Ken

It's funny that for all of DC's shortcomings: Man of Steel, Suicide Squad, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Shazam, and even Joker and The Batman were all successful enough to get follow-ups. That's better than what a lot of other blockbuster hopefuls in the last decade got.

Looking back a year later: so many bombs/flops, and only ONE title that didn't make it this year. Three more to go, and then: Dune Mickey 17 Godzilla x Kong Furiosa The Watchers Horizon 1&2 Trap Beetlejuice Joker Alto Knights The Lord of the Rings anime

This already has more pages than the Wakanda Forever thread from last year?! This is why I'm too scared to talk to you...

I never understood why Star Wars discussion threads always devolve into a heated argument about Tommy Lee Jones.

Even in the 21st century, people still heed the warning of "Don't touch that dial!"

This thread reminds me of The Itchy & Scratchy Movie episode.

What is really needed is another Prince of Persia/John Carter/Lone Ranger/Tomorrowland/Wrinkle in Time/Artemis Fowl-type film to get made and actually be a success.

We're only halfway through the year now, and I've already got wishes/predictions for next year: -I strongly feel The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is the one big movie scheduled this year that could benefit the most from a delay to 2024. -Ghostbusters 4 and other titles currently in production could be ready for 2024, but they shouldn't be rushed. -Dirty Dancing 2 and The Karate Kid will be removed from the calendar since they haven't started production yet. (Neither has Sonic 3 and Thunderbolts, which may be too close a deadline). -Deadpool shouldn't be May, Beyond the Spider-Verse shouldn't be 2024 at all. -The Memorial Day weekend has too many scheduled right now, at least 2 of them should move. -Mission Impossible DR Pt 2 needs more time. -At least one of the major streaming services will shutter or merge with another.

Speaking of Disney, it's so funny that in the same year as three Marvel films, an Indiana Jones revival, a remake of The Little Mermaid, all the hoopla about the company's centennial, and general talk about Iger's plans for more film/TV/theme park IP and strengthening Disney+: they're also releasing a new Yorgos Lanthimos film.

This film's development was (fittingly?) a wild ride. When Disney landed the rights to Indy, I remember a person or two on the internet advocating continuing the franchise with an animated series. Then there was chatter about a complete reboot starring someone younger like Bradley Cooper or Chris Pratt. Ultimately, I think they decided to go with a fifth film because a) Ford came off a very warm reception from TFA, b) Spielberg came off of Oscar-winning Bridge of Spies, and c) they still badly wanted redemption from Crystal Skull even though everyone had gotten over it after eight years. Interestingly, this was announced while they were working on Solo, a prequel starring a younger guy in the title role. Then the date shifted from 2019 to 2020 (as their first post-sequel trilogy production) to 2021 (when Jon Kasdan wrote a draft) to 2022 (when Mangold replaced Spielberg), and after they finally shot the film: it was delayed again to 2023. And if the movie does indeed tank after all that? Well, at least they have a shiny new non-Marvel, non-Star Wars film to pad out Disney+, I suppose.

Want to know why I think Universal is pretty much dumping this film? I have a theory that the American studios that greenlight animated family films tend to avoid okaying those with high school teenagers as the lead, fearing it would alienate the 5 to 12-year-old demographic. That's pretty ironic, considering there are far more of these films with fully-grown adults at the center which have been pretty successful. Just to be clear: I'm not one of those "animation's just for kids" people, I'm speaking strictly from a studio perspective: especially with how costly and time-consuming these productions get.

No time for love.

Most of them never wanted this film to exist in the first place, primarily due to Ford's age. The fact it got finished after so many years of development, and the reception so far being more-or-less the same as Crystal Skull is what's making them question why Lucasfilm went through the trouble. (But we can't say definitely if it was worth it until the numbers actually come through!)

I was merely 10 years old when the last movie came out, and despite it already being an old property, I remember it being aggressively marketed at my demographic with lots of toys and video games and I think food tie-ins. (I'm no Lucas worshipper, but the man was all about that "capturing the youth" type of marketing). This film feels like it's aimed exclusively towards older crowds and anyone already into the franchise (the ones that regularly attend the Disney theme park attractions). Doesn't even have that "generational" hype of The Force Awakens or even last year's Avatar.

Also of note: other long-talked-about-but-stalled Spielberg-involved sequels from the past include Goonies 2, Gremlins 3, Roger Rabbit 2, Tintin 2, Ready Player Two, and the bizarre script for ET 2. I have no idea if Jaws 5 or BTTF 4 were ever seriously discussed.