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Why would a nearly completed movie be discarded before it is shown to anyone other than studio executives? The reason, according to Hollywood executives, is for tax purposes. In the last year and a half, Warner Bros has canceled the live-action Looney Tunes spin-off, Coyote vs Acme; the animated film Scoob! Holiday Haunt; and, most notably, the $90 million DC Extended Universe movie Batgirl. Now, Netflix appears to be following suit, as it was announced this week that the sci-fi film The Mothership, starring Halle Berry, has also been scrapped before critics have had the opportunity to review it. Has it also fallen victim to the manipulations of deceitful accountants?
It’s probably fair to say that a cheesy-sounding Scooby Doo episode and a movie that would have starred John Cena as a lawyer going up against Wile E Coyote probably don’t count as monumental totems of 21st-century cinema that have now been lost for ever in the cruel mists of time. Still, a lot of people quite liked the idea of Batgirl, and ultimately felt cheated that the people who ponied up the money to get this thing made decided it was too risky to actually release.
Why is Netflix making headlines again? The streaming platform has been in the news since it emerged from the decline of the home video era. It has made ambitious deals that traditional studios would not have considered, such as Adam Sandler’s four-movie deal and acquiring rights to the entire Roald Dahl collection. Even their involvement with Harry and Meghan was unsuccessful. Recently, it was revealed that Netflix has had a content deal with Halle Berry since it acquired her directorial debut Bruised after its premiere at the Toronto film festival in 2020.
Unfortunately, it seems that The Union, a film by Berry, has yet to be released. The plot centers around Mark Wahlberg, playing a construction worker who is unexpectedly recruited into the world of espionage by his ex-girlfriend from high school. However, if The Mothership, the production company, has faced the same fate as its underwhelming predecessors, the film may only exist as a mere entry in a financial report.
This may be a concerning development for science fiction enthusiasts. Out of the numerous superhero movies that are produced, only a small fraction focus on thought-provoking visions of the future. And even fewer of these films are actually well-made. It is unlikely that The Mothership, a film about a single mother who uncovers an extraterrestrial object on her farm that may be connected to her husband’s disappearance, would have been as successful as 2024’s I Am Mother or Ex Machina. However, there is still a lingering possibility that it could have been just as impactful, but now this potential will forever remain uncertain and unfulfilled.
According to the InSneider newsletter, Netflix executives were unable to comprehend the need for reshoots in Berry’s film. More significantly, they failed to acknowledge that the child actors had aged in the three years since the initial filming in 2021. This lack of foresight is a poor reflection on the film’s budget, which likely amounted to millions of dollars. Disregarding the project altogether seems like a disappointing outcome.
Netflix used to be recognized for its tendency to rescue beloved shows that were cancelled by US networks and provide them with a new opportunity. It is also the platform for the popular sci-fi anthology series, Black Mirror. However, it is expected that they can offer better content than this.
Source: theguardian.com
