If you've heard about the new superhero movie Madame Web, you can almost guarantee it's terrible. Very bad. “How was this made?” Bad. It's 12 percent worse on Rotten Tomatoes. “People who read reviews and cancel tickets” are bad. If you've heard one more thing about “Madame Web,” it's probably because Dakota Johnson, the star of this movie, is not only fully aware of how awful this movie is, but also has an idea of how bad it is. It seems that he cannot hide this recognition even during his specially prepared publicity appearances. for her to promote the product. These appearances threaten to overshadow the film itself. Here, it's such a huge failure that even the stars can't help but knock this production down.
Indeed, if you click through clips of Johnson's recent films, you wouldn't get the impression that she's an actor with a deeply positive opinion of the films she's talking about. This is partly due to Johnson's distinctive influence. Often, when she is interviewed about “Madame Web” and other things, she shows no interest in her celebrity PR gimmicks. It seems like there is a role for her to play, but she is often reluctant to play it. Instead, she seems confused and bored by the whole ceremony, and she doesn't want to pretend otherwise in the name of decorum. (The same can be said of her performance in the film Madame Web. Her rendition of the wooden lines in the film appears to contain traces of a smirk) .)
But there's more to this press tour than just excitement. If this movie is a joke about her being a mind-boggling slop, she seems happy to go along with it. A few weeks ago, in a monologue on Saturday Night Live, she hilariously described the film as a superhero movie starring Sidney Sweeney, adding, “I mean, it's like an AI generated version of your boyfriend's favorite movie.'' It's a thing,” he said. When asked on “Late Night with Seth Meyers” how much superhero backstory viewers need to enjoy “Madame Web,” Johnson assured Meyers that she didn't need any. . In fact, she added with a laugh. “She doesn't need to know anything about anything,” she said. Jeez To see this movie. ” Then she went on to say: That's great for America.'' “Don't you know anything? Come see our movie.''
There were a few other moments, none particularly noteworthy on their own, but hard to ignore when woven into the mix by pop-culture obsessed folks. She told Entertainment Weekly that her experience filming against a blue screen background felt “completely psychotic.” She told The Wrap that the script had undergone “significant changes” from the version that originally convinced her to sign on. She told Myers that she was frustrated with her Gen Z castmates. The news is speculating that he may have removed her from her group chat. She said on her radio show that she hasn't seen the movie yet and doesn't know if she will. Until now will do. Throughout, the fact that “Madame Web” existed and that she was starring in it seemed to her more than anything else a source of entertainment for her.
Pop culture discourse feeds off this. Excerpt from a typical response: “Yes, Marvel's 'Madame Web' is a 'clunky, junky' disaster, but Dakota Johnson's press tour is fun.” (The Guardian) “Johnson's 'Madame Web' “We love it.'' (The AV Club) “Dakota Johnson's 'Madame Web' Press Tour Was a Real Movie.'' (Jezebel.) Where did all this come from? There are many more Tanakas, and similar sentiments are bouncing across TikTok. Although Johnson's films have been flops, her public image is more beloved than ever.
I got it too I'm excited to see this development. A lot of celebrity culture is incredibly outdated, especially when it comes to movies, superheroes, and the industrial complex. The actors in these films walk around similar press circuits, saying similar things about similar performances in similar films. they are laughingThey are glad to be here; They are I'm really looking forward to talking about this project.. There's something heartening about watching Johnson bring irresistible authenticity to a machine full of fakes.
I can't help but notice that it's also PR genius. When “Madame Web” becomes a national topic, what better thing to do than to shrug and join in? Johnson never said the movie was terrible, but he seemed to be winking at the audience. He said, “I know it stinks, I know it stinks, I know it, you know it, I know it.'' Eventually she got serious, telling Bustle that while her bad publicity was off-putting, she “can't say I don't understand it.”
This kind of thing isn't necessarily bad for a movie. Sometimes it almost seems like it's helping, like when heated gossip about behind-the-scenes drama on the set of “Don't Worry Darling” seemed to help the box office. But even if that doesn't apply to “Madame Web,” it doesn't matter to Johnson. She's still a party girl who makes everything look cool by tripping on the carpet and spilling champagne on her shirt. Her conspiratorial smile makes you feel like her collaborator. Even if you both laugh, it's not humiliation. Maybe you're getting the hang of it. Sidney Sweeney gleefully joked in his own SNL monologue, “You might have seen me in 'Anyone But You' or 'Euphoria.'” You definitely didn't see me on Madame Web. ”
A move like this is especially well-suited in these times when we're tracking celebrities not only as artists but also as media personalities, looking specifically for people to cheer on how they navigate the obstacle course of fame. This has long benefited Johnson. Johnson's star power radiates not only from her film roles but also from her press appearances and from the suggestion that she is something of a lovable disruptor. In 2019, she became a hot topic again. This time on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show.” DeGeneres openly mentioned that she wasn't invited to Johnson's birthday party, but Johnson deadpanned and refused to let her, and she kept insisting. — that DeGeneres actually received an invitation. The moment was truly awkward, broke her daytime TV routine, and perfectly enhanced her viral status.But it clearly wasn't as vicious or confrontational as People I wanted Is that so, or as has been portrayed in many, many articles commemorating it as a prime example of Johnson's fake-zero approach to public life?
Similarly, I watched Johnson's entire Madame Web press appearance and found it wasn't as “chaotic” as the headlines and video editing would have led me to believe, and I found it to be less critical of Madame Web. It wasn't even. I see, she found the blue screen experience strange.She doesn't watch 'Madame Web,' but she says she doesn't. largely This is a strategy not uncommon among successful actors. She said she is frustrated with her Gen Z castmates. She also said she loves them. She made a little fun of her own career on her late-night TV show. Is this really strange?
It's fun to imagine stars breaking protocol and going scorched earth with their own bad movies. Plato thought that only philosophers with no interest in becoming kings were worthy of the job, and we seem to feel the same way about famous people. We desperately need celebrities who aren't stuck in celebrity culture and are willing to share their opinions on what's worst and who's fake. We are so hungry for authenticity that we risk making something up, treating the smallest violation of the status quo as a sign of a long-desired rebellion. “I'm not good at talking to journalists,” Johnson said in a monologue on “SNL.” “I think the big problem is that I say something and they write it down. And that's really unfair.” Lyne laughed heartily. But then Johnson continued. She explained that it's unfair because “most of the time I'm joking.” That made me laugh less.
Source photo for illustration above: Screenshot via Entertainment Tonight.
Peter C. Baker is a freelance writer living in Evanston, Illinois, and author of the novel Plains.
