‘It Wasn’t My Fault’ Madame Web Star On The Flopped 2024 Superhero Movie

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Summary

  • Madame Web bombed at the box office, underperforming despite initial buzz.
  • Despite criticisms and poor performance, Dakota Johnson remains unaffected and unbothered.
  • Sydney Sweeney enjoyed filming, unfazed by the film’s box office flop.

Madame Web represented one of Sony’s attempts to broaden the scope of its Spider-Man Universe. Initially, it seemed quite promising; however, upon its release, it failed to draw a large audience at the box office.

2022 saw Sony unveil the movie titled Madame Web, sparking quite a stir. Directed by S.J. Clarkson, the film hit theaters in 2024. Notably, this was Clarkson’s first foray into feature films, having previously excelled in TV genres featuring intricate female leads. The star-studded cast includes Dakota Johnson as Cassandra Webb/Madame Web, Sydney Sweeney as Julia Carpenter, Isabela Merced as Anya Corazon, and Celeste O’Connor as Mattie Franklin. Unfortunately, the film was met with a barrage of unfavorable reviews, earning an 11% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes. Despite a production budget estimated between $80 million and $100 million (excluding marketing costs), it only managed to rake in $100 million globally, leading many to label it a box office disappointment. The cast members have since shared their thoughts on the film’s underperformance.

In a conversation with the Los Angeles Times, Director Celine Song (of Johnson’s film ‘Materialists’) addressed the underperformance of her superhero movie. When asked about it, Johnson jokingly defended herself and blamed the issue on the large number of individuals involved in creative decision-making, stating that some lack the creativity necessary for the task. She further explained:

It’s quite challenging to create art or something entertaining using that approach. Regrettably, I believe Madame Web initially began as one concept but evolved into another. By then, I was more of a bystander than an active participant. Such transformations occur sometimes. Unfortunately, high-budget films flop frequently.

Regardless of how the movie fared and the criticism it received, Johnson remained unfazed about it not impacting her future project decisions. In her words, it didn’t cause her to rethink her choices or rule out similar projects in the future. The actress behind “Am I OK” maintained a nonchalant attitude because she had previously been involved with smaller films that also underperformed at the box office. It’s not an unusual question for a star of “Madame Web,” as Johnson was, to be asked about the film’s box office performance a year after its release. During her interview with Empire Magazine in May, Sweeney, the lead actress in “Anyone But You,” faced the same question and shared similar sentiments – she didn’t let the movie’s performance affect her. Instead, what truly mattered to Sweeney was that they had a good time filming the project. According to Sweeney, the box office success or failure was irrelevant as long as they enjoyed the experience.

It appears that Sony is struggling to create blockbuster movies within the Spider-Man Universe, despite their attempts to expand it. Movies like Morbius (2022) and Kraven the Hunter (2024), which fall under this universe, have not performed well at the box office. The exception is Tom Hardy’s Venom, but while it was a financial success, critics had divided opinions about the film. Madame Web also underperformed due to various reasons such as weak storytelling, underdeveloped characters, inconsistent pacing, and ineffective marketing. Some felt that the trailers gave away too much, while others believed the audience might have been uninterested because it didn’t feature Tom Holland’s Spider-Man or they were simply tired of superhero films. Given these issues with previous movies from Sony’s Spider-Man universe, Madame Web’s performance wasn’t unexpected.

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2025-06-05 16:23