Brian Cox talked about Marvel and DC’s impact on cinema at the Edinburgh International Film Festival on August 18 (per Variety).
“What’s happened is that television is doing what cinema used to do,” he said of film and TV’s current state. “I think cinema is in a very bad way. I think it’s lost its place because of, partly, the grandiose element between Marvel, DC, and all of that. And I think it’s beginning to implode, actually. You’re kind of losing the plot.”
The ‘Succession’ actor pointed to Marvel’s recent box-office hit, ‘Deadpool & Wolverine,’ to note that these types of film, while ‘making a lot of money,’ simplified the craft of acting.
“So, it’s just become a party time for certain actors to do this stuff,” he added. “When you know that Hugh Jackman can do a bit more, Ryan Reynolds… they go down that road and it’s box office. They make a lot of money. You can’t knock it.”
‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ became the second-highest-grossing release of 2024, following Pixar’s ‘Inside Out 2.’ It also recently surpassed 2019’s ‘Joker’ as the highest-grossing R-rated movie ever.
Brian Cox took some credit for Hugh Jackman’s appearance as Wolverine in the film because his character in Fox’s ‘X2,’ William Stryker, created the mutant by giving him his adamantium skeleton.
The actor joked, “Deadpool meets…Wolverine, who I created, but I’ve forgotten. Actually, when those films are on, there’s always a bit of me [as Stryker]; and they never pay me any money.”
Cox will next be on screen in ‘The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim’ as the voice of Helm Hammerhand. The anime fantasy film will hit the theaters on December 13.
