‘Allegiant’: Lionsgate CEO Says the Newest ‘Divergent’ Movie Was ‘Rushed’
This may come as a disappointing revelation, but Hollywood studios don’t always make decisions aren’t in the name of art. Rarely do they openly admit it, however. Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer did just that during a conference call with Wall Street investors while discussing the latest “Divergent” installment, saying that “Maybe we rushed the third movie a bit instead of taking our time with it. We wanted to hit a date.”
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That date was March 18 of this year, and during its opening weekend “Allegiant” brought in $29 million — enough for first place, but far less than the $50 million-plus the first two adaptations of the dystopian YA franchise made. And though the “Divergent” series has never exactly been a critical darling, its third entry garnered a mere 12% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 33 on Metacritic — politely described as “generally unfavorable reviews.”
Feltheimer has clearly learned from his mistakes, though, as he says “we could see us doing five or six or seven” “Power Rangers” movies, the first of which Lionsgate will be releasing next year. Surely each of those will be given the time it needs to ripen into a classic and not rushed out on an assembly line.
If you must, watch the “Allegiant” trailer:
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