Those rumors about Taylor Swift Easter eggs didn’t help “Argylle” at the box office, but director Matthew Vaughn felt more dismayed by the film’s “vitriolic” reviews than by ticket sales, according to a new interview with Empire.
Vaughn said he was shocked by how badly the spy adventure comedy failed on a critical level.
“It’s a fun, heartwarming movie, or at least I thought it was a fun, heartwarming movie,” Vaughn said. “We didn’t do ‘Citizen Kane,’ but damn, and then the reviews came out and I was like, ‘Wait, what did I do to offend these people?’ They were vitriolic.
Vaughn added: “I’m not saying the movie is perfect by any means, but I didn’t think it was offensive. This took me by surprise.
The director recalled the “fantastic” audience tests conducted ahead of the film’s January 2024 release. The feature starred Bryce Dallas Howard as a novelist who finds himself caught up in a real-life case, stranger than The fiction. Henry Cavill, Dua Lipa and John Cena performed together.
“My guard stopped on ‘Argylle’. We had done some drug testing and it had gone wonderfully,” Vaughn said. “The premiere was a really fun night, and it was like going back to the ‘Snatch’ days where there was so much excitement. And I started drinking the Kool-Aid.
After the reviews were published, Vaughn returned to theaters to witness audience reactions in real time.
“I even went to the movies because I thought, ‘Maybe I’ve lost the plot now,'” he added. “It shook me. I’m really scratching my head about this, because you can’t ignore it. It wasn’t like (just) a few bad reviews.
“Argylle” was later released on Apple TV+. He is pleased with his performance there and Vaughn feels inspired again to direct a follow-up film.
“We are doing very well in streaming. People like it. Nothing would make me happier than to do another one,” he said. “I get texts saying, ‘Wow, those reviews were really harsh!’ “The more people we can get to watch ‘Argylle,’ the more likely we are to make another one. I would love to do another one, we have it planned.
Amid the bad reviews, Vaughn concluded: “That’s what it is. You learn from these things.
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News Source : www.indiewire.com
