‘Batman V Superman’ Box Office Disappointment Could Bring R-Rated Cut To Theaters
The overall Batman v Superman box office has shown to be a success worldwide in spite of critics cutting it down everywhere. Even DC comics film fans have been calling it one of the best movies ever made, while others beg to differ. It’s unclear how many fans are wearing Kryptonite-tinted glasses when they talk about the film’s greatness, just wanting it to out-perform Marvel.
The first box office smash this year was Deadpool, which released as an R-rated superhero movie. While this isn’t exactly a new idea (Blade, Watchmen, and Punisher: Warzone all had the same rating), Deadpool was the first to be not only successful with critics but also the box office. It ended up being the movie that Batman v Superman’s box office was expected to beat, as Zack Snyder’s film was aiming for something epic that would blow all other superhero films away.
RELATED STORIES ON INQUISITR:
‘Batman V Superman’ Box Office Failure? Film Won’t Hit $1 Billion
‘Batman V Superman’ Box Office Performance Forces Warner Bros Into Panic Over Company Strategy
‘Captain America: Civil War’ Hype Builds As ‘Batman V Superman’ Is Forgotten
At close to $800 million worldwide, Dawn of Justice ended up being a success. However, it fell below Warner Bros. Pictures’ expectations, and they may be re-releasing the film in its R-rated form to see if it can surpass Deadpool and become this year’s runaway smash hit. It’s doubtful, as video critics have pointed out that the film tried too hard to put too much into its run time and just ended up a big, somewhat entertaining mess.
Suicide Squad may be the film that earns what Warner Bros. is expecting, as it seems to be focusing more on the humor. It’s also the first time a theatrical release has ever seen Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Killer Croc (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), and Deadshot (Will Smith) as live-action characters. Jared Leto has even taken his method acting to an extreme by giving odd gifts to his co-stars, including a rat, bullets, a dead pig, anal beads, and used condoms. By doing this in true Joker fashion, he may have given them more of an incentive to stay in character.
This isn’t stopping Warner Bros. from possibly hoping that an R-rated re-release will boost the Batman v Superman box office. They did something similar with Mad Max: Fury Road, which, on the reverse side, was gifted with critical acclaim and multiple awards but much more disappointing box office performance.
It may simply be that Warner Bros. is expecting too much from the superhero film, but they seem to be planning to try anyway.
In Marvel’s camp, it’s unknown if they will be able to repeat the success that Fox’s Deadpool enjoyed, as comic book fans have already slammed decisions made in X-Men: Apocalypse. They hated the idea of Channing Tatum playing the lead role in the upcoming Gambit solo film from the start. It’s also unknown if Spider-Man being rebooted once more in Captain America: Civil War will be well-received, but if anyone can pull it off, it’s Marvel and Disney.
‘Batman v Superman’ Three-Hour, R-Rated Cut May Head to Theaters After All https://t.co/5MsMD2wH30 pic.twitter.com/wozzsUrzXv
— Peter Sciretta (@slashfilm) April 11, 2016
Warner Bros. seems to have a long run of disappointing box office performances despite Christopher Nolan’s version of Batman, which came to a critically slammed conclusion in 2012. Suicide Squad may very well pull in the box office success after Batman v Superman failed to live up to expectations, but they don’t appear to be counting on it.
Do you think an R-rated re-release of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice will fix the alleged box office problem?
[Image via Warner Bros. Pictures]
