Failure to Franchise

"Summer Surprise," our annual event where an online randomizer picks our slate of summer movies, kicks off with 1988's attempt to turn the iconic TV horror hostess Elvira into an iconic big screen star...which, obviously, didn't quite work out. But why? With Elvira-mania in full swing in the 80s, what kept the spooky and goofy comedy of Elvira: Mistress of the Dark from connecting with movie audiences? We investigate that question, and also explore the history of the Elvira character and fascinating life of Cassandra Peterson, the woman behind Elvira. All the while, Elvira-neophyte Chris worries an admittedly Elvira-obsessed Trev might not be able to contain himself during the discussion. So, c'mon, don't be a boob; and be sure to listen to one of our breast episodes yet! Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd

"Fighting VideoLAMES" concludes, with a look at the adaptation at one of the most popular, financially successful fighting game franchises in the world. But even that pedigree wasn't enough to save the movie from a lengthy struggle to even get released. Disregarded by many fans upset over changes to the source material, and equally disavowed by the game's creators, the Tekken movie is arguably one of the lesser-known cinematic video game adaptations. But does any of that necessarily mean it's bad? We're here to discuss that very question, and also ponder what exactly constitutes a "failed franchise," as this movie did manage a sequel of sorts a few years later. So why are we talking about it here? Listen on to find out! Plus, a preview of our upcoming episodes with the selection of our annual "Summer Surprise" movies! Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd

"Fighting VideoLAMES" continues with a look at the adaptation of Tecmo's Dead or Alive video game franchise. The games, about an international martial arts tournament put on by a mysterious, potentially sinister corporation, are known not only for their fast-paced hand-to-hand combat and colorful roster of characters, but also for their focus on beautiful, badass female characters and, controversially, the "jiggle physics" animation that is used to bring them to life (most infamously seen in the Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball spinoff). The 2006 cinematic adaptation, helmed by Hong Kong martial arts film legend Corey Yuen, looked to embrace the same outlandish, silly, and sexy spirit as the games. But this begs the question; is the resultant film ultimately more exploitative than exciting? We knew we couldn't (shouldn't?) try to answer this question alone, so for this discussion, we've recruited an actual woman (gasp!) to join in the fun. That's right, our friend Jackie returns to F2F to discuss her own experience with video games (and their sometimes heavily gendered nature), before we all dive in dissect DOA: Dead or Alive, in what is, surprisingly, our biggest episode yet! Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd Jackie's Twitter

For the latest installment of "Fighting VideoLAMES," we're looking at Capcom's second attempt to bring their beloved Street Fighter II to the big screen. Far from the silly, colorful spectacle of the JCVD/Raul Julia version, this time around Capcom opted for a more grounded, dramatic take, focusing primarily one single Street Fighter character in hopes of kicking off an MCU-like string of sequels ultimately culminating in a big team-up movie. But even with Kristen Kreuk, a hot TV star of the time, in the titular role as one of the video game's most popular characters, Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li once again failed to cement Street Fighter as a cinematic brand. So what went wrong this time? How much can you change from the source material before you're no longer really making a true adaptation? And just what is going on with that Chris Klein performance? We discuss all this, and more! Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd

We're kicking off "Fighting VideoLAMES," a four-episode series covering cinematic adaptions of fighting video-games, with the first of two movies based on one of the most iconic, popular fighting games of all time: 1994's Street Fighter. With an all-star cast including Jean Claude Van Damme and Raul Julia (in his final onscreen appearance), produced by the very company that made the video game, and released while Street Fighter II mania was at a high, the movie seemed like a can't-miss proposition. And, to be fair, the movie was a financial success. But between an extra chaotic production and fan dissatisfaction over liberties taken with the story and characters of the game, the movie still quickly took on the reputation of an infamous cinematic disaster. The question is, is the movie truly an unwatchable mess, or is it actually the enjoyable camp classic its growing cult of fans and defenders over the years claim it to be? Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd

"Mark WahlTURD & the Yucky Bunch" concludes, as the singer-turned-actor-turned-business-mogul and his frequent collaborator, director Peter Berg, leave behind the growing unpredictability of theatrical box office for the apparent comfort and safety (and big paydays) of the streaming world. But even there, you're not entirely safe from the perils of a failed franchise starter, as you'll hear when we discuss 2020's Spenser Confidential, the cinematic adaptation of a popular series of detective novels which already enjoyed some filmed success in the TV world in previous years. So why wasn't this later made-for-the-small-screen effort able to hook audiences in the same way? And, perhaps more importantly, does that even matter to Wahlberg, as his career and interests have shifted in new directions? Join us for our first ever look at a streaming-exclusive movie! And, as always, stay pray'd up. Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd

The third installment of "Mark WahlTURD & the Yucky Bunch" jumps ahead 15 years to 2018, where Mark Wahlberg, now very much a movie star, is looking to team up with director Peter Berg, his recent favorite collaborator, for a new espionage action thriller. But it's a rocky road to get there, as the movie in question was originally developed as a potential star vehicle for a totally different performer. Why did Mile 22 evolve into something else entirely? How did Wahlberg's "James Silva" go from supporting role to main character? What is a "gauntlet movie," and does Mile 22 fit the definition? And, most importantly, is the movie any good, and did it deserve sequels? We discuss all this, and more! Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd

"Mark WahlTURD & the Yucky Bunch" rolls along into 2003, when a much-in-need-of-a-comeback Mark Wahlberg decided to hop on the then popular trend of remaking classic '60s heist movies, with a modern update of the beloved Michael Caine crime caper The Italian Job. Here, Wahlberg and a crew of fellow eccentric thieves (a "funky bunch," if you will) seek to pull off a heist as revenge against a former compatriot who has done them wrong. The movie's action scenes undeniably started a Mini Cooper popularity boom, but what about the rest of the movie? Is it as sexy as The Thomas Crown Affair? Is it as cool as Ocean's Eleven? Why did one of its stars hate being in it? And, most importantly for our theme, did it reignite Wahlberg's flailing movie star career? We discuss all this, and more! Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd

Here at Failure to Franchise, we don’t like making fun of actors. So trust us when we say our new theme, “Mark WalhTURD and the Yucky Bunch,” dedicated to four failed franchise starters from Boston rapper-turned-actor Mark Wahlberg, is, uh, a tribute. First up, 2001’s Planet of the Apes remake, which was meant to be Wahlberg’s first foray into mega-blockbuster leading man territory. Helmed by beloved Hollywood weirdo Tim Burton, and featuring incredible makeup effects by Rick Baker, the film seemed like a can’t-miss attempt to reboot the classic sci-fi franchise. Instead, it left the series in need of another reboot attempt a decade later. What went wrong? We’re here to figure it out! Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd

"FebruaRYAN" concludes with a look at 2014's Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit. Twelve years after The Sum of All Fears failed to reignite the Jack Ryan franchise, Paramount tried once again to tell a new Ryan origin story, with a new "hot young star of the moment" leading man in the role. But this particular Ryan movie arrived in a post-MCU world, when the importance of "IP" had become even more evident, and the concept of - say it with us - "cinematic universes" had become all the rage. How did that affect the approach to Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit? And why did the movie ultimately suffer essentially the same fate as its predecessor? We discuss all this, and more, as we wrap up our look at failed reboots of Tom Clancy's beloved CIA analyst. Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd

It's out with January, and in with "FebruaRYAN." That's right, this month we're taking a look at Tom Clancy's beloved CIA analyst turned reluctant hero, Jack Ryan. After the successes of The Hunt for Red October, with Alec Baldwin as Ryan, and Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger, which saw Harrison Ford take over the role, Paramount Pictures were sure they had a long-running, bulletproof spy-thriller franchise on their hands. And yet, two subsequent attempts to reboot the series were both dead-ends. In this episode, we're looking at the first attempt to relaunch the series with a new origin for the Jack Ryan character, and a new, younger leading man in the role - 2002's The Sum of All Fears, starring Ben Affleck as Ryan. Arriving just months after the tragedy of 9/11, this movie seemed advantageously primed to capitalize on the news of the day in order to muster extra attention. But was the film's story a little too close to recent events for the audience's comfort? And was Ben Affleck's recently changing fortunes as a leading man more of a distraction than a benefit? Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd

"The Mutant GENEuary" wraps up with a movie that is very much not a YA adaptation. In fact, Mutant Chronicles is the long-awaited cinematic adaptation of a popular table-top RPG and video game franchise. After several abandoned attempts to make a big budget studio version of the property, starting in the 90s, fans were finally delivered an independent film adaptation in 2008 that adopted the green-screen aesthetics of recent box-office hits Sin City and 300. Would fans feel forgiving of, or even excited by, the movie's unique look? And would the presence of a couple beloved genre-film stars be enough to make up for the liberties the film took with the source material's story?  Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd

It's a new year, and a new theme! We're transforming - or should we say "mutating" - the month of January into "The Mutant Gene-uary!" That's right, a month dedicated to mutants, and we're kicking it off with 2020's The New Mutants, the last film released from the original regime of the 20th Century Fox X-Men franchise. Based on a popular X-Men spin-off comic, The New Mutants was meant not only to expand the horizons of what a superhero movie could be, by taking a more horror-based approach, but also to add a new offshoot franchise to the overall X-Men cinematic universe, with a brand new team of young mutant heroes. But after a troubled production and multiple release-date delays, The New Mutants ultimately limply arrived after Disney's purchase of Fox meant the existing X-Men film franchise would be no more. Putting the behind-the-scenes politics aside, did The New Mutants truly deserve its fate? To discuss this, in the spirit of shared universes and comic book crossovers, we're joined in this episode by Joe, Trev's co-host on the Days of Future Podcast: Examining the X-Men podcast, for what promises to be an X-cellent conversation. (get it?) Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd Days of Future Podcast Days of Future Podcast Instagram Days of Future Podcast Twitter

"It's Poddin' Time! We're closing out "Failure to Franchise presents Trev & Chris-tmas" with Trev's gift to Chris - a chance to revisit 2017's big-screen blockbuster reboot of Power Rangers. With a team of up-and-coming young actors as the titular heroes, and a couple Hollywood heavy hitters backing them up in supporting roles - including one with an interesting prior connection to the franchise - it sure seemed like Power Rangers was well-suited to cash in on the overall success of the superhero franchise and finally make the long-running kids TV franchise an actual cinematic player. But with criticisms of too-little-action and a perhaps too-serious tone, the film failed to connect in a big way. But do we believe these Rangers deserved another shot at the Morphin' Grid? Stock up on your Krispy Kreme and give a listen.  Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd

It's once again the most holly, jolly time of the year - "Failure to Franchise presents Trev and Chris-tmas," when we gift each other movies off our long F2F list that we might otherwise not be getting to anytime soon. First up, Chris gifts Trev a notorious box-office and critical flop that Trev has nonetheless always wanted to see ever since it first half-heartedly sputtered into theaters. But...why? Perhaps it has something to do with the film's bizarre origins. After all, how many would-be Hollywood blockbusters can legitimately claim to come from the mind of an actual four-year-old? Well, Monster Trucks can! So strap in and buckle up, as we take this surprisingly star-studded take on the "boy and his pet monster" trope out for a spin around the track.  Our Twitter Our Facebook Our Instagram Our YouTube Trev's Letterboxd Chris' Letterboxd