Moonfall director Roland Emmerich has suggested that the success of superhero films like the Marvel Cinematic Universe and DCEU and Star Wars have ruined the movie industry.
In an interview with Den of Geek, Emmerich criticized these films because he believes that it has led to a lack of originality. Emmerich is known mainly for his disaster films, and he suggested that the landscape for these films has changed due to the outrageous and often destructive action seen in superhero films.
“Naturally Marvel and DC Comics, and Star Wars, have pretty much taken over,” Emmerich said. “It’s ruining our industry a little bit, because nobody does anything original anymore.”
This is not the first time Emmerich has been critical of superhero films. In 2016, Emmerich said to The Guardian that he thinks people look silly running around in colorful outfits and capes. He also stated that he is more interested in stories involving an “unlikely hero” and that his disinterest in superhero cinema could be due to his German heritage.
“I find it silly when someone dons a superhero suit and flies. I don’t understand it. I grew up in Germany, that’s probably why…When you look at my movies it’s always the regular Joe Schmo that’s the unlikely hero.”
Emmerich’s next film, Moonfall, debuts soon and is his latest disaster movie. Moonfall follows a group of astronauts who must defend the earth from the moon itself, which may be taken over by aliens. Emmerich’s previous films include Godzilla (1998), 2012, The Day After Tomorrow, and Independence Day.
A director sharing their disdain for the popularity of the superhero movie industry is nothing new. Many other directors, including Martin Scorsese, Ridley Scott, and Francis Ford Coppola, have shared either ambivalence or an intense hatred towards these types of movies and are concerned about the direction of the film industry. Paul Thomas Anderson is a unique voice amongst directors as he recognizes that the box office that superhero movies like Spider-Man: No Way Home bring may be the only thing keeping theaters alive, especially since the pandemic began.
You can check out Emmerich’s latest disaster film, Moonfall, when it lands in theaters on Feb. 4.