Disney's Failed Next Big Thing: Jungle Cruise

Since the early 2000s Disney has been trying everything in their power to recapture the magic of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. With numerous failed attempts at a new franchise they accidentally created a new subgenre of films in the process, a subgenre I like to call the “Failed Next Big Thing”. 2021’s Jungle Cruise is a prime example of this idea, so today I want to examine this film to find out why it never landed with audiences.
Failed Next Big Thing Playlist:
• Disney's Failed Next B...
Music Attribution:
"Study And Relax" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensecreativecommons.org/licenses/b...
"Apero Hour" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensecreativecommons.org/licenses/b...
"Smooth Lovin" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensecreativecommons.org/licenses/b...
"Sincerely" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensecreativecommons.org/licenses/b...
​Morning Routine by Ghostrifter bit.ly/ghostrifter-yt​
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References:
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www.businessinsider.com/jungl...
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variety.com/2021/artisans/pro...
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deadline.com/2022/01/2022-box...

[@httm241]

This movie did not justify a 200 million budget

[@AbrasiousProductions]

*cough* money laundering scheme...

[@KapitalElement]

It didn’t justify a $50Mil budget lol

[@DeviantDork]

Yes it did

[@isenhartproductions2677]

For real

[@darylgravesande8718]

best channel on youtube rn

[@Larry]

Jungle Cruise felt like Brendan Fraiser should have been the main character, and The Rock came in at the last second to replace him :D

[@michellee.6508]

That would have made me a lot more interested! Like Journey to the center of the earth type adventure movie.

[@Larry]

@@michellee.6508 Absolutely!

[@ao9688]

ALLO YOU

[@mr.sinjin-smyth]

Brendan Fraser did a wonderful job as an action adventure hero in 2008 Journey to the Center of the Earth and the Mummy trilogy (1 & 2 in particular). Too bad he got injured frequently and developed substance addiction to continue such a role.

[@JP-1990]

@@mr.sinjin-smyth Even worse, his ex-wife got some crazy deal where she gets a cut of all of his future movie earnings, so he also just stopped doing movies altogether for a while.

[@anonymous-hz2un]

In conclusion: Dwayne Johnson is not an actor but a celebrity and he cannot carry a franchise on his own. Easily the most overrated Hollywood personality in existence.

[@georgerafa5041]

Agreed

[@cheesezee86]

Yeee

[@isenhartproductions2677]

He's become a brand rather than an actor

[@pigglypoof]

A sub franchise of the failed franchise: Dwayne Johnson’s failed attempts to have a memorable IP

[@isenhartproductions2677]

Lol yeah we've been seeing a lot of those in the past decade

[@vylbird8014]

He almost managed with the Jumanji relaunch - at least that stuck around enough to get one more sequel.

[@ryanb4940]

So I looooved Moana and I’ve actually really liked (some) (not all) the Disney live action remakes. But Dwayne Johnson having a complete bomb of a DC superhero movie then tripping over himself to tell the world “MOANA LIVE ACTION WITH ME: THE ROCK!!!!” left a bad taste in my mouth. That movie isn’t even 10 years old. In fact it was only 7 years when he announced I believe. That smelt of so much desperation I was like “oh, honey….”

[@anonymous-hz2un]

Imo, his best movie so far is Pain & Gain. He was so fun to watch as a sex crazed, drug addicted bodybuilder. It actually really suits him to play over the top roles.

[@RariettyC]

All that I took away from this movie is that casting Emily Blunt and The Rock as romantic leads is not going to work unless Emily Blunt purposefully nerfs her talent

[@anonymous-hz2un]

The rock cannot carry a franchise on his own in a million years.

