Marvel films are ruining cinema, says Brian Cox as actor warns industry is in a ‘very bad way’ and beginning to ‘implode’ due to the glut of high-paying and high-grossing movies in superhero franchise
Award-winning Scottish actor Brian Cox has slammed Marvel, saying the film industry is doing “really badly” and that the film giant is to blame.
The 78-year-old, who is best known for his starring role in the HBO series Succession, said the financial pressures of comic book adaptations were causing films to struggle.
Brian said that high-paying, profitable films have made it a “party time” for actors because they can make a lot of money. This has led to the downfall of cinema.
The actor himself reaped the rewards of this when he starred in Marvel’s X2: X-Men United, playing Dr. William Stryker, the man responsible for the creation of Wolverine.
Brian said during his speech at the Edinburgh International Film Festival: ‘What’s happening is that television is doing what cinema used to do.
Actor Brian Cox, 78, says the cinema has fallen into ‘really bad shape’
The star says Marvel is to blame and pointed to Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman (pictured) in Deadpool & Wolverine as an example
The Scottish actor spoke from experience when he played Dr. William Stryker in Marvel’s X2: X-Men United
“I think cinema is in a really bad way. I think it’s lost its place, partly because of the grand element between Marvel, DC and all that stuff. And I think it’s starting to implode. You’re losing the plot a little bit.”
The Hollywood Reporter said he was discussing Deadpool & Wolverine’s Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman while referencing how movies “make a lot of money that makes everyone happy, but in terms of the work, it gets watered down after that. You get the same old… I mean, I’ve done that kind of stuff [projects]’.
Brian also said, “For certain actors, it’s just a party to do this.
‘If you know Hugh Jackman can do a little bit more, Ryan Reynolds… but that’s because they’re going that route and it’s making box office.
“They make a lot of money. You can’t ignore that.”
Brian told the audience that television is becoming more popular because “you have the honor of telling the story over a longer period of time.”
The Times reported that Marvel has released 33 films since 2008 and they have dominated the box office.
Avengers: Endgame grossed almost $3 billion (£2.3 billion), becoming the highest-grossing film of the past decade.
There are three other Marvel films in the top 10.
Spider-Man has been made nine times in different ways, starring Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield and Tom Holland, among others. Shameik Moore provided the voice for the animated version.
There have been three Guardians of the Galaxy films, and Robert Downey Jr. starred in three Iron Man films before his character appeared in the four Avengers crossovers.
The crossover, which brings together characters from several Marvel franchises, stars Thor, played by Chris Hemsworth.
Samuel L. Jackson holds the record for most lead actors in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, having appeared as the character Nick Fury 15 times since 2008.
Brian’s comments come just months after Disney “put a number of projects on hold” due to the implosion of the Marvel superhero film series.
Disney CEO Bob Iger told investors in March that the entertainment giant was focused on making quality movies that audiences would want to see.
Superhero films like The Marvels and last year’s Ant-Man sequel suffered losses, as did other new films like Haunted Mansion and Jungle Cruise.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and Haunted Mansion were also panned by critics, with the latter earning a particularly poor 37 percent average on Rotten Tomatoes.
Iger said Disney “has already stopped a couple of projects because we didn’t think they were strong enough,” while the company tried to support the most promising projects.
“You have to kill things that you don’t believe in anymore. And that’s not easy in this business. Because either you’ve started, you have some … costs,” he told an investors conference.
It’s a relationship with your employees or with a creative community. And that’s not easy. But you have to make those tough decisions.
“We’ve actually made those tough decisions. We haven’t been as public about it.”
Iger gave no indication as to which projects were canceled, but he stressed that this was only because they did not meet his high standards.
“You have to look at everything you make, what you believe in. And you have to take a position that good is not good enough. You have to strive for perfection, basically.”
How Marvel Made Its Billions: Full List of Studios’ Movies and How Much They’ve Grossed Since 2008
While it’s difficult to put a number on the ever-increasing revenue from Marvel films, it currently stands at $13.9 billion.
Topping the list of 18 films is Marvel’s The Avengers, released in 2012, which grossed $1,518,812,988 worldwide.
The second film in the same franchise is Avengers: Age of Ultron, which grossed $1,405,403,694 after its release in 2015.
Iron Man 3 ranks third for the studio, grossing $1,214,811,252 after its release in 2013.
Topping the list of 18 films is Marvel’s The Avengers (pictured), released in 2012, which grossed $1,518,812,988 worldwide
And Black Panther, which only came out last week, is already breaking records with a whopping $426,751,965 grossed at the box office.
Here’s the full list of Marvel movies – and how much they grossed at the box office:
- Marvel’s The Avengers (2012) – $1,518,812,988
- Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) – $1,405,403,694
- Iron Man 3 (2013) – $1,214,811,252
- Captain America: Civil War (2016) – $1,153,304,495
- Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) – $880,166,924
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) – $863,732,512
- Thor: Ragnarok (2017) – $853,456,806
- Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) – $773,328,629
- Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) – $714,264,267
- Doctor Strange (2016) – $677,718,395
- Thor: The Dark World (2013) – $644,571,402
- Iron Man 2 (2010) – $623,933,331
- Iron Man (2008) – $585,174,222
- Ant-Man (2015) – $519,311,965
- Thor (2011) – $449,326,618
- Black Panther (2018) – $426,751,965
- Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) – $370,569,774
- The Incredible Hulk (2008) – $263,427,551