Rewrite this title for a blog post. Remove any site names from it The title is: A historical disaster! This sci-fi film is one of the biggest disappointments of recent years, $100 million went up in smoke…

Unfortunately, not all films are huge successes in Hollywood. Even the biggest stars can be associated with monumental failures. This is the case of Tom Holland, the hero of the “Spider-Man” franchise, who starred in a science fiction film that turned out to be a huge financial failure. “Chaos Walking”, released in 2021 in the United States and directly on VOD in France, brought in only $27 million at the global box office, for a budget of $100 million! This setback was a hard blow for Lionsgate, the production company that had been working on the project since 2011 with the hope of turning it into a successful sci-fi franchise.

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A production that takes a lot of time

It all started in 2011, when Lionsgate acquired the rights to adapt Patrick Ness's trilogy, “Chaos Walking”. The literary saga, very popular in the United Kingdom, had received several awards and enjoyed a large fan base. The film version seemed to have all the elements to succeed. Charlie Kaufman, a renowned screenwriter, was hired in 2012 to write the screenplay. However, he left the project shortly after, leaving a draft that passed through the hands of several filmmakers, including the author of the novel.

In 2017, Edge of Tomorrow director Doug Liman was announced as the director, and an impressive cast, including Daisy Ridley known for her role in the latest Star Wars films, and Tom Holland, was confirmed. Filming began in August 2017 in Canada, Scotland and Iceland, and wrapped in November of the same year. Everything seemed to be going well until April 2018, when the first test screenings revealed major problems.Reshoots are scheduled, but the main actors have very busy schedules, further delaying the project.

All that for… that? A “timid” result

Chaos Walking is produced by Tom Holland and Daisy Ridley, two of the biggest stars in Hollywood at the time of filming. However, their commitments to the “Star Wars” and “Spider-Man” franchises complicated the reshoots. They were not available until April 2019, a year later than expected. Doug Liman was replaced by Fede Álvarez for the reshoots, which increased the budget by an additional $15 million.

During the promotion, Patrick Ness stated that the reshoots were planned, and that it was one of Doug Liman's working methods. However, these multiple obstacles undoubtedly affected the final result of the film. The release of the feature film, initially scheduled for March 2019, was postponed to January 2021, then to March of the same year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.. In France, the film is released directly on VOD in July 2021. Unfortunately, the chaotic production is reflected on screen. The reviews are very negative, 21/100 on Rotten Tomatoesalthough the public is more indulgent, 71/100. The spectators recognize an interesting concept, but deplore a boring narration that does not seem to have conquered the world of giant screens…