![]() As box office analyst Jeff Bock told The Hollywood Reporter, "There's no question but that it's a failure." When you consider that movie theaters keep around half the gross and marketing for films of this scale typically costs more than $100 million, not all is well in the world of Damon.Īccording to Deadline, The Great Wall stands to lose $70 million ( The Hollywood Reporter puts the number at $75 million). Those are big numbers, but the film's producers were expecting a much bigger haul in China. It also probably didn't help The Great Wall's cause that it was marketed essentially as a Chinese movie starring Matt Damon, not an international film with participation from multiple creative voices (screenwriter Tony Gilroy, for instance, is English).ĭespite not doing particularly well in the United States, The Great Wall made $171 million in China, boosting its worldwide earnings to more than $330 million. Lego Batman had a firm hold over audiences at the time of release, and 5 0 Shades Darker was making American feel super naughty. Yes, a wall made of Lego and the promise of some hard spankings stood strong against US-Chinese co-productions. The Great Wall didn't make much of an impact on the US box office, though there are a number of factors as to why. Whatever the case may be, it's certainly true that, in the United States at least, The Great Wall movie was one of many would-be blockbusters that busted no blocks. It's also worth considering, in light of Wu's tweets, whether Hollywood can be accused of whitewashing in this instance, since The Great Wall was funded primarily by a Chinese company (Wanda Group), had a Chinese director (Yimou Zhang), a predominantly Chinese cast, and starred Matt Damon in a role that was never intended to be Asian. But The Great Wall is just one example of what's to come, especially when you consider that the number of Chinese movie-goers is expected to surpass that of American film fans later this year. The Great Wall had a brush with controversy with regards to whitewashing history and casting Matt Damon in what many believed to be your typical 'white savior' role. Check out Constance Wu's tweets on the subject for a fantastic and illuminating smackdown. No one movie sign-posted the impact of Chinese investors and cinema-goers on Hollywood, international productions, and the future of movies quite like 2016's The Great Wall. This raises questions about China and the future of cinema, as well as the Chinese movie industry. The fairly substantial hold China has on global box office, and its influence over Hollywood productions, becomes increasingly apparent with each passing year. China and Hollywood have been cinematic bed fellows for longer than you may think, and it should come as no surprise to see American stars in Chinese movies, given the rise in international co-productions in the 21st century.
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