Russell Crowe Slams Dakota Johnson For Criticising Madame Web: Here For The Wrong Reasons

Russell Crowe recently defended Marvel after Dakota Johnson criticized her film Madame Web, calling it a "committee-made" project lacking artistic value. In an interview with GQ UK, the 60-year-old actor responded, “You’re telling me you signed up for a Marvel movie, and some f–king universe for cartoon characters … and you didn’t get enough pathos? Not quite sure how I can make this better for you. It’s a gigantic machine, and they make movies at a certain size.”

Russell Crowe defends Marvel

Crowe, who has worked in superhero films like DC’s Man of Steel and Marvel’s Thor: Love and Thunder, and is set to appear in Sony and Marvel’s Kraven the Hunter, emphasized, “These are jobs. You know: here’s your role, play the role. If you’re expecting this to be some kind of life-changing event, I just think you’re here for the wrong reasons.”

While acknowledging the challenges of superhero movies, Crowe also noted that actors sometimes have to “convince yourself of a lot more than just the internal machinations of your character.” He added, “You can have a s–t experience on a film … But is that the Marvel process? I’m not sure you can say that. I haven’t had a bad experience.”

Dakota Johnson criticises Marvel

Dakota Johnson, 34, had criticised Madame Web, which also stars Sydney Sweeney, Emma Roberts, and Adam Scott, in an interview with Bustle in March. The movie was poorly received by critics and failed at the box office. Johnson said, “Unfortunately, I’m not surprised that this has gone down the way it has. But it was definitely an experience for me to make that movie. I had never done anything like that before.”

Johnson mentioned she likely wouldn’t do another superhero film, explaining, “I probably will never do anything like it again because I don’t make sense in that world. And I know that now. But sometimes in this industry, you sign on to something, and it’s one thing and then as you’re making it, it becomes a completely different thing, and you’re, like, ‘Wait, what?'”

She also blamed Sony and Marvel’s production methods, stating, “It’s so hard to get movies made, and in these big movies that get made … decisions are being made by committees, and art does not do well when it’s made by committee. Films are made by a filmmaker and a team of artists around them. You cannot make art based on numbers and algorithms. My feeling has been for a long time that audiences are extremely smart, and executives have started to believe that they’re not.”

In Madame Web, Johnson plays Cassandra “Cassie” Webb/Madame Web, a clairvoyant paramedic linked to Spider-Man through Benjamin “Ben” Parker, played by Adam Scott as Peter Parker’s uncle.