"Historical movies & TV shows" Topic

I was talking to my girl, who works on the production side at Amazon Prime, about the casting for the new James Bond film.

Idris Elba is a name that often comes up when people discuss Bond and, in my opinion, he'd be excellent. She immediately dismissed the idea. Not because of race, acting ability or star power—but because he's 53. He's old, she said. Sigh.

I challenged that and cited Sean Connery. Her response was interesting: as a rule of thumb, the youth market is the only market that really matters. They're the people who go to cinemas, subscribe to streaming services and binge-watch series. If you're spending hundreds of millions on a production, you aim it at them, not at older viewers. Her prediction was that the next Bond will be somewhere around 30, give or take a few years.

That takes us onto topics like the Odyssey thread.
TMP link

Virtually every response ends with the poster declaring they won't watch it. From the producers' perspective, that's expected—and largely irrelevant.

We are not the target audience.

Our desire for historical accuracy, period casting, faithful adaptation or respect for source material is simply not a major factor in the business case. Mostly not a factor at all. Studios aren't trying to sell these productions to people who already know Homer, Regency England or the history of the Napoleonic Wars. They're trying to attract viewers who may know little or nothing about the original material but will spend money to see it.

Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing is another debate entirely.

But if we're wondering why so many historical films and TV series seem to ignore the wishes of history enthusiasts, the answer may be quite simple: we're no longer the customers they're designing them for.

"Hollywood studios do not publicly disclose a singular "net loss," but financial reports estimate that major U.S. entertainment companies have seen their net incomes collapse by over 60% compared to a decade ago. This stems from systemic, multi-billion-dollar shifts in revenues, high-budget theatrical flops, and a massive loss in studio market valuations."

…

"When "wokeness" is perceived as forced, heavily ideologically driven, or disrespectful to legacy franchises, audiences frequently rebel. [1]

* Franchise Fatigue and Alienation: High-profile blockbusters that aggressively swapped out legacy characters or prioritized social commentary over tight storytelling—such as The Marvels, Lightyear, or the Ghostbusters reboot—suffered catastrophic box office returns. [1, 2, 3]

* Severe Backlash and Boycotts: Beyond Hollywood, corporate giants that launched hyper-targeted progressive campaigns alienating their core demographic experienced immediate financial trauma. A prime example is Bud Light losing its title as America's top-selling beer after an influencer controversy, alongside Target losing billions in market cap following a Pride merchandise backlash. [1]

* The "Tokenism" Rejection: Audiences of all political spectrums increasingly see through superficial corporate activism, viewing lazy casting changes as cynical cash grabs rather than meaningful representation. [1]"

Maybe an attempt to get back to basics, quality and appeal instead of virtue signaling to themselves and specific demographics would save them.

People go to be entertained, not preached to, either directly or indirectly. They go to escape the realities of real life. Sadly Hollywood has been failing that for a LONG time.

We are not the target audience.

A point I've been making for years.
I haven't "been to the movies" for years. Had The Odyssey been done "right", this hermit might have gone to see it. That would have been +1 to the overall take! But they blew it! 😄
Methinks they won't miss me.

It opens July 17. At an IMAX 13 miles from me. I've never been there, by the way. That will be the real test. Whether or not it impresses a bunch of middle aged (or older) cranks will be irrelevant.
Whether anyone, besides us, cares that Achilles has ridiculous casting is irrelevant. Whether anyone really cares if Helen is black is also irrelevant.
It opens on Blockbuster Weekend in July, when the real bucks are made.

OUR "Harrumphs" are irrelevant.
What will be relevant for my area is that it will be at the ONLY theater in Northeast Pennsylvania. One theater for Scranton and Wilkes Barre. There might be one in Allentown, 100 miles away.
That will certainly limit revenue a lot more than serial malcontents.

@35th
Your reasons are valid, but irrelevant. 🤷
It's Date Night. Not "Impress Senior Citizens" movie night.

Nolan is a genius. Just ask him. He'll tell you. Ask his favorite actors. They think so. He made a fortune with a 3 hour Oppenheimer. If he can do that, he's bulletproof.

Only irrelevant if you are attempting to make a profit.

Alienating a small group who play with soldiers, just loses a small amount of additional money, true.

But they are alienating a much larger group of people… hence the income loss of 60% in 10 years.

How many still watch the Academy Awards show? Look at the audience drop on that 💩.

Actually any award show?

It's not "just" this little group.

I will also say, even if they make a profit… how much more so, if they did not alienate sooo many?

I don't think Nolan is panicking.
I've seen one obviously fake video where he is.
He's a genius. Ask him.
And he's already planning his next movie that will cost millions.
We're only fooling ourselves if we think our opinions matter.

"They" in this case is Hollywood as a whole.

As someone pointed out in the other thread, AI may soon replace most of Hollywood (actors, directors and the rest) and that might actually be a positive thing.

SB's AI trailers were definitely better than the original trailer for the Odyssey.