[@cheesezee86]

True

[@javi8499]

6 failed franchises covered and there’s still so many that we didn’t even realize, Tron legacy, Artemis fowl, haunted mansion 2023, wrinkle in time, nutcracker and the four realms, BFG, Oz the great and powerful

[@rz5293]

this movie felt like something i'd want playing on cable TV while my family and i are having a late sunday lunch

[@armanichu6395]

Personally, I think the movie would've been better had it been a sort of "road-trip comedy" about a group of skippers travelling the globe to rescue a lost crew as opposed to making it the next Pirates of the Caribbean.

[@isenhartproductions2677]

Agreed, the rom-com angle didn't work imo

[@AJ-xc4qe]

I’ve noticed that Disney hasn't had a wildly successful live action movie that isn't a live action remake in a long time. And they sabotage every live action movie that isn't part of the brands they bought or studio they own. I mean, I'd love to see another ORIGINAL PG 13 live action franchise but they don't care.

[@JP-1990]

The over abundance of Star Wars, Marvel, and live action remakes have greatly helped to tarnish Disney's reputation, to the point where their live-action stuff can't hope to stand out as possibly being better.

[@FlyingFocs]

I honestly wouldn't mind a movie based on Expedition Everest, but at the same time, I know they either won't do it, or make it super watered down if they did. So I might just write it myself.

[@JP-1990]

@@FlyingFocs "Welcome to the Himalayas!"

[@bravediomedes217]

Two reasons. 1. Disney hires the worst writers in Hollywood. 2. The Rock is untalented, and unlikeable.

[@rickdesper]

The Rock has his value, but he was not good in this role. As for the writing, any time any movie goes through as many writers as Jungle Cruise did, you have to watch out. The basic problem is they had no idea what the core idea of the movie should be, except "based on a Disney ride'.

[@bravediomedes217]

@@rickdesper sure, he was born to play the obnoxious d-bag who gets beat in the first scene of an action movie. Of course we’ll never see him in that role because he’s so pathetically insecure that he can’t be seen losing a pretend fight.

[@mrjeremydizon]

It failed because of The Rock. He’s a one trick pony that people grew tired of already.

[@anonymous-hz2un]

He sucks.

[@joandarc441]

Batista and John Cena are better tbh.

[@mr.sinjin-smyth]

It's still getting a sequel... according to them

[@RickRaptor105]

The only thing I liked about this movie were the cursed conquistadores because they were something right out of Pirates of the Caribbean (the treasure in Curse of the Black Pearl even traces back to Cortez), but even then their "living parts of jungle" design felt like Disney looked at all previous Pirates villains and said "we've already done skeleton pirates, fish pirates, voodoo pirates, ghost pirates, we need a new curse gimmick!"

[@d.christophertatum2936]

I call this movie Pirates of the Caribbean 6: The Mummy 4.

[@SuperCosmicMutantSquid]

What, no electric boogaloo? 😂

[@merphul]

Pirates of the Carribean was a fluke. The ride just happened to translate into a very enjoyable movie with a clever script, decent story and great casting. The film is fun even if you've never heard of the Disney ride. The idea that any Disney ride would somehow become a successful film or franchise is ridiculous. These companies are over-estimating the value of their IP's as films. They're relying heavily on nostalgia to make something successful instead of wondering if there's enough substance to turn into an actual film. Another guilty company is Hasbro. Transformers did well, so their other toys/games should be great movie franchises right? Battleship, Jem? Both "failed next big things." And it should be remembered that they registered trademarks for both a Monopoly and Hungry Hungry Hippo films.

[@n8_b_h]

And Johnny depp nailed captain jack. Lightening in a bottle.

[@vagankirchev989]

Yup, I'm from Eastern Europe and I've never been to Disneyland, let alone know about the Pirates of the Caribbean ride before watching the movie.

[@n8_b_h]

@@vagankirchev989 cool. Never been to Disney world. Never had any interest. That movie is great. A true classic. Not the sequels. Just the first movie with Johnny depp in 2003. ✌️

[@TheReZisTLust]

Cant wait to see a hippo deep throat balls in live action caught in 4k

[@joshuaashton1929]

Honestly pirates succeeded *in* *spite* of Disney. Execs HATED the direction Jonny Depp and the director were going in. Remember when depp bought coats for everyone on set cause Disney didn’t want to?

[@raulcruz716]

Another reason the film may have failed was the movie going audience was getting tired of Dwayne Johnson. Although his WWE Rock persona translated into movie characters was at first blockbuster gold by now people were getting bored with him playing the same character just slightly tweaked from one movie to another. His other big studio movie around this time BLACK ADAM also bombed hard and it shouldn't be surprising that he eventually went back to the WWE. He'll probably still be involved in movies but I doubt major studios want to take a chance in casting him as a lead in a big budget production.

[@drdewott9154]

Exactly! Plus even some of the drama about his contractual clauses for roles and the toxic work environment were also surfacing around the same time which added fuel to the fire. I would probably have watched it if someone other than Dwayne had been in the lead.

[@rickdesper]

For a guy who's been in a lot of money-making movies, he hasn't been the lead in most of them. Not in the F&F series or the Jumanji movies or much else. FWIW, I liked Black Adam, but I think it was too dark for superhero audiences (also, DC does not know how to market their movies). Well, I won't worry too much about Dwayne Johnson. He's made a lot of money.

[@screenspelunkers1026]

You forgot that most of those failed movies failed because they were terrible. It has nothing to do with market trends

[@Andrew-sy6on]

I think there is also the myth of the rock being a box office draw. I think he has been luckily cast in a couple of movies that made money, (but I could argue those projects made money in spite of him not because of) but the vast majority of his projects are bad and are not profitable for the studio, especially over the last five or six years.

[@CountJeffula]

The costuming looks so off to me. Like they all got new clothes the same day. Fake looking.

[@NostalgicPictures]

I'd love to see a video about The Rocketeer, my favorite Disney failure

[@planetdrull1701]

Probably one of their best failures they didn’t kill before it even got out of the crib

[@rickdesper]

If you really want to climb in the Wayback machine, I'd nominate The Black Hole.

[@joestrike8537]

I still watch my "Rocketeer" DVD regularly - it is such a *perfect* fun, all-age adventure film, beautifully realized...but the Black Hole? A huge misfire on so many levels, from robots with googly eyes painted on them and Disney cartoon voice actors, to an entirely incomprehensible, "what the f*** was *that?!* " ending.

[@borat656]

Thank you for saying "raises the question" instead of "begs the question". I'm aware that language is alive and dynamic, and that using "begs the question" in this form has become the more common usage, which is why I don't say anything when I hear it. But when I hear someone seemingly deliberately attempting to switch to a more proper phrase, I will go out of my way to thank them.

[@isenhartproductions2677]

Yeah, someone pointed that out in my last video, so I made sure to do it right in this one

[@borat656]

@@isenhartproductions2677 The five language nuts who exist appreciate the effort!

[@chrisb4944]

The director they got is to blame for this one. He had no business directing this movie. Then they gave him Black Adam, and he made another flop. There is nothing in this guys filmography that would make you think he was suited for big budget films. He got two chances and he failed epically

[@rickdesper]

That's a symptom of the basic problem that there wasn't really any reason for this movie to exist at all. They just had the name of a Disney World ride and decided to throw money at it.

[@RoughestDrafts]

Been loving your content! Movie budgets really are just becoming so bloated. And while there was only so much Disney could control when releasing Jungle Cruise, releasing Haunted Mansion as a summer blockbuster was such a baffling decision. It feels like Disney’s insides have been on fire since 2020

[@aaronmann4809]

The Rock just isn't a bankable action star. Studios are trying to make him into another Schwarzenegger/Stallone and it's not going to happen.

[@onbearfeet]

I wish we had more mid-budget movies. It seems like the cinema-going audience has gotten smaller and pickier (and I'll admit to being part of that; I've only seen 3 movies in theaters since 2020, and two of those were at a drive-in for safety reasons). The risk of any movie failing is higher, so why not spread that risk around? Make more movies with smaller budgets, and see if you can get one or two to blow up. Tell stories that don't require tons of CGI. Pay your workers enough to get good product (heresy, I know). Instead, it seems like the studios are clinging to the idea of releasing only 5 movies a year and denanding they all be mega-blockbusters. And they won't admit it's not working.

[@houndofculann1793]

It's harder to sell movies with a humble budget to investors since for them it translates into "less potential profit"

[@CocoonMasterBrendan]

Ngl, I completely forgot this movie even existed

[@J0vile]

Lol TIL This movie exists.

[@IbexWatcher]

It also looks so similar to other Rock movies like Jumanji and The Mysterious Island. If you look at Johnson between these movies, he looks virtually identical to

[@davia4794]

Sugestion for the next theme for you: The next Twilight There are so much movies that tried to do the same, like Bone City, 16 Moon, even that other story from the author of Twilight herself. .

[@zeeegeee]

I got 2 minutes into this movie before realizing I had seen it before. Its literally Pirates.

[@rickdesper]

But without Captain Jack Sparrow.

[@derekp308]

This movie made the real life explorer Lope de Augerrie into a character with supernatural powers. In real life Augerrie became power mad, declaring himself the Prince of Peru, and tried to establish his own nation. He was captured by Spanish forces while trying to take over Panama (he rebelled against Spain) and was killed by one of his own men who saw him as a traitor to Spain. Augerrie was also the subject of the classic Werner Herzog movie “Augerrie: The Wrath of God”. In that movie his exposition gets lost, with everyone getting killed except for him.

[@supersmashbro596]

jungle cruise will always be best remembered as that one song by weird al yankovic about a depressed and jaded jungle cruise tour guide.

[@erikhansen4346]

It like these studios get so caught up trying to make the “next big thing” that they forget to make a movie that’s worth watching.

[@cesarromeroalbertos3839]

I'll never understand why they assumed that the success of Pirates of the caribean had anything to do with the disneyland attraction. Most people outside the us haven't been there, and it has little to do with the movies. Adapting other attractions didn't merit any likely success by itself. Like, the reasons of the success of pirates of the caribean focus on being good movies and pirates being inherently fun and interesting. They paint an interesting world with quirky characters while balancing that fun with a grim world. There's lots of stories you could tell in that world.

[@babblingbrooke]

I thought the movie was pretty cute, but also just super predictable. I also just don't love Dwayne Johnson much anymore since he's kind of a one-note guy, so he earns no points for the movie. Emily blunt is a good actor, but she looked out of place in this movie to me. I didn't really buy into them falling in love despite predicting they would. I thought the evil villian guy was good, the prince or whatever, because too many movies nowadays don't let people just be ruthless. I liked the puns. One time watch and a meh basically

[@hungrywallaby]

Suggested future topic: Haunted Mansion (2003) with Eddie Murray and The Haunted Mansion (2023) with Rosario Dawson. Also, I think the guideline for movie profitability is now 3x the production budget. Half the box office revenue is shared 50/50 with the theatres and the cost of promoting the film is not included in the production budget and is often as large as the production budget.

[@kitdraken]

I keep hating that people forget the there’s a much better ride that serves as the source material to both films

[@lorrd9076]

People just don't want to go see a mid movie if they can just wait a month until is comes out on streaming

[@robertlee2092]

The cost of going to movies is absurd for family flicks like this. I took my kids to see Inside Out 2 last weekend and it was almost $50 just for one adult and two kids tickets. You can easily double that if you get snacks. It’s one thing if you’re an adult going to a movie with other adults and you only have to pay for your own ticket, but it’s become basically unaffordable to have a family night at the movies any more.

[@ericfenrich7050]

Part of Disney's problem now, not just in this film, is the lack of originality that company has fallen in to. They essentially took Pirates of the Caribbean and moved to the jungle - a lone renegade confronted with cursed pirates/explorers who were trying to set themselves free. As you said in the video, they were so many interesting ways they could've gone by making the jungle more significant character rather than just repeating natural storyline.

[@amduil8168]

I legit forgot this movie came out because i saw the rock in jungle exploring clothes and thought "oh, another jumanji movie."

[@buccaneercat]

I’ve always been a firm believer that Disney (back when they had competent leadership, and a passion for solid well thought out storytelling) should have just put a ton of money and resources into a Haunted Mansion flick. One that, like Pirates, was a period piece that took itself seriously… but wasn’t afraid to be silly from time to time. Not that anybody asked for it, but to get it off my mind… My dream for the perfect Haunted Mansion movie would be to set it in the 1880s-1900s. The atmosphere and costumes would be gloomy and rich with authenticity. The mansion would be grand and foreboding. There would be heavy shadows contrasted on soft candle lighting and glowing ghosts. The mansion would feel alive at times with how rooms can stretch and move. I would want the cast to be likable (not at all snooty). The spooks and scares would actually be pretty frightening, and serious… just as Pirates had genuine weight and sincerity to their scary scenes… only more so… I would want it to be a genuine attempt at a clean horror film on Disney’s part. Horror doesn’t need to be sex, nudity, or gore. It just needs a gripping story, stakes, and the right themes/timing. Taking all that money and wasting it on a Jungle Cruise movie with a bloated cast and horrible writing/character development is just offensive. Not to mention how they now made TWO modern day Haunted Mansion films about a random family, and their silly shenanigans with the ghosts of the manor. They refuse to give The Haunted Mansion a movie that takes itself seriously… that being said, they hardly release *anything* these days that takes itself seriously. Bob Iger’s “wonderful” leadership has brought the company to this sorry state…

[@uykarl]

Jungle cruise happened during the covid pandemic and it was on disney plus as soon as it was in the theaters.😢

[@inthecloudz1272]

I actually liked a lot about this movie

[@niccololugli62]

Please, make a video about Tron Legacy and Uprising: a Disney next big thing that actually succeeded, but then Disney abandoned to focus on recently acquired Marvel and Star Wars

[@totallycooln3ss414]

This series is becoming one of my favorites! Keep up the good work!

[@molly7154]

In some ways, it feels like this film wanted to be The Mummy but in the jungle. An intelligent British female lead is rejected from a historical society. Her bumbling comic relief brother helps her try to find a mystical macguffin treasure that no one believes actually exists. A handsome, charismatic, & wise-cracking male lead (one is far superior than the other and you know who it is) is the only one who can take our female lead to her destination albeit reluctantly. He does not want to return to the macguffin and feels it is best left alone. Our female scholar, her brother, & our leading man are in a race against bad guys to reach the treasure first. Dead men are brought back to life and go after our leads. The heroes get the treasure, bad guys lose, & the leads fall in love with each other (again you know which film has the superior love story). The female leads in both films also got the satisfaction of rejecting the scholarly societies that once rejected them. I’d like to note that I know The Mummy isn’t even original and borrows elements & tropes from a variety of stories that came before it. Anyways, my point is that some specific similarities and tropes between the two films stood out to me and I wanted to highlight them.

[@benkoncsics6663]

Love these vids keep em coming

[@dyscotopia]

Can anyone name a single character Dwayne the Rock Johnson has played? Animated films don't count... It's always just the Rock cocking his eyebrow and flexing for 90-120 minutes

[@rickdesper]

Hobbes? Or Shaw. I forget which is which. 😀 (Seriously, not a bad movie, but I think Statham has far more lead actor power than Johnson.)

[@joestrike8537]

@@rickdesper Wait, was that "Hobbs & Shaw" or "Calvin & Hobbes"? 😛

[@FlyingFocs]

It's sad, because every time I rewatch the Mummy, I'm reminded how much I want a really good adventure movie. But at the same time, I don't know that there's a single big studio out there willing to risk fronting the money.

[@markvicferrer]

Adapting a theme park ride is an odd pitch, but with Pirates of the Carribean, there's a promise of swashbuckling adventure. The Jungle Cruise ride is an odd little ride punctuated with interesting narration; a quirky movie could have worked, but not a summer blockbuster.

[@gisela_oliveira]

I think Disney puts too much money and too little effort into this movies. Pirates worked because, one: it was probably not that expensive since it was a shot in the dark, and second, it had so much heart, you can see how they actually tried to make a good movie, not the best, not the most amazing movie ever, but a good movie, with a good story. I love the original trilogy because you can see how they actually cared about it

[@shootcommentator9641]

Hey dude I love these fail next big things videos and you know saw all of the films. 😅👌🏼

[@ab5olut3zero95]

The Africa Queen was a much better Jungle Cruise movie. This was fun, but way too expensive for what we got.

[@anamelessyoutuber1462]

Can something really be considered a failure if it got the greatest honor any movie can achieve ........a Kids Choice Awards Favorite Movie nomimation? That means it's one of the greatest, most important, and Chaddest movies not only of 2021, but also of all time.

[@windflare1637]

Shooting a "jungle" movie 100% all indoor and green screen is crazy to me. Like i can understand the reasoning (minus the budget part). But there's a charm watching a movie in a real seat than the green screen one.

[@ponyjoe6694]

My wife loved this movie, my kids thought it was a Jumanji sequal.

[@williampalmer8052]

Dwayne was a bad casting choice. He already had his jungle adventure movies, and a lot of people are just tired of his schtick.

[@baileyayyy5085]

anyone else completely caught off guard by a youtuber finally not using some goofy euphemism for covid

[@thetalentof]

Agree, The River Wild as you mention but also Anaconda both do a much better job of making you feel like you're in the jungle thanks to shooting on-location and in-camera and managing to avoid the actors-doing-cosplay look of digital and shooting on 35mm for a more expensive, cinematic looking, immersive experience for the viewer.

[@danbanana6481]

Don't forget (both versions of) The Haunted Mansion! 😅

[@lalalandlaura]

As much as I love the rock I'm kind of burnt out of seeing him. But I still respect him and I wish him all the best roles that he wants.

[@Mizzkitty23]

I think Dwayne Johnson fatigue was a factor as well. He plays himself in every movie he’s in. After while it becomes tiring

[@VideoHeadMan]

I love these videos.

[@oscarstainton]

James Newton Howard’s score is a genuine highlight, and makes for fun listening while writing. The movie itself I think is better than Dial of Destiny, but you’re right that it needed more of a sense of romantic chemistry and a jungle river location that feels real. In other words, it needed a Gore Verbinski and Stephen Sommers to make it feel like a great adventure. Also, it would have been better if Edgar Ramirez had played Frank/Francisco.

[@SuperMoviemaster21]

For your FYI, Skylar Schuyler Of the Dis insider has stated just over a week ago that Disney is still planning on making a sequel to jungle Cruise here :-) also don’t forget that the rock literally just signed a first look deal with Disney with his production company, so I wouldn’t call a sequel “very unlikely”……

[@J0vile]

For your for your information? Also, seeing as the movie took almost a decade to come out initially from its announcement, it's easy to speculate on the gap between this announcement and it's release.

[@3ofEach]

How does The Rock keep getting roles in all these movies?!

[@davidalbee5039]

Guessing that the next one is gonna about “Haunted Mansion 2023?”

[@melindawolfUS]

If even a tiny fraction of the evidence is true about Disney's involvement with children and SA, well - I would love to see the whole company collapse and the guilty (protected rich) people go to prison.

[@kolonarulez5222]

Watching this movie made me revisit both The Mummy (3 films) and Scorpion King (5 films?!)

[@geraldmartin7703]

O.K., I'm old. But when I see "Jungle" in a title I think it's going to be an old Tarzan reboot.

[@laurensnieuwland4657]

You ought to do one on Tron: Legacy. It's such an amazing movie, and you can really see that they tried to turn it into a franchise.

[@joestrike8537]

Oh no no no no!!! "Tron Legacy" was an insult to a one-of-a-kind movie that simply didn't make a lot of sense on any level - and lacked the original's unique visual treatment that made you feel like you were truly visiting an otherworldy realm; instead it felt like watching a bunch of "Tron" cosplayers

[@laurensnieuwland4657]

@@joestrike8537 I definitely disagree. I mean, the plot was a bit generic, but the visuals, (and especially) the soundtrack and most of the acting was amazing! It's still one of my favourite movies after all these years.

[@robstein1313]

I completely forgot about watching this movie

[@MattMcIrvin]

...Thinking some more about *why* Disney would ever assume that adapting theme-park rides into movies is a gold mine, I wonder if it's a cognitive distortion caused by the people making the decisions living in Greater Los Angeles, where Disneyland is a local attraction and people are more likely to be very familiar with the rides there. Lots of people go to Disney parks, yes, but they're expensive to visit and distant from most people in the world, and if you even manage to do it, it's likely to be something you saved up for and did once or twice in a lifetime. You might have some nice recollections of riding these rides, but unless you're a real theme-park geek or a "Disney adult", the fine details of them aren't burned into your memory. But the situation with Disneyland and LA is unusual: the park caters more to locals; a lot of people around there may have passes and go frequently, or at least have been there many times.

[@portable8223]

a wrinkle in time and artemis fowl are trainwrecks

[@wemdoe]

I liked it, even though it feels like a lesser Pirates knock off. I thought Rock was as alright, Emily Blunt was good as usual, and Jake Whitehall was hilarious. I like it enough I do rewatch it every so often.

[@DGarrettR]

i already forgot this movie exists

[@AbrasiousProductions]

I forgot this even existed.

[@namebrandmason]

I don't go to the movies much, but I didn't even know this movie was made. I'm not trying to be mean: this movie made so little blip I didn't hear about it.

[@dietdrpepper15]

I want a reboot, this SHOULD work. And Jake Johnson should be the skipper.

[@trika91]

When I first watched this movie, from beginning to end I felt that it was just a ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ ripoff in aesthetic, tone, and even plot, down to having cursed antagonists that chase the leads and the main male lead being cursed himself. It was super unoriginal and did nothing to stand itself out from its contemporaries nor shake up the formula. It’s the equivalent of “Let me copy your homework” to the Pirates franchise and only changing some of the ‘answers’ with setting.

[@johnsouth3912]

Nothing Disney’s made since about 2017 a big budget.

[@huntress1013]

IMHO you must have a couple of reasons why this movie as well as pretty much any Disney product is bound to fail nowadays...the same reason why JLo had to cancel her tour...a good chunk dislike The Rock by now and think he is fake and Disney is hated for multiple reasons which are well known. There are enough video essays on Disney on KZbin. I wouldn't touch a Disney movie anymore with a ten-foot pole, and I am not alone.

[@SuperMoviemaster21]

I’ve also heard a decent amount of people actually quite enjoyed this, and it’s also seems to be selling decently well with some of its merchandising with home media and other things etc. :-)

[@wbbartlett]

"with Jungle Cruise it's different as we can definitively point our fingers at one thing that caused this movie to fail - the covid-19 pandemic" Could have made a 6 second video.

[@masaharumorimoto4761]

Just stumbled into this, KZbin recommended your video, nice when the recommends are actually good! Subbed and liked, thanks, checkin out your other videos :)

[@isenhartproductions2677]

Awesome, thank you!

[@AccoSpoot]

I know it's probably not in your "failed next big thing" subgenre, but you should really look at 2003's Haunted Mansion; both HM and Pirates were made and produced simultaneously both intended to be parts of Disney adapting some of their rides, so HM really is kinda the first attempt at the next big thing!

[@chillzonejawn]

You spend 5 minutes listing all the reasons that this movie would fail, and then you say, the one reason this movie failed was the pandemic! No, I think it was the 11 years it spend in development hell and the fact that it was a movie no human being on planet Earth wanted to see.

[@aimeeinkling]

Comparison to other "river movies," but no mention of African Queen? The river movie is most heavily borrows from is African Queen, IMHO.

[@MattMcIrvin]

I always thought of the subgenre as "failed theme-park adaptation". Some of the movies you've covered in this series aren't that, but some of them are. And the pattern actually precedes "Pirates of the Caribbean"--they were churning out failed movies based on their theme-park rides *before* it hit. I'm not sure exactly why they persisted, but "Pirates" must have convinced them that it really was a good idea, despite "Mission to Mars", "Country Bears" and the Eddie Murphy "Haunted Mansion" all flopping. I think the fascination of Johnny Depp's bizarre performance as Captain Jack Sparrow is something they couldn't really replicate elsewhere, even with Johnny Depp. And that was the special sauce of "Pirates", not really anything about the source material.

[@Guy_Incognito118]

One day Isenhart will cover TRON: Legacy, but that day is not today

[@isenhartproductions2677]

One day I will

[@anonymous-hz2un]

​@@isenhartproductions2677 that movie tried to cash in on the 3D craze after Avatar, though. I'm not sure it tried to be Pirates.

[@Scrimjer]

The Rock looked like his costume didnt fit him

[@SnepperStepTV]

It was just a modern retelling of The African Queen with the jungle cruise branding slapped on there. Super disappointing to see coming from what used to be the place where dreams came true.

[@rickdesper]

The African Queen is the most they could have hoped for. But they didn't get close.

[@Estes705]

At 4:50, "What went wrong?" They put Dwayne Johnson as the star! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@LazybonesInc]

It definitely had the advantage of Dwayne Johnson who's a pretty sizable draw, which is why he was likely cast in the role. Maybe if the movie was delayed by another year like Top Gun: Maverick and Minions: The Rise of Gru were in a post-pandemic environment, its box office returns would likely have been better.

[@electrojones]

I think Johnson WAS a major BO draw, but he's done a 180 lately and could now be called BO poison. He might turn that around, but he's not the Rock of a few years ago. He's often unfavorably compared to Dave Bautista and John Cena, which while unfair, is understandable.

[@drdewott9154]

@@electrojones Honestly he was even a bit of a BO poison back in 2021. Like the simmering aorund him and his toxicness really started around that time. I even remember myself seeing the ads and going "Oh god not him"

[@chasewilkinson1977]

First one of these I don't at least vaguely remember hearing about lol

[@derekp308]

Big Thunder Mountain will probably still get made into a movie despite all this. Space Mountain and “The Black Hole” becomes part of the Stars Wars canon (actually that would make for a great April Fools hoax).

[@Dreadjaws]

It's crazy how Dwayne Johnson started his Hollywood career long before Dave Bautista and John Cena yet both of the latter have been much more successful in getting more memorable and popular roles. Off the top of my head I can't name any character The Rock has played that's not Black Adam, and only because it's the goddamn title of the movie. I had to think for a while to remember Roadblock from G.I. Joe (which I would not remember if it wasn't a franchise I'm familiar with) and Maui from Moana (where he only does voice work, at least until the freaking live-action remake).

[@giodhuha6771]

I mean it's a Dwayne Johnson movie, what did you expect?

[@will_it_work]

Neither Indy 5 nor Marvels would have done better pre-Covid.

[@this-aint-no-party]

i love this series :))

[@isenhartproductions2677]

Thank you!

[@wanaan]

I still like it loads though. Time for a rewatch.

[@frostb1041]

Best thing about this movie is the Metalica music and Emily Blunt