Failure to Franchise

Given the immense popularity of the Dracula character over the 100+ years since Bram Stoker's original novel, it's not surprising that many fans and writers alike would be keen to explore the origin of the villainous vampire. But how does one go about crafting an "official," audience-pleasing backstory for a character who has enjoyed so many different interpretations throughout the decades? What v...

Undeterred by the failure of 2004's VAN HELSING, Universal Pictures were still eager to resurrect their famous Universal Monsters film properties. In 2006, they signed Benicio Del Toro, a superfan of 1941's THE WOLF MAN, to both produce and star in a remake of the Lon Chaney Jr classic. Four years later, following a tumultuous production period consisting of a last-minute director change, costly r...

Failure to Franchise's two-month "Curse of the Dark Universe" event kicks off, with a look at this much maligned Monster mash from the early 2000s. In the wake of director Stephen Sommers' wildly successful THE MUMMY and THE MUMMY RETURNS, Universal was eager to have him potentially relaunch the entire classic Universal Monsters line. His solution for this was to dive right into a crossover-type f...

When no sequel materialized for 2006's SUPERMAN RETURNS (a tale to be told in a future episode of this show), it might have seemed like star Brandon Routh's dreams of headlining his own comic book movie franchise were over. But the up-and-coming leading man would get a second chance in 2011...and THEN his dreams of headlining a comic book movie franchise seemed more or less over. So, what happened...

If ever the "video game movies always suck" axiom was going to be disproved, 2016 ASSASSIN'S CREED seemed like a great candidate to do so. Based on a very successful video game franchise, the movie version came along with a popular leading man determined to do right by the property, an impressive supporting cast, a critically acclaimed director, and the creative involvement of the actual video gam...

Before 2018, the idea of a failed franchise starter in the world of STAR WARS might have seemed somewhat ridiculous. But little did the world know the trials and tribulations that would face SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY, the prequel film many fans already considered to be ill-advised in the first place. Between the much publicized change of directors mid-production (leading to major costly reshoots) an...

A popular sci-fi/fantasy rock cartoon from the 80s is resurrected for the big screen treatment by one of the most successful production companies in Hollywood. But what seemed like a sure-fire hit was marred by a perceived lack of respect for the source material and a controversial contest that might have exploited the original property's fanbase. We discuss all this and more, as we look at 2015's...

Before COBRA KAI resurrected the KARATE KID franchise, another attempt was made to reboot the series on the bring screen - this time with a new set of characters, a different setting, and even a different type of martial arts. Developed by Will & Jada Pinkett Smith as a star vehicle for their young son, Jaden, the new KARATE KID would also feature international mega-star Jackie Chan stepping into...

When a giant ball of evil that makes phone calls is one of the LEAST wild things in your movie, you know you got a special one. "May-la June-vovich" concludes with a look at Milla's star-making turn in Luc Besson's bonkers sci-fi epic. It doesn't really get any more 90s than this, folks - an engaged, interested Bruce Willis! A super over-the-top Gary Oldman! A constantly screaming Chris Tucker! A...

When Guillermo Del Toro's HELLBOY franchise sputtered out, it was only a matter of time until Hollywood tried to give Mike Mignola's popular comic series another cinematic try. With a popular horror movie and TV director at the helm, a fan-favorite geek icon actress as the main villain, and a star from the beloved STRANGER THINGS taking over in the lead role, the ingredients seemed promising. Coul...

Our two-month "May-la June-vovich" extravaganza continues, with a look at a collaboration between Milla Jovovich and her husband, Paul W.S. Anderson. No, not the RESIDENT EVIL movies. And no, not last year's MONSTER HUNTER, either. Instead, we're tackling Anderson's 2011 THREE MUSKETEERS adaptation, in which the writer/director bravely answered the question readers have been asking for almost 200...

What happens when someone makes a vampire movie, but forgets to bring the vampires? Our two month "May-la June-vovich" extravaganza kicks off with a look at ULTRAVIOLET, Milla's 2006 mash-up of THE MATRIX, UNDERWORLD, RESIDENT EVIL, and every techno song you've ever heard. From poorly-rendered CGI to confusing mythology to "gun-kata," this one has it all. So slip on your best color-changing, midri...

With centuries of retold and rewritten tale to choose from when deciding to adapt Arthurian legend for a modern audience, it's easy to see why the task might feel overwhelming. Perhaps the solution is to simply choose the BEST, most interesting elements of the story, and concentrate on those moments for your film. Or, I dunno, maybe the better idea is just to say "eh, don't worry, we'll eventually...

Arthurian legend. The phrase calls to mind classic tales of romance and magic, of timeless myths of noble heroes passed down through the ages, becoming arguably inextricably infused into both pop culture and our entire understanding of storytelling, in general. But, in 2004, Disney said "forget all that," and instead offered up a down-and-dirty, gritty retelling of the King Arthur myth...this one...

In the second installment of our spin-off series about failed TV pilots, we're looking at Comedy Central's 2007 attempt to turn the hit 2001 film NOT ANOTHER TEEN MOVIE into a weekly series, with NOT ANOTHER HIGH SCHOOL SHOW. Despite reuniting the original film's creative team, and featuring young up-and-coming stars like Alison Brie and Jennifer Lawrence, the show didn't work nearly as well as th...

In 2001, author Philip Reeve published "Mortal Engines," the first in a series of YA books about a post-apocalyptic world where survivors now live in large, warring, mobile "traction cities." In 2009, acclaimed filmmaker Peter Jackson purchased the rights to the series, intrigued by the story's cinematic potential. In 2016, production on the film began, under the guidance of first-time director an...

F2F's "Mortal March" kicks off with another dive into the waters of YA fantasy cinematic adaptations. This time, we're looking at a tale of half-human/half-angel warriors tasked to protect Earth from vampires, werewolves, and demons, and the "average" teenage girl pulled into their world after learning her secret destiny. It's a tale of ancient runes, goth costuming, and forbidden romance...VERY f...

In the wake of TWILIGHT's pop-culture explosion in 2008, every major studio was looking to launch the next big movie franchise based on a popular Young Adult literary series. In this episode, we take our first dive into these crowded YA waters. When Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg were eager to cash in on the TWILIGHT-craze themselves, they turned to the manuscript of an at-the-time unreleased sc...

A rare case of a superhero movie where the behind-the-scenes drama was more action-packed than anything onscreen, Josh Trank's 2015 reboot of FANTASTIC FOUR has become a go-to example of the dangers of conflicting visions, tonal uncertainty, and conflicts between cast, crew, and studio. But is the movie really AS bad as its reputation? Strap on your blonde wigs and take a listen, as we dive into t...

Billed as the "Special Effects Movie Event of the Year," SPAWN seemed to have a lot going for it when it arrived in theaters in 1997. Based on a popular comic book that had been the centerpiece of a brand new company that revolutionized the comic industry in the early '90s, and arriving only a few months after the debut of a well-received HBO animated series, the film was also the first mainstream...

You sunk our franchise! Get it?? That's right, in this episode, we're looking at BATTLESHIP, the second of TWO failed 2012 Taylor Kitsch blockbusters. This time, it was an attempt to turn a popular board game about naval combat into a TRANSFORMERS-like sci-fi/action series, complete with aliens, bombastic action, and in-your-face patriotism. But why here have there been six TRANSFORMERS movies to...

This is a show about franchises, and we all know a big part of franchises is spin-offs. So here then is the first installment of our occasional bonus spin-off series, in which we take a brief look at failed TV pilots that never made it to series. Just in time for the release of WW84, we're kicking off with a look at the 2011 WONDER WOMAN pilot, from writer David E. Kelley and starring Adrianne Pal...

When is a Batman movie NOT a Batman movie? How literal can a movie's title be? Can you convince an Academy Award winning actress at the height of her stardom to rub her face in catnip and swat at insects? Is there anything sexier than an alley pick-up game of one-on-one basketball? And who is the mysterious man known only as...Pitof?? In this episode, we answer these questions and more, as we take...

One of the biggest movie stars of the moment, re-teaming with the director of his recent mega-success sci-fi comedy blockbuster for ANOTHER sci-fi comedy blockbuster. What could possibly go wrong? Well, clearly something did, or else we wouldn't be talking about 1999's WILD WILD WEST on this show. So join us as we try to get to the bottom of this infamous mess, with all the misplaced sexual innuen...

While the failure of 1995's JUDGE DREDD might have left some believing the character's cinematic journey was over, time has shown that Hollywood will let no IP with a substantial enough fanbase be left alone forever. And so, in 2012, we were given a brand-new attempt at bringing Mega-City One's toughest Judge to the screen...and this time, the helmet stays on. But how does the movie stack up even...