‘Waterworld’ Not Huge Flop Anymore
Tens of thousands of people are still pouring into a theater to see “Waterworld” - and streaming out 20 minutes later shaking their heads in disbelief.
It’s not some mass walkout, and ticket buyers are hardly demanding their money back. In its new incarnation as a live-action stunt show at Universal Studios Hollywood, the most expensive movie ever made has been turned into a hit theme park attraction. The month-old “Waterworld - A Live Sea War Spectacular” reportedly has pushed local Universal Studios attendance up more than 40 percent from a year ago.
The daredevil amphitheater show, featuring 50 impressive stunts and a fiery 40-foot leap into a lagoon, is performed up to 10 times a day before capacity audiences of 2,600.
“To me, it kind of says (we) were right, we believed in the film and stayed with it,” says David Weitzner, MCA Recreation Service’s worldwide marketing president. “The show has done very well.”
The stunt show is one of several reasons why MCA’s “Waterworld” should not be considered the year’s biggest box-office boondoggle. The Kevin Costner futuristic thriller is performing exceptionally well overseas, grossing $157.1 million so far - more than the Tom Hanks smash “Apollo 13.” A Jan. 23 home video release is expected to generate more than 400,000 North American videocassette sales, netting MCA another $20 million or so. And MCA is considering adding a “Waterworld” attraction to its Universal Studios Florida theme park.
Amazingly, the $175 million movie has a chance to break even when all the dollars are totaled. “I think it has a shot - I really do,” says Charles Gordon, the movie’s co-producer. In reality, “Waterworld” will probably lose somewhere between $50 million and $25 million, a far cry from the catastrophe many in the media predicted.
The ancillary market popularity of “Waterworld” proves a movie should not be judged by production budget and domestic box-office returns alone. The movie’s continuing success also shows why Hollywood spends so much money on top stars and elaborate action movies: everybody prefers big names and explosions. So if you’re going to fail, sometimes it’s better to fail on a grand scale.
The Universal Studios Hollywood attraction essentially takes the film’s signature battle scenes - including commando Jet-Skis - and places them in a re-creation of “Waterworld’s” floating atoll. “Waterworld - A Live Sea War Spectacular” loosely picks up the “Waterworld” story where the movie ends, but it is action, not plot, that controls the show; you don’t have to have seen the movie to enjoy it.
A year in the planning, the attraction missed a projected summer opening but has not been beset by the significant production problems that pushed its movie predecessor so far over its $100 million budget.
“Waterworld” has earned more than $88 million at U.S. and Canadian theaters - a small fortune compared to almost every other 1995 release, a disappointment given the film’s cost. MCA executives believe the flurry of news stories about the film’s spiraling budget and Costner’s personal life (he divorced during its making) hurt domestic ticket sales.
“There were a lot of people who made up their minds before the film opened,” says Gordon. “The movie was reviewed (by the media) long before it was finished.”
MCA, Costner and Gordon found the international media much more receptive to “Waterworld.” Costner made appearances around the globe promoting the film, and while some questions inevitably focused on the costs, Costner and the filmmakers were better able to talk about the movie itself, not its finances.
“It was not about the budget - it was about the filmmaking process,” Gordon says. “It was really refreshing.”
If audiences came to believe “Waterworld” wasn’t worth a trip to the local multiplex, they may not hesitate over a relatively cheap visit to the video rental store. (Tellingly, “Waterworld” is still playing well in discount movie theaters.)