The omens haven’t seemed great for The Green Hornet for a long time. With cast and director changes, and the production getting endlessly delayed, it seemed like a movie that was in trouble before it started shooting. Now it seems things have only gotten worse, with Sony Pictures very unhappy with what director Michel Gondry has got in the can.
IESB report that their sources say, ‘The tone is too campy, they’re not happy with the work from director Michel Gondry and Seth Rogen does not look the part. At all. In fact, the feeling at Sony is the movie is a disaster.’
Although we shouldn’t despair, as Gondry may still be able to pull a rabbit out of the hat (after all, I doubt the rushes for Be Kind Rewind looked great until they were all put together), it does seem that the people who wondered whether a slightly surreal, arty guy like Gondry was the man for a superhero flick, were right. Early set pictures of Rogen looking rather naff in his mask haven’t helped either.
There’s still plenty of time before the film’s December 22nd release, so don’t be shocked if you hear about extensive reshoots being ordered (as the IESB report notes, Green Hornet isn’t the only film around studios aren’t happy with, as over 50 pages of new and adapted material had to be reshot for this summer’s Jonah Hex).