Is The Avengers movie running in to trouble so soon in to it’s pre-production infancy?
An interesting story has popped up thanks to the folks over at Bleeding Cool, suggesting that Marvel Studios is looking, not for the first time, to tighten the budgets on the upcoming AVENGERS movie as much as it sees possible.
Marvel is not the kind of studio to splash frivolous amounts of cash, and, if you remember, it’s this tight approach that almost cost the studio the involvement of Samuel L Jackson in their projects. In the case of this new ensemble spectacle, due out in 2012, it is rumoured that Marvel are trying to lower the costs to close to Sony’s original outlay on the first SPIDERMAN movie. That would place the AVENGERS budget at around $150 million, firmly in the mid-range for the modern blockbuster tent-pole release.
As such, those working on the film are apparently being told to cut corners, which has reportedly led to changes of personnel behind the scenes, with some even apparently walking off the project. The impact of this is that pre-production on the film has been delayed and, although time is still very much on Marvel’s side here, it could begin to have a negative impact on the overall marketing plan for the movie.
Elsewhere, Robert Downey Jr has been talking about Joss Whedon’s screenplay work on the film, and it seems he’s mightily impressed. Which does suggest that a shooting screenplay is pretty much in place for the film, dependant on the sign off from important people in quite expensive suits.
C. Saver
Nov 17, 2010 at 3:35 am
Not to come off as a Marvel apologist, but two the major characters in the Avengers team have their own movies coming out next year, and though all hope for the best, the Cap and Thor movies are NOT proven movie commodities….yet.
If Thor opens big, you can bet the ranch Marvel will loosen the purse strings on the Avengers. And if Cap is a hit, even more so.
And who the freakin’ hell is “Bleeding Cool” anyway?