Seth Rogen is currently promoting his collaboration with Airbnb, plus he’s part of the now Oscar-nominated Spielberg film The Fabelmans. He’s also promoting The Boys, which he executive produces. You get the idea – while Rogen might sound, act, look and smell like a dude who smokes weed all day, he’s actually got a lot going on, and that’s why he’s been giving so many interviews recently. Rogen made news for talking about Marvel movies and how he thinks Superbad (which he co-wrote) was the last great high school movie. People have some thoughts about all of that. Some highlights from multiple interviews:
He wouldn’t do a Freaks and Geeks revival: “I don’t think anyone would do it. It’s so rare that you do something in your career that is actually just viewed as good. I know enough now not to f— with that, to just let it be good and not try to go revisit it. And just let it exist.”
His ‘Fabelmans’ costar Gabriel LaBelle loves Superbad. “What’s crazy is that Gabe LaBelle is like, 19 years old and his and his friends’ favorite movie is Superbad… So it never changed for some reason. No one’s made a good high school movie since then.”
On Marvel movies: In a new interview with Total Film magazine, Rogen admitted that “The Boys” would “not exist or be interesting” without the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but that doesn’t mean he watches Marvel movies.
Marvel movies are too geared towards kids: “I think that Kevin Feige is a brilliant guy, and I think a lot of the filmmakers he’s hired to make these movies are great filmmakers. But as someone who doesn’t have children… It is [all] kind of geared toward kids, you know? There are times where I will forget. I’ll watch one of these things, as an adult with no kids, and be like, ‘Oh, this is just not for me.’”
He still believes ‘The Boys’ owes a debt of gratitude to Marvel: “Truthfully, without Marvel, ‘The Boys’ wouldn’t exist or be interesting. I’m aware of that. I think if it was only Marvel [in the marketplace], it would be bad. But I think it isn’t – clearly. An example I’m always quoting is, there’s a point in history where a bunch of filmmakers would have been sitting around, being like, ‘Do you think we’ll ever make a movie that’s not a Western again? Everything’s a Western! Westerns dominate the f–king movies. If it doesn’t have a hat and a gun and a carriage, people aren’t going to go see it anymore.’ The situation, sadly, is that we now have two separate fields: There’s worldwide audiovisual entertainment, and there’s cinema. They still overlap from time to time, but that’s becoming increasingly rare. And I fear that the financial dominance of one is being used to marginalize and even belittle the existence of the other.”
The Superbad thing – Rogen apparently said it with a laugh, like he was joking, so I don’t believe he thinks Superbad was really the last great high school movie. Especially not when Lady Bird exists. And Booksmart. The kids are also saying Project X, but I’ve never seen that. As for what he says about Marvel… I’m sure his nuanced take will be accepted and mulled over respectfully, right? Or will the Marvel youths scream that he’s an old has-been who needs to be put in a wood chipper with Martin Scorsese??
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
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- HOLLYWOOD, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, USA – NOVEMBER 06: Canadian-American actor, comedian and filmmaker Seth Rogen arrives at the 2022 AFI Fest – Closing Night Special Screening Of Universal Pictures’ ‘The Fabelmans’ held at the TCL Chinese Theatre IMAX on November 6, 2022 in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States.,Image: 735795319, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Pictured: Seth Rogen, Credit line: Xavier Collin / Image Press Agency / Avalon
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- HOLLYWOOD, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, USA – NOVEMBER 06: Canadian-American actor, comedian and filmmaker Seth Rogen arrives at the 2022 AFI Fest – Closing Night Special Screening Of Universal Pictures’ ‘The Fabelmans’ held at the TCL Chinese Theatre IMAX on November 6, 2022 in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States.,Image: 735795330, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Pictured: Seth Rogen, Credit line: Xavier Collin / Image Press Agency / Avalon
“I’m sure his nuanced take will be accepted and mulled over respectfully, right?”
Ha! Thanks, I just choked on my morning coffee. Cue all the tweets and comments to the effect of “I’m a 58 year old, child free, Nobel prize winning astrophysicist and I enjoy them!”. Yes, that’s nice dear. 🙄
They are often enjoyable….and also often formulaic, visually lazy, and full of quips that stand in for genuine emotion. Opinions are subjective. So enjoy!
I’m with him. I just don’t care about the MCU. And if I want to watch a great superhero movie, I’ll watch Superman II!
It’s not audio-visual vs cinema. If you want people in the theater, the movies have to be cinematic. There’s no point in having a 9,000-foot screen and a billion decibels Dolby whatever if the film is just as satisfying on a 15-inch laptop.
I agree. Cinema has to adapt to the way people watch it now and it’s not in megaplex theaters.
Yes. Just about the only movies I see in the theater are super hero movies because screen size matters. Anything else I’d prefer to watch in the comfort of my own home with clean bathrooms, nobody talking, cheap snacks and the ability to rewind or pause if need be. Not to mention the cost of 5 adult tickets because my kids are over 12.
Educated professional middle-aged woman here – and not ashamed to admit I greatly enjoy the marvel movies. Not so much the new DC stuff – couldn’t even get through the Robert Pattinson Batman, even though I usually enjoy his work.
So to each their own. I have kids, though. Maybe they’ve rubbed off on me
🙋🏾♀️ Child-free, divorced, college educated, 54 year old WOC here! Loves me some Marvels! Loves me some Seth too! His comment is a little “Trix are for kids” lol! Could his grapes be a tad sour? I wonder if Seth has ever been offered a Marvel role? The comedic aspect of the movies is a lot fun. Seth in a non-hero role would be great.
I think there’s room for both, and I think he does too. it just shouldn’t be the only thing at the expense of other types of movies. the superhero movies are very teen boy oriented, and there needs to be space for other stories.
He starred in The Green Hornet some years ago but it flopped, so maybe he hasn’t been approached with anything else since. He’s a talented guy but his comments seem a bit ironic given how juvenile The Boys is: it just seems like superheroes + extra violence, rather than any genuine complexity, wit or sense of realism.
I don’t really understand what he is saying about The Boys. The graphic novel started in 2006 and was originally released by DC.
I think he’s saying the TV show wouldn’t have been made if the MCU wasn’t around, and it wouldn’t work as such a stark satire if those movies weren’t there for them to play off of.
But they were already stark satire of…. decades of superhero comics.
And if the MCU weren’t making money hand over fist and a huge part of modern pop culture, would they have wanted to make a show out of it? The show was less of a gamble because of the success of the MCU.
@RoastMe Just came here to say, I absolutely love the MCU. No kids. College graduate. 40 + years old. WOC. And I love the MCU.
I’m a 41 year old woman and I love Marvel films. I agree with him. They are mostly made with all ages in mind, so for the most part, they aren’t going to put in things that would be inappropriate or too much for kids. I remember it was a big deal when The Eternals had a sex scene because they’ve never had something that explicit in an MCU movie (and it was extremely mild, and yes, even though it was very promoted so people knew about it, there were still young kids in the audience).
MCU television shows ….. now that’s a different story.
I’m wracking my brain, and I don’t even *remember* a sex scene in Eternals… I liked the movie a lot! But maybe because my brain doesn’t think “explicit” when it thinks Marvel, it just completely erased that part? 🤷🏽♀️
It was between Richard Madden and Gemma Chan, was in the desert I think (?) and was like 10 seconds long. Nothing someone who has watched a prime time TV drama would bat an eye at, but they did market it both as a big thing to show how “different” and “sophisticated” the film was, and so people would know the film overall was maybe less kid-friendly ( “Don’t bring your toddlers to this, it is both really long and a bit slow, is best appreciated if you have some knowledge of the folklore of many cultures, plus, people are getting busy on screen.”)
I don’t understand the correlation between Marvel movies and the Boys. The Boys wouldn’t exist in the Marvel universe because it’s about murderous, decidedly unheroic superpowered individuals. Always thought it was a riff on DC comics (Highlander/Superman, Maeve/Wonder Woman). Marvel is all about its heroes. And yes they are based on comics, but not all comics are geared towards kids, not with the themes of antisemitism, anti-racism, anti-nationalism/globalism. But…whatever. I enjoy both Marvel & the Boys (in moderation).
I’m really not into the Marvel movies. I haven’t really tried to be but that genre holds no sway for me.
I’m with you. I don’t have any desire to watch them, though my kids are adults in their ‘30’s.
I’m totally with him on Marvel movies. I try every great once in awhile but, yeah. No thanks. I know they make crazy profit for the studios, but when is enough, enough?
That’s the problem with the big studios. They don’t want to put their money into any projects unless it makes them the big bucks, preferably billions of dollars. They have all become complacent with making movies and it has come at a detriment for movie goers.
When my kids were younger, a big family outing would be to a Marvel movie. I enjoyed them for what they were, and my boys love them, so there’s that. Now that they’re older and go with their friends, I feel absolutely no desire to see any of them. My husband mentioned the new Black Panther is on DisneyPlus and asked if I wanted to watch it on Friday night-eh, I’ll pass. I have a friend who is way into them though-so I know there are plenty of “regular” middle aged adults who enjoy them.
His comment of Marvel being geared for kids. That is why Hollywood is going away. Of course their geared for kids. Who do you think the biggest audiences are. Teenagers. They are the ones going to the movies. If you want to make money you have to get the people who are willing to shell it out there. And that kids. The majority of movies made today and especially movies he has made were all aimed at kids. Plus without the money Marvel brings in there wouldn’t be any money for the Fabelmens. Or any of Scorceses movies. Where do the think the millions of dollars they spend on their movies comes from?
the teenage boys being the biggest ticketbuyers thing was debunked a while ago. lots of people like lots of different movies. it’s just that the big producers are all teenage boys at heart, so this is what we get.
I really don’t care if other people don’t like Marvel movies but I’m really getting tired of having my intelligence insulted because I do. I’m not going to think you’re smarter because you’re too high-falutin’ to watch family entertainment. I don’t like Star Wars but, you know what, good for you if you do. Have fun.
I don’t think that it’s an insult to those who enjoy Marvel movies v those who do not. It’s simply a preference, plain and simple.
This. Everyone likes different things.
It’s maybe not *intended* as an insult to someone’s taste, intelligence but “those movies? They are all geared for/made for kids/aren’t real cinema/etc etc” can’t really be construed as a compliment to adults who enjoy them.
“I’m not the audience for these” is fine. That allows room for people who have different interests and tastes
“I’m not the audience for these because obviously they are made for children” is a bit less so AFA other adults who clearly enjoy them
I don’t think he‘s thought this through. These movies wouldn’t have made the amount of money they made if only kids watched them. Whenever I saw them in the theater, the audience was a mix of all ages. Clearly many people like them so everyone in Hollywood needs to stop trying to give their often uneducated opinion on them because most of them like to dump on Marvel to try and sound artsy when really, they’re insulting audiences. Seth isn’t doing that but it’s not actually a great take either.
Marvel delivers big, fun movies that are actually better on a big screen than at home. It’s not that deep.
I love Marvel movies and I’m in my 50s.
I can see his point except Blade (Wesley Snipes) was Marvel’s first successful superhero movie. Its surprising worldwide box office success and eventual cult following shocked Hollywood and some critics. It was dark, funny, violent, visually stunning and paved the way for the MCU. It also had 2 sequels.
And Blade was Rated R!
You can see its influences in later action movies like The Matrix and it resulted in many Marvel comic book adaptations. Marvel wanted to appeal to younger audiences and fill theater seats so made them kid friendly which was smart and obviously lucrative. But they neglected to make some for just adult audiences. IMO the CW made the same mistake after the success of Arrow.
I enjoy the MCU to a degree but I think some of it is overdone and there is some obvious retconning that I find sloppy. I feel the same way about Star Wars. Enjoyable but I’m not obsessed or incapable of objective criticism.
I’m a big proponent of “let people like things.” Not everyone likes the same stuff, doesn’t mean it’s bad.
I’m in my 50s with kids in their twenties. I don’t care for the Marvel movies; or at least I don’t care for how darned many of them are made. But that’s me. I don’t think being a Marvel fan is any indication of lack of intelligence or intellectual curiosity. One of my most brilliant friends from college is obsessed with them.
As far as them being more successful in theaters because they are more “cinematic,” I do think that’s true. But I don’t always go see a movie in the theater because it needs to be seen on the big screen. I’ll go if I’m dying to see the movie and it’s not streaming yet. I went to see “Lincoln” in the theater as soon as it came out. There were no battle scenes or anything in that movie. It was mainly people talking. But it was still totally worth seeing in the theater.
The most recent movies I’ve seen on the big screen are “West Side Story” (Spielberg’s remake, which was great) and “The Northman.” Both were enhanced by being seen on that scale, for me.
I loved West Side Story, as remakes go I think it’s the best. The dance at the gym is SPECTACULAR. They shot Officer Krupke at a church around the corner from my house.
I’m love Marvel movies, they’re fun, that’s what they’re supposed to be. I’m a big fan of old movies also , I don’t need everything to be serious, life does enough of that. Why do all these people need to share their opinions on movies no one has asked them to be in? I mean you’re entitled to like what you want but to me a lot of this comes off as pretentious saltiness.