8 Insane Ways Movies Tried To Save Money

5. Studios Keep Trying To Make Robin Hood/King Arthur Movies Happen

Robin Hood
Lionsgate

Remember back in 2014 when Sony announced plans to develop a Robin Hood cinematic universe? What about in 2010, when we learned that the Wachowskis were set to write and direct Hood, a modern spin on the Robin Hood story? How about Robin Hood 2058, set in a dystopian London? Or 2018's mega-flop, Robin Hood?

The amount of Robin Hood movies shunted into development over the last several years is truly baffling, and the root cause of this pandemic is, unsurprisingly, money. Or more specifically, saving money.

The legend of Robin Hood has been in the public domain for quite some time, and this makes it an ideal property for studios to adapt. Since the character is free to use, movie companies get all the benefits of a recognisable IP without having to pay any licensing fees along the way, which saves them a big chunk of change.

This desire to use "freebie characters" has clearly sent film studios into a blind money-saving craze, since Robin Hood movies continue to be put into development, despite two of the most famous recent adaptations (the aforementioned 2018 version, and Ridley Scott's 2010 effort) proving critical and commercial failures.

The King Arthur property is also applicable here: 2017's Legend Of The Sword was initially meant to spawn a cinematic universe, but it bombed hard, killing those plans. Even in light of this failure, Fox still decided it would be wise to push ahead with 2019's The Kid Who Would Be King (which utilised elements of the King Arthur mythos), seemingly banking on their perceived popularity of the King Arthur lore. In the end - and while the movie was good - it didn't even make back its budget.

You'd think Hollywood would learn...

Contributor
Contributor

Danny has been with WhatCulture for over ten years, and is currently Doctor Who Editor and WhoCulture Channel Manager, overseeing all of WhatCulture's Whoniverse coverage. In 2022, he took charge of WhoCulture and has grown it into the biggest Doctor Who channel on YouTube, and one of the biggest Doctor Who communities on the web full-stop. He has been writing and video editing since his early teens, and first got a taste for content creation after making his own Doctor Who trailers, off the back of a burning obsession with the Matt Smith era of the show. Like many his age, he first got into Doctor Who with the 2005 revival, but has since gone back and fallen in love with the classic years too. If you need someone to recite every Doctor Who episode in order, or to give you a random factoid about the making of Gridlock, Danny is the person to ask!