Weekend Thread (3/18-20) | Weekend Actuals: Batman 36.7, Jujutsu Kaisen 17.7, Uncharted 7.8, X 4.4, Dog 4

[excel1]

32 minutes ago, Noctis said:

 

He would have been a terrible Batman. Guy should have taken the $100m and ran with it.

 

He faded into obscurity because he's insanely bland.

 

Nolan's Batman was bland aside from the ridiculous Bat voice. Josh Hartnett's performances were deemed good-to-great in Black Hawk Down, the underrated Sleven and that high school version of Othello. Everyone preferred Hartnett's presence to Affleck in Pearl Harbor. The problem Hartnett would have had as Batman would have been with die hard fans who would have complained about a male-model pretty boy type being cast. There would have been a section of fandom who would not have taken him seriously. Bale was the fan favorite throughout the casting process and brought some artistic credibility to the role thanks to his turn in American Psycho. Compared to Bale, Hartnett would have been a warmer, more handsome, more sincere, dare I say more likable Bruce Wayne than Bale's cold, tough, angsty portrayal but it definitely would have worked just fine, he was more than qualified for what the script called for. That one is actually pretty easy to call.

 

Superman, on the other hand, would have required an energy that we hadn't seen from him in anything.

Edited March 21, 2022 by excel1

[EmpireCity]

Are you guys for real on Josh Hartnett??

 

The guy with the personality of a pet rock?

[excel1]

8 minutes ago, EmpireCity said:

Are you guys for real on Josh Hartnett??

 

The guy with the personality of a pet rock?

 

I don't think anyone is saying he should have been this or that, mores just pointing out where he was positioned within the industry at one point and time how that occurred. Using your analogy, he got about as big as a pet rock will get because of some generally well received turns in a few high profile films in a row. He is one of a few solid examples demonstrating that young actors who audience get to meet through high profile films will always be the most famous than actors audiences meet through tv shows or minor hit films. That is largely why Hartnett and his "pet rock" personality would have been Nolans Batman or the 2000S Superman if he wanted to be. The stature of starting with those giant films is just that much larger. WB is definitely looking to do introduce others in similar manner - in the midst of doing that with Austin Butler, are doing that with Chalamet, and I would bet are beginning to do that with Centineo. 

Edited March 21, 2022 by excel1

[EmpireCity]

You guys all know that the $100m offer is total bullshit as well, right?  Complete nonsense it never happened

[EmpireCity]

Also it isn’t like Pearl Harbor was well received. It was pretty much mocked from the start when it came out.  Hartnett is also the weak link by far in Black Hawk down.  

 

These takes are absolutely crazy to me and honestly have no basis in reality. He got a couple decent films and flamed out terribly as quick as he came he was gone.

[Legion Again]

1 minute ago, EmpireCity said:

Also it isn’t like Pearl Harbor was well received. It was pretty much mocked from the start when it came out.  Hartnett is also the weak link by far in Black Hawk down.  

 

These takes are absolutely crazy to me and honestly have no basis in reality. He got a couple decent films and flamed out terribly as quick as he came he was gone.

I’m not sure what you’re arguing against. That is pretty much everyone’s take.

[BruiseCruise]

Did Josh bang your wife or something? 

[EmpireCity]

Just now, BruiseCruise said:

Did Josh bang your wife or something? 

 

Nope. I just have never heard these crazy takes  that he was the hottest star in Hollywood and cannot believe anyone thinks $100 million offer was legitimate. It wasn’t. It never happened.

[snarkmachine]

4 minutes ago, EmpireCity said:

Also it isn’t like Pearl Harbor was well received. It was pretty much mocked from the start when it came out.  Hartnett is also the weak link by far in Black Hawk down.  

 

These takes are absolutely crazy to me and honestly have no basis in reality. He got a couple decent films and flamed out terribly as quick as he came he was gone.

 

I'm with you. Most of these stars just broke out in the last five years....or haven't even yet in the case of Austin Butler. Big roles fade so quickly. Stardom is fleeting and the next hot thing is just around the corner. Almost none of the people mentioned have proved to be any type of box office draw or to have any kind of longevity. 

Edited March 21, 2022 by snarkmachine

[BruiseCruise]

Just now, EmpireCity said:

 

Nope. I just have never heard these crazy takes  that he was the hottest star in Hollywood and cannot believe anyone thinks $100 million offer was legitimate. It wasn’t. It never happened.

If you were offered Batman and Superman in the early 2000's then its pretty safe to say that he was a pretty highly sought after actor regardless of whether the 100mil is true or not, nobody here said he was the best actor in the world or that he's some big name now just that he could have been if he'd seized those roles 

[excel1]

1 minute ago, EmpireCity said:

You guys all know that the $100m offer is total bullshit as well, right?  Complete nonsense it never happened

 

Yes it did. It is noted in the 2008 book Superman vs. Hollywood from a source directly associated with Brett Ratner. It was late 2002  and Hartnett was the only actor that both the studio and filmmakers agreed on. It was the third time they offered him the role and it potential $100m -3 film base deal but they never even got to the details, he just said no. He was truly a kid (like 21 or 22) and personally felt he would suck as the character. The mega offer was widely reported at the time (I remember) and is still all over the internet with a quick google. 

