed opportunities” on X.
Another described it as “a clumsy, poorly written, messy and sloppy film full of mediocre editing and performances.”
Since the film was budgeted at $80 million, it would almost certainly be difficult to turn a profit
The film would kick off a new franchise, with Madame Web using her clairvoyant powers to assist three new Spider Women: Sydney Sweeney’s Julia Cornwall, Isabela Merced’s Anya Corazon, and Celeste O’Connor’s Mattie Franklin.
Rotten Tomatoes’ ratings currently sit at 57 percent, a marked improvement but not too remarkable.
The film also receives mediocre marks from fans on CinemaScore (C+) and just 1.5 stars on PostTrak, via Deadline.
Speaking on February 17 after the film’s release, Dakota confirmed this Magic FM that she had not seen the movie and said, “I don’t know when I’ll see it.” One day.’
After humorously recalling skipping the premiere of Madame Web to “go to dinner” instead, Dakota insisted her decision had nothing to do with the movie itself.
“For me, it’s a way to avoid having an existential crisis,” she admitted. “Not watching my movies is like self-care.”