J.J. Abrams is most widely known for directing two of the three modern Star Wars trilogy. The director is also one of the brains behind the Star Trek reboot, directing 2009’s Star Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness. His company Bad Robot has been behind some great TV and film projects including Alias, Lost, Mission Impossible III, and the Cloverfield franchise among others.
In 2019, Bad Robot and Warner Bros signed a lucrative deal to develop various film and TV projects. However, several of Bad Robot’s plans fell apart with the new regime having issues with the assets acquired for the deal. It seems the two companies have worked out their differences and are now extending their deal, which has left fans confused.
J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot Reportedly Extending Deal With Warner Bros Despite Their Setbacks
J.J. Abrams is undoubtedly a talented filmmaker with a keen eye for intriguing narratives and characters. Whether it be his franchise fares like Star Trek or Star Wars or his passion project Super 8, he knows how to make them compelling and exciting to watch. Many of the film/TV shows that come under his production banner Bad Robot Productions have mostly delivered at entertaining audiences.
By 2019, Abrams and Bad Robot were at their peak as his Star Trek (the 3 modern films grossing 1.1 billion via The Numbers), and Star Wars (Force Awakens and The Rise of Skywalker grossing more than $2 billion and $1 billion each via The Numbers) films were huge box office earners. He was already an established name in TV with hits like Felicity, Alias, and Lost, winning two Emmys for the latter.
The lucrative $250 million deal that Bad Robot signed with Warner Bros that year faced various setbacks with many projects being canceled including an interconnected Justice League Dark Universe, and The Shining spinoff called Overlook. The biggest misfire of them all was the cancellation of the highly ambitious series named Demimonde which Abrams wrote, with Warner Bros discovery reportedly not happy with various aspects of the deal (via Puck News).
Despite all these unfortunate cancelations, the two companies are now looking at extending their deal with Abrams reportedly taking a massive pay cut from his 2019 contract. On X, fans were surprised by the news and questioned the viability of the extension. Here are some of the reactions,
why would they do this again when he gave them none of the shows he promised !!
— ES 🌙 (@dinmurdock) August 20, 2024
Does JJ just in an office signing contracts that earn him millions without actually making anything
— Mehul Desai (@TechNoirUK) August 20, 2024
WB got almost no return on their 2019 investment with him. I would have gave him the boot. $250 million for 0 movies and just 4 shows is ridiculous.
— Straight Ice Man (@str8iceman) August 20, 2024
If he’s taking a pay cut… then it better be worth it 😭
— Katie ❤️ | Top 0.79%😈 | Free OF 😫 (@thaofficialkat) August 20, 2024
He was paid to do nothing.
Warner bros are retarded
— Bit Loud (@Bit_Loud) August 20, 2024
Fans are understandably angry at how Abrams underdelivered with all the promises he made with his deal with Warner Bros. One can only hope that everything materializes this time and fans get some banger projects. Under the deal, various shows and TV projects are already in development including his next directorial feature.
Harrