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Rumor: Universal wants Channing Tatum as Van Helsing in Dark Universe movie
- Thread starter LordOfLore
- Start date
George Oscar Bluth II
Banned
They're still trying to do this?
Sgt. Kabukiman
Banned
I mean, that's not too bad for such a property, regardless of the quality of the film and its budget. If Universal gets reasonable they might crank out a profit out of this universe eventually.
entremet
Member
They're in too deep. They're not scraping it now.
WhateverItTakes
Banned
But Tatum is like the opposite of what you need for Helsing. Get someone rough and moody, and actually make a movie worth a damn. It's probably true Cruise saved the Mummy from making no money but you wouldn't have even needed him if you actually put some effort in.
NealMcCauley
Member
"My name is Van Helsing."
Yeah but that Dracula movie fell on its face. They're basically 1 for 2 already and the Mummy wasn't exactly a run away success that has audiences abuzz and wanting more.
bananafactory
Banned
Ok now what has more fans, Gambit or The Dark Universe?
ClosingADoor
Member
I'm in for a Van Helsing movie, but Tatum... Don't know how he'll fit the role.
Smokey_Run
Member
Why not? The MCU was built on a bunch of phase one movies doing 300-400M.
They're in too deep now, they have to at least try even if it fails.
A movie is basically a failure to GAF if it doesn't reach 800million
Lights and Waves
Member
I'm enjoying watching this train wreck. Go for it, Universal!
Have they begin shooting any of the others though? As is it's only one movie deep
Sweeney Tom
Banned
The studio wanted $500 mil out of the Mummy and it might not even get to $400. It's a flop, even Deadline and Hollywood Reporter are calling it a flop, lol @ anyone including you saying "it's not a flop"
The Mummy is the worst Tom Cruise movie ever. Dark Universe is a joke.
But yeah, I'd totally watch this.
"My name is Van Helsing."
But yeah, I'd totally watch this.
Bobby Roberts
Banned
It cost almost $200mil to produce
It made $75mil domestic
Of course, of that $75, Universal probably only got around half of that as its cut. And even though it got to 375mil worldwide, the $300mil doesn't translate to $300mil in Universal's account. The cut they got is likely closer to 1/4 of that number, if that.
(this is partially why pointing at international numbers/worldwide numbers isn't so great - those numbers sound nice and big but they're kinda empty, too. Studios get a smaller cut of that money than they do the domestic)
Universal lost almost $100 mil on that movie.
That's a bomb.
LordOfLore
Banned
Hell, it also had a pretty big ad campaign and flew Cruise all over the world.
LordOfLore
Banned
They haven't gotten it working for two movies thus far and none of the things they've talked about or people they've hired makes it sound like they'll suddenly improve. It's not like they just now hired someone like Geoff Johns who's making sure everything goes correctly or at least improves.
You kinda have to prove you can make one good movie first before you can sell people on a "cinematic universe".
Shit, DC is just now getting off the hook with theirs after 4 tries.
StopMakingSense
Member
If what they were gong for with the Dark Universe was something completely different and Over-the-top rompy fun, sure.
But it's not.
But it's not.
XT Vengeance
Member
They are contunuig the DUCU? Well at least I'll get more funhaus vids making fun of it.
Most likely on account of the fact of...
1) The hilariously tone-deaf announcement trailer announcing Universal's intention to create a "Monster Cinematic Universe"
2) The fact "The Dark Universe" has attempted to debut itself on two separate occasions in the past with two incredibly bad movies (Dracula Untold and The Mummy)
3) The entire reason for this franchise's existence is incredibly cynical, even by Hollywood standards, through Universal attempting to replicate the cinematic universe formula by signing on a bunch of stars without even yet attempting to write the scripts for many of their related vehicles.
Maintenance
Member
I'm in only if Ice Cube is Dracula.
This is my position. It's going to take a few more clunkers for me to give up on this. The idea has potential. I haven't had a chance to see Mummy yet, but I'm hoping Cruise makes it watchable.
Well, then again..
It's unfortunate, because the concept would be enjoyable for me personally, but they don't seem to have any idea what they are doing. The casting choices seem inspired, I mean there would be potential to have Cruise, Jolie, Depp, Crowe, Evans(maybe?), etc., to be in the same film, which would be cool by most standards, but the entire franchise is surrounded by garbage filmmakers and producers.
Horror movies do not gross the kind of money necessary to support films with 200 million dollar budgets and actors who command 20 million dollar salaries.
The Dark Universe is conceptually stupid since it requires turning horror franchises into tentpole action movies. This change in scale and and tone kinda sorta works for The Mummy, but does not work at all for properties like Wolf Man, Frankenstein, Invisible Man, etc.
Conceptually.
The Universal monsters are horror genre staples, but that doesn't mean their approach has been appropriate. Doesn't seem they have the talent behind the camera to treat them with the reverence and respect they require to make enjoyable vehicles, let alone a mastermind behind all of them who actually has any clue about how the universe links up together or how to make them work and benefit from their iconic status.