Madame Web director S. J. Clarkson has been associated with Marvel for a long time. She previously directed episodes of Jessica Jones, The Defenders, and of course, Charlie Cox’s Netflix show Daredevil.
Now, as Madame Web is meeting a disastrous end with poor box office and critical performance, fans demand justice for the director. Fans are hitting back at criticism against the director but not for the recent Marvel movie under Sony’s banner but for her previous work in Daredevil.
S. J. Clarkson- From Marvel Television to Directing Madame Web
S. J. Clarkson has been a long-time collaborator of Marvel with several credits to her name. The director’s transition from television to movie has been a journey of a lifetime. Speaking with ComicBook’s Phase Zero Podcast hosts, the director revealed her experience working on the Spider-Man spinoff. “It’s obviously a big, massive movie, so that’s kind of different,” Clarkson said on the podcast.
“But I must say that I’m so grateful that I got to dip my toe into the Marvel universe with [Jessica Jones] because I had a little bit of a foundation there. I had a little bit of familiarity with it. I was able to play around with this other sassy woman who’s a little bit abrasive, so I was able to bring a little bit of that to it. But obviously for me, when I first got the script, I found it. So the potential of someone using their mind as a superpower intriguing and something that I hadn’t seen before. So that’s really what drew me to it.”
Her latest flick starring Dakota Johnson, however, met with severe criticism as the Marvel/Sony film sank at the box office and failed to make an impression among critics. But recalling her previous works for Marvel, some fans came in support to defend the director.
Fans Defend S. J. Clarkson Referring To A Daredevil Episode
While Madame Web is facing humongous backlash for not meeting the cinematic standards of Marvel Studios, some fans utterly pointed out that it was not Clarkson to blame. The foundation of Madame Web is based on a poor script and poor performances, some claimed. One fan celebrated her prowess by referring to a courtroom scene in Netflix’s Daredevil which smoothly rendered acute camera movements.
SJ Clarkson, the director of Madame Web also directed this.
As I'll talk about later today in the video. pic.twitter.com/G4acyL1GuU— HiTop Alex (@HiTopFilms) February 21, 2024
It’s wild what she can do when she’s working off a good script and good writing. I don’t think Madame Web’s problem was the direction to a degree, it was the acting and especially the writing they had to work with
— Mac Hodgdon (@MacHodgdon) February 21, 2024
SJ Clarkson innocent!
— Griffin Schiller (@griffschiller) February 21, 2024
it's almost like individual directors aren't the problem and it's sony
— bloke (@virtualbloke) February 21, 2024
I watched Madame Web opening weekend and I gotta say man, there were a few parts you could see Clarkson had the sauce but the studio clearly messed with it. Fun movie with friends regardless
— ゴゴ Adrianゴゴ (@MogwaiFlicks) February 21, 2024
I haven't seen MW (nor do I intend to), but I'm not gonna blame the director for the film's quality, it was obviously beyond her control, just sad she had to endorse the final product.
— TexPool (@TexPool) February 21, 2024
For fans, one movie can not justify a director’s prowess. It is unclear how much room Clarkson had while directing the Spider-Man spin-off. Still, the essence of her prowess of storytelling remained and fans are not going to forget that anytime soon.
Madame Web is currently showing in theaters.
