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Edited by Mrph1 on Jul 29th 2024 at 3:09:00 PM
I don't know about dark, but pop on over to The Amazing Spider-Man Series page for more details on Sony's plans.
Then why do it at all? I don't get this. If everyone realized it was a bad idea why not rewrite the movie to remove her death? They had a perfectly fine climax with the Electro battle. Just film an extra scene with Gwen and Peter in the city and then have him run off when he hears Rhino going on a rampage.
Because they wanted to please the fans, basically. Gwen's death was something that happened in the comics, so it had to happen in the movie, according to studio logic. That was one of the biggest problems with the movies. It was very clearly a bunch of focus group pandering and studio notes.
"Make sure Spider-Man fights his most iconic villain, even though there's absolutely no build-up or groundwork in place." "Oh and make sure he fights a giant CGI robot so we can put it in all the trailers and make a bunch of action figures!!" "Make sure you throw in some moments from the comics too so the fanboys will go crazy over the trailer!" "Sequel Hooks! Don't forget sequel hooks!" "And throw in some dubstep! The kids love dubstep!"
edited 21st Mar '16 8:50:38 AM by comicwriter
Yeah. Emma Stone had it in her contract when she first signed on to play Gwen in Amazing that they have to kill her. Even if everyone and their dog believed it to be a mistake, legally, they had to do it.
She's just about the only person satisfied with it
, too.
edited 21st Mar '16 8:57:10 AM by TobiasDrake
My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.I'm not satisfied. Between the fact that she insisted on putting it in her contract when she signed and the fact that she's just about the only person satisfied with it happening - to the point of Sony conspiring to revive her in ASM 3 as mentioned earlier in the thread - I could more easily summarize my feelings on the matter as "pointed blame".
But yes, the comparison to Spider-Man 3 is an apt one. Too many narrative threads all pulling in opposite directions.
edited 21st Mar '16 9:18:38 AM by TobiasDrake
My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.Film studios are savvy enough to realize fans can provide a lot of early word of mouth, but they're also aware that they're not numerous enough to seriously harm the production if it's something they don't like.
Case in point (and I hate to bring this up again), but Marvel was confident enough about the Mandarin twist that they didn't consider fanboys would be angry and seriously damage the film's profits. And they were correct. The movie grossed a billion dollars.
"Fanboys are upset" isn't really a tangible force, is the thing. Because the fanbase is not a hive-mind. What pisses off THESE fans might thrill and excite THOSE fans. I, for instance, consider Killian to be a fantastic adaptation of the Mandarin who perfectly captures the spirit of the character, while others are absolutely livid because he isn't Chinese, because he doesn't have the Rings, or because they just found him boring.
Iron Man 3 took some pretty big liberties with the source material to create a pretty good movie and the result was 79% Freshness and a position as one of the highest grossing films of all time, outstripping both of its predecessors.
Amazing Spider-Man 2 was a jumbled, chaotic movie with too many plot threads to keep track of, but they kept with the comic's decision to kill off Gwen regardless of how well it worked within the narrative and their upcoming plans. End result: 53% freshness and yet another contribution in the ever-continuing trend of every Spider-Movie making less money than the last.
Because as much as the fans might bitch and moan about every change, ultimately they're not the target audience. Their patronage is a sure thing. What matters most is making a good movie, one that will please people who like to watch movies. You can put Rhodey in the Iron Patriot, reveal S.H.I.E.L.D. to secretly be Hydra, turn Drax blue, whatever. Sure, it wasn't like that in the comics, but as long as it's internally consistent and contributes to the central narrative thread, people will watch it.
My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.I liked that the put Gwen Stacy's death on screen. I just hated that they tacked the Rhino behind it.
Anyway, I am sure that Marvel will insist on more thinking ahead in the Spider-man movies. No matter who actually has the control (supposedly Sony, but I wouldn't bet on it), the movies still have to fit into the MCU.
Concerning the fanbase: You can't do movies for the fanbase, because there is always someone who is displeased, but you should respect the fanbase and the source material. If you don't do that, well, see Fant4stic, or Jen and the Holograms, or any property in which the movie barely resembles the spirit of the original story anymore. Fans do have a radar for this kind of nonsense, and once you upset the fanbase as a whole and not just one isolated group in it, you do have a problem.
edited 21st Mar '16 10:25:24 AM by Swanpride
@comicwriter: Wasn't the plan to bring Gwen back going to be introducing a version of Gwen from an alternate universe where she was bitten by a spider instead of Peter if the ASM movies had continued past ASM 2?
So, Sony basically came up with Spider-Gwen first.

What stuff? I said thank god with Marvel characters.