It seems that Netflix’s desperate attempt to hang with the major players in Hollywood means that Bright, their biggest film to date starring Will Smith and Joel Edgarton, was going to be a franchise starter no matter what. Despite the film receiving scathing reviews, the streaming service has confirmed that the two stars, plus director David Ayer, are expected to return for Bright 2.
Netflix doesn’t release the viewing habits of their subscribers, but they claim Bright is the highest viewed Netflix film ever in its first week of release. What we don’t know is whether those viewing numbers drastically dropped once the film was revealed to be such a critical stinker.
With such a poor reception, it’s fair to wonder why Netflix doesn’t just commission another brand new Will Smith blockbuster instead of a sequel to a film it seems next to nobody liked.
Smith is the main reason practically any significant amount of people watched the film anyway, so why not start from scratch and try again and hopefully come away with a film starring Smith that is actually good?
What we do know about the sequel is that writer Max Landis will not return to write it, with director Ayer taking over writing duties as well. It might also mean that Ayer is done with the DCEU, as he was attached to direct Gotham City Sirens but there has been no movement on that for a while, and he was pretty upfront about how Netflix gave him a lot more creative freedom than Warner Bros. did.
Netflix noted that the film was more popular internationally than it was domestically, which might explain the greenlighting of the sequel, as Hollywood in recent years has been very aware of branching out and making profits outside the US.
If there was ever any proof needed that public opinion of a film rarely matters, this is it. If Netflix is attempting to fit in with the big studios in Hollywood, they’re succeeding, as it looks as if they’re making the same, short-sighted mistakes as their competitors.
#Peace.Love.Bright
