Movies / Features
Expensive Apple TV+ Original Of $160 Million Is Almost Forgotten By Everyone
This high-budget film starring Will Smith faced disappointing reviews and reactions.
In recent years, we have seen streaming services willing to invest staggering amounts in their film productions. Netflix is the king of this approach with movies like Red Notice and The Gray Man, but Apple TV+ is also making its mark. One of the most expensive Apple productions is the Will Smith film Emancipation.
The historical thriller directed by Antoine Fuqua (Training Day) carries a price tag of approximately 160 million dollars.
Emancipation tells the poignant story of Peter (Smith), a man who escapes from slavery. He relies on his intelligence, unwavering faith, and deep love for his family to evade cold-blooded hunters and the merciless swamps of Louisiana during his quest for freedom.
The film is inspired by the photographs of "Whipped Peter" taken in 1863 during a medical examination by the Union army, which first appeared in Harper's Weekly. One image, known as "The Scourged Back," showing Peter's bare back scarred by the whip lashes from his enslavers, ultimately contributed to the growing public resistance against slavery.
Producer Joey McFarland began researching the story of Whipped Peter in 2018 and hired William N. Collage to write the script. Two years later, the film Emancipation was announced.
Apple paid 130 million dollars for the rights to the film. The production costs amounted to approximately 160 million dollars. The total cost was therefore at least 290 million dollars, an amount mostly spent today on franchise films.
Apple clearly had high expectations for this collaboration between Smith and Fuqua, but unfortunately, the end result did not resonate well with critics and audiences. A major point of criticism is how the film portrays the intense, true events that inspired the poignant story. The consensus on Rotten Tomatoes states: "Emancipation works as an action film but stands in stark contrast to the uncomfortable way real events are treated that inspired the poignant story."
The historical thriller directed by Antoine Fuqua (Training Day) carries a price tag of approximately 160 million dollars.
Story
Emancipation tells the poignant story of Peter (Smith), a man who escapes from slavery. He relies on his intelligence, unwavering faith, and deep love for his family to evade cold-blooded hunters and the merciless swamps of Louisiana during his quest for freedom.
The film is inspired by the photographs of "Whipped Peter" taken in 1863 during a medical examination by the Union army, which first appeared in Harper's Weekly. One image, known as "The Scourged Back," showing Peter's bare back scarred by the whip lashes from his enslavers, ultimately contributed to the growing public resistance against slavery.
Extremely Expensive
Producer Joey McFarland began researching the story of Whipped Peter in 2018 and hired William N. Collage to write the script. Two years later, the film Emancipation was announced.
Apple paid 130 million dollars for the rights to the film. The production costs amounted to approximately 160 million dollars. The total cost was therefore at least 290 million dollars, an amount mostly spent today on franchise films.
Not Very Memorable
Apple clearly had high expectations for this collaboration between Smith and Fuqua, but unfortunately, the end result did not resonate well with critics and audiences. A major point of criticism is how the film portrays the intense, true events that inspired the poignant story. The consensus on Rotten Tomatoes states: "Emancipation works as an action film but stands in stark contrast to the uncomfortable way real events are treated that inspired the poignant story."
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