Golden Globe and Academy Award winner Jodie Foster attacked big Hollywood studios and superhero films in a recent interview with the Radio Times.
The Oscar-winning actress went on the attack, “Going to the movies has become like a theme park. Studios making bad content in order to appeal to the masses and shareholders is like fracking – you get the best return right now but wreck the earth.”
She didn’t stop there.
It’s ruining the viewing habits of the American population and then ultimately the rest of the world. I don’t want to make $200m movies about superheroes.
But then the Hollywood hypocrisy showed itself. Foster was asked whether or not she would make a superhero film. To no one’s surprise, Foster said she would, but only if it was “really complex psychology.”
What’s really interesting about Foster’s attack is that she thinks these films are “bad content” because they “appeal to the masses and shareholders.” Apparently, the masses who actually consume the content disagree with her.
In fact, five of the top ten grossing movies this year were superhero films. They included Wonder Woman, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Thor: Ragnarok, and Logan. But the masses aren’t the only ones who enjoyed these movies. The critics adored these movies as well. Wonder Woman has a 92% Tomatometer rating from 363 critic reviews. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 has an 83% rating from 333 critics. Spider-Man: Homecoming has a 92% rating from 311 reviews. Thor: Ragnarok has a 92% rating as well. And then Logan has a 93% rating.
It seems the critics and the masses disagree with Jodie Foster. They don’t think these movies are “bad content.”
That’s not to say there aren’t bad superhero films. Justice League received mix reactions with audiences generally enjoying the film, while critics panned the movie. But there are also bad movies that are “really complex psychology.”
I’m also wondering when we will start seeing this Earth shattering moment Foster refers to. Superhero movies have been around since 1978 when Richard Donner’s Superman took to the big screen. We’ve had almost 40 years of superhero films and the Earth hasn’t been wrecked by superhero movies yet.
Jodie Foster is off her rocker. There’s nothing wrong with Superhero films.