Date: 24th November 2021

Ridley Scott Blames Millennials for 'The Last Duel' Box Office Failure.


Ridley Scott blames millennials for his film The Last Duel bombing at the box office.

The acclaimed director, 83, complained about young people's attention spans have been whittled away by technology while talking to Marc Maron for his WTF podcast.

The director, known for commercially and critically successful films such as "Alien", "Thelma & Louise" and "The Martian", appeared on comedian Marc Maron’s podcast "WTF" on Monday. Among the topics discussed was "The Last Duel", the film Scott directed from a screenplay by Nicole Holofcener, Ben Affleck, and Matt Damon based on Eric Jager's book of the same name, which only made $27 million worldwide despite carrying a $100 million budget.

"No. Disney did a fantastic promotion job", Scott said when Maron implied the company may have been the reason for "The Last Duel's" low performance. "The bosses loved the movie - because I was concerned it was not for them - but they really liked the movie, so their advertising, publicity, et cetera, was excellent."

"I think what it boils down to - what we've got today are the audiences who were brought up on these fucking cell phones. The millennian do not ever want to be taught anything unless you are told it on the cell phone,” Scott continued. “This is a broad stroke, but I think we’re dealing with it right now with Facebook. There is a misdirection that has happened where it’s given the wrong kind of confidence to this latest generation, I think."

Maron said that he thought the time period and action in the film would have been a draw for younger audiences.

"I agree with you. Particularly with Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Adam Driver and this new girl called Jodie Comer. That’s the call you make. That’s the call that Fox made. We all thought it was a terrific script, and we made it,” Scott responded. “You can’t win all the time. As far as I’m concerned, I’ve never had one regret on any movie I’ve ever made. Nothing. I learned very early on to be your own critic. The only thing you should really have an opinion on is what you just did. Walk away. Make sure you’re happy. And don’t look back. That’s me."

Source: Press Release


 

 

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