Doctor Strange 2 has hit 932 at the box office (399 domestic, 532 foreign)--is that enough to convince Disney and Kevin Feige that everything is okay? I suspect it is. For the moment it's the #1 film this year, albeit it's dwarfed by Spider-Man 3 and behind the foreign gross of last year's No Time to Die and F9. As I've mentioned before, to the degree that it still works, the MCU works domestically--the 2021 the Marvel/Sony films were #1-#4 with the unwatchable Eternals at #6. You'd call this good were it not for the fact that they badly trail their Phase Three predecessors (making Ant-Man and the Wasp money). What's interesting is that Top Gun has already beat it domestically (409), so the domestic pull that it has can't hit the earlier MCU notes (which is ultimately down to bad writing, the bane of Phase Four).
More Nielsen Ratings: Moon Knight continued to imperceptibly climb in episode five (681; 3rd, 4th) and the finale (715; 3rd, 3rd), albeit the overall numbers are low. Post-finale it dropped steeply to 289 (9th and out) and then fell off the chart entirely, as it lacks legs. Ms. Marvel is now airing, but ratings for it will take awhile (it's non-existent on Google Trends, buried beneath Kenobi and other things). The question remains: when, if ever, will Disney+ change? There's no sign of reality in sister IP Star Wars, the other intended subscriber engine for the service, so I don't imagine Marvel (which performs better) has any intention of changing.
How bizarre has the Ezra Miller story become? Context for The Flash star (these aren't all the highlights, just the ones I think most related/egregious):
- April 6, 2020 - In Iceland a video surfaced of Miller putting his hands around a woman's neck and pushing her to the ground; there was no fallout from WB and the public was mute about the incident (Icelandic authorities declined to investigate)
- March 28, 2022 - Arrested in Hawaii after an altercation with patrons at a karaoke bar; Ezra subsequently paid a fine
- March 29, 2022 - The couple who lived with Miller filed a restraining order due to alleged threats made; the order was dropped mid-April
- April 6, 2022 - An emergency meeting at WB about Miller occurs and it's reported that Miller had frequent meltdowns during the filming of The Flash
- April 19, 2022 - Miller was taken into custody after throwing a chair and hitting a woman during a private get together; Miller paid a fine as a result
- May 16, 2022 - Miller steals music from rapper Ghais Guevara by posting it without permission; a plan to file a court order is stopped when Miller removes the link to the music
- June 8, 2022 - Legal documents are filed by the parents of Tokata Iron Eyes, intended to protect her from a variety of allegations; Tokata denies the accusations, but neither she nor Miller can be found to be served with the court summons
- June 14, 2022 - Miller posts a number of memes to Instagram before deleting the account entirely
- June 15, 2022 - The mother of a 12-year old (not Tokata) filed for an order of protection from Miller
The accusations in the Tokata case are terrible (cf), with the 12-year old's utterly bizarre (cf--Miller screaming about cultural appropriation and brandishing a firearm, among other colourful elements), and while nothing has been proven, vanishing when the court is looking for you is a terrible choice (as is responding to it with memes). It's hard not to think about the unsubstantiated rumours that Miller suffered abuse as a youth, but even if that's true it doesn't excuse the conduct.
To this point WB has done nothing in regards to Miller and, overall, the public backlash had been muted. Is this the last straw, or is WB's investment in his film so heavy that they will stick with it no matter what? Regardless, this is yet another Zack Snyder actor who has caused problems for the studio (joining Ray Fisher and Amber Heard). What's far more important is that Tokata is found and can be helped (if needed).
One of the things I've seen discussed is if a shift in the cultural pendulum is at hand. I don't mean how life functions for those of us grinding though it (higher costs of living with no compensatory changes in policy or wages), but for the wealthy establishment, which has been entrenched in a certain ideology for years. The pendulum always swings back and forth and the debate is over whether things like the firing of Felicia Sonmez or Johnny Depp winning his trial are signs that things are beginning to move. I don't know what the answer is, as in each case you can argue that only the specifics are dictating the results. I wonder how much a Sonmez matters when Taylor Lorenz is still employed--perhaps nothing has changed.
This article was written by Peter Levi
