Black Adam’The release of s was shrouded in excitement and suspense, all for the right reasons. Whether it’s Henry Cavill’s return as Superman, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s DC debut, or the Justice Society of America bringing new faces to the superhero universe, the movie was well worth the hype.
While critics weren’t too happy with the film’s turn, fans think otherwise. Despite all the fan support, the film had a disappointing response at the box office, even after the film failed to receive an R rating. Given that violent films are mostly R-rated, the question arises to know why black adam was an exception. Well, the editor of black adam seems to have answered this question.
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The role of Dwayne Johnson in black adam being PG-13
Everyone knows by now the take lead actor Dwayne Johnson had on his first DC movie. He even convinced the creators of the long-awaited return of Henry Cavill. Therefore, it’s no surprise that he’s the reason the movie didn’t get an R rating.
Johnson has been in the industry for a long time and has created a familiar fanbase that includes young people and families. Hence, the actor being a household name stopped black adam to be an R-rated movie. Even though the film was originally rated R by the MPAA, the team had to spend four rounds with them to get the film’s PG-13 rating.
So why were the creators so adamant about stopping the movie from getting an R rating? In an interview with Screen Rant, Editor Michael L. Sale revealed that even though the film was darker, the producers pressured the editors to back down a bit. Due to Johnson’s reputation, Sale had to edit the film to cater to a larger audience and set the tone for black adam become a box office success. Keeping the film R-Rated would have intervened in the plan.
“What I understood from the producers was that we wanted to make sure [it wasn’t too heavy]. There was one thing coming from the director and the producers that, ‘Hey, we want to make this movie for everybody. Dwayne has a huge fan base and he has a family fan base. For us, it wasn’t about keeping the tone of DC, past or present. It was about establishing our tone and brand and the Black Adam brand.
Although Sale said he personally would have liked to see a much darker, more violent version of the film, that wasn’t what he or the team wanted to see. Rather, it was to create Black Adam’s brand and aimed at a family audience. He added that the vision worked very well as the theaters were filled with people of all ages.
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A disappointing response to black adam
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Even though the film was rated PG-13 to incorporate more audiences into theaters, it didn’t quite exceed expectations. Despite excessive promotions and a huge cameo appearance from the Man of Steel himself, the film has so far only grossed around $250 million at the box office, worldwide. According to reports, the film is eager to close at just $500 million worldwide.
This turns out to be a little disappointing as DC movies usually do so much more than that. Aquaman made over $1 billion at the worldwide box office.
Even after excessive promotions, big ensemble names and a creative storyline, black adam didn’t do as well as fans hoped. Is this finally the beginning of the end of the superhero genre?
black adam is currently playing in theaters.
Source: Screen Rant