[Eric the IF]

I still have no idea who this Josh Hartnett is and I only know who he is because Excel won't stop yapping about him. I'm half-convinced Excel made this dude up.

[BruiseCruise]

Regardless I can't think of a single actor below 30 that has shown that he/she can open an original film on their name alone and I doubt we will get one with the way hollywood is trending

[excel1]

7 minutes ago, EmpireCity said:

 

Nope. I just have never heard these crazy takes  that he was the hottest star in Hollywood and cannot believe anyone thinks $100 million offer was legitimate. It wasn’t. It never happened.

 

I'm not sure what you are reading, but nowhere in this thread does it say he was ever the hottest star in Hollywood. He was, absolutely, the biggest "young" early 20s male movie star at one point in time, hence where these major offers came from in the first place. But I don't see anyone one here claiming he was Will Smith or Leo Dicaprio. At his peak, he was at a somewhat unique position where he was extremely famous among young women similar to a pop singer, but he happened to be a mainstream actor. 

 

And the $100m offer is noted in the book directly from people associated with the production at the time. Sorry but that is obviously a better source than yourself. 

[excel1]

9 minutes ago, snarkmachine said:

 

I'm with you. Most of these stars just broke out in the last five years....or haven't even yet in the case of Austin Butler. Big roles fade so quickly. Stardom is fleeting and the next hot thing is just around the corner. Almost none of the people mentioned have proved to be any type of box office draw or to have any kind of longevity. 

 

The strategy is almost certainly to pair the name actors with preexisting IP down the line. Wonka will be a real test with Chalamet, similar to Uncharted with Holland. 

[EmpireCity]

6 minutes ago, excel1 said:

 

Yes it did. It is noted in the 2008 book Superman vs. Hollywood from a source directly associated with Brett Ratner. It was late 2002  and Hartnett was the only actor that both the studio and filmmakers agreed on. It was the third time they offered him the role and it potential $100m -3 film base deal but they never even got to the details, he just said no. He was truly a kid (like 21 or 22) and personally felt he would suck as the character. The mega offer was widely reported at the time (I remember) and is still all over the internet with a quick google. 

 

It wasn’t a real offer though and it certainly wasn’t $100 million. They try to act like if it hit certain numbers then it could be potentially worth that much but he was getting a much much much smaller guarantee amount.  There was no studio on the face of the earth that was going to fucking offer Josh Arnett of all people $100 million. It’s just a crock of shit

[excel1]

25 minutes ago, EmpireCity said:

Also it isn’t like Pearl Harbor was well received. It was pretty much mocked from the start when it came out.  Hartnett is also the weak link by far in Black Hawk down.  

 

These takes are absolutely crazy to me and honestly have no basis in reality. He got a couple decent films and flamed out terribly as quick as he came he was gone.

 

To be fair...Pearl Harbor negativity went mostly to Bay and Affleck. IDK how old you are but Pearl Harbor certainly did not hurt Josh Hartnett's career commercially. That would be an utterly laughable suggestion. As for Black Hawk Down, that is an obvious ensemble but Hartnett's performance in it was generally well received regardless of your opinion. Read Ebert or any of there major critics reviews of that film. David Fincher himself cast Hartnett as the lead in The Black Dahlia. The internet existed in 2002 and many articles from the time are still very easy to find. 

 

I mean, Hartnett has been out of the main stream since 2007? Earlier? That's 15 years ago. He is receiving 3rd lead billing in Guy Ritchie's next film. Even if that film is a hideous, atrocious flop, it tells you how bright his star was at one point in time. 

Edited March 21, 2022 by excel1

[Legion Again]

We needed JJK to hit 20M to save us from whatever is happening now 😂

Edited March 21, 2022 by Villain Legion

[excel1]

17 minutes ago, Eric Says Trans Rights said:

I still have no idea who this Josh Hartnett is and I only know who he is because Excel won't stop yapping about him. I'm half-convinced Excel made this dude up.

 

To be honest, the early 2000s are an extremely odd, unique time for pop culture. I mean, seemingly NOTHING had any staying power. Reading the big films, new actors and actresses from the time feels like a time machine because nearly all of them went nowhere. 

[ban1o]

16 minutes ago, BruiseCruise said:

Regardless I can't think of a single actor below 30 that has shown that he/she can open an original film on their name alone and I doubt we will get one with the way hollywood is trending

uncharted opened to 50 million. With mediocre reviews and with the core fanbase hating it. 

Edited March 21, 2022 by ban1o