While fans usually can’t wait to pour into cinemas in their droves and watch the latest MCU release, some are boycotting Captain Marvel because of Larson’s casting and the idea of a female-first superhero movie.
There has been a recent furore surrounding Captain Marvel that led to it becoming the lowest-rated movie in the franchise’s history on Rotten Tomatoes’ “Want To See” section.
In a wave of controversy, only a shocking 29% of those posting their views on the review aggregator site wanted to see Captain Marvel. Thankfully, Rotten Tomatoes realised trolls were getting the better of the movie and has now changed the way it works. From this day forward, Rotten Tomatoes will never be the same again.
You used to be able to post a “Want To See” comment before a movie hits screens, then swap to an “Audience Review” after it’s out. Given the overwhelmingly negative (and sometimes offensive) responses Captain Marvel has been seeing in the “Want To See” section, Rotten Tomatoes has decided to remove pre-launch commenting.
In a statement, Rotten Tomatoes confirmed, “We are disabling the comment function prior to a movie’s release date. Unfortunately, we have seen an uptick in non-constructive input, sometimes bordering on trolling, which we believe is a disservice to our general readership.”
“We have decided that turning off this feature for now is the best course of action. Don’t worry though, fans will still get to have their say: Once a movie is released, audiences can leave a user rating and comments as they always have.”
Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman didn’t face the same kind of backlash, so it’s unclear why audiences are hating on Captain Marvel so much. It could have something to do with Larson’s stance on Hollywood and her outspoken views as a firm feminist.
Still, the Kong: Skull Island is tipped to be the new face of the MCU and has reportedly been locked down for a seven-movie arc. Haters gonna hate, but they’d better get used to seeing A LOT more of Larson on their screens.
Rotten Tomatoes’ latest revamp is pretty good news for movies that cause a stir among their fandom. Last year’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi became one of the most controversial movies in living memory, with some fans calling for it to be erased for Star Wars canon completely. J.J. Abrams’ Star Wars: Episode IX isn’t due out until December but was already facing similar problems to Captain Marvel on Rotten Tomatoes.
Hopefully, the latest move will level the playing field. A few negative responses probably aren’t going to stop people wanting to see a movie, but at the end of the day, at least the trolls are being put in their place ahead of time.
[Featured Image: Rotten Tomatoes/Disney]
Words by Tom Chapman.