There’s no denying that superhero fatigue exists. If a studio’s superhero movie isn’t quite up to snuff, then people aren’t going to bother checking it out in theaters. Marvel Studios is even feeling that pain right now. But superhero fatigue can’t explain why “Madame Web” was such a huge bomb for Sony. There’s a laundry list of reasons why that film didn’t work. And according to one of the actors involved, fans have to look in the mirror to see why the film bombed.
In a new interview with Variety, actor Emma Roberts talked about her time working on “Madame Web.” While she doesn’t have a huge role in the film, she’s still really proud of the movie. In fact, she really believes “Madame Web” would have been way more successful if “internet culture” didn’t make the film into a joke.
READ MORE: ‘Madame Web’: Sydney Sweeney Remains Unphased; “I Was Just Hired As An Actress”
“I personally really loved ‘Madame Web.’ I really enjoyed the movie. I thought everyone in it was great,” said Roberts. “The director, S.J. Clarkson, I think did an amazing job. She’s the reason I wanted to do that movie. If it wasn’t for internet culture and everything being made into a joke, I think that the reception would’ve been different. And that’s what bums me out about a lot of stuff, even stuff that I’ve done, is people just make such a joke out of everything now.”
It would typically be easy for us to dunk on Roberts and list the myriad reasons why “Madame Web” was a failure (the plot, the acting, the writing, etc…) but the truth is the film really was doomed before it arrived in theaters. Why? The first trailer was turned into an instant meme because of the voiceover. But that’s not the only reason.
There was also all the interviews Dakota Johnson did where she seemed completely disinterested in the film and superhero films in general. Not a good look, right? Let’s not forget the superhero fatigue thing from above, where it takes a special movie for fans to get really excited about it. Otherwise, they’re probably going to wait for streaming.
Ultimately, the reason why “Madame Web” failed is simple—the film just isn’t good. The reviews were bad. Word of mouth was bad. And the marketing couldn’t salvage it. But to only blame “internet culture” is just not honest.
If you haven’t seen “Madame Web” yet, you can watch it on Netflix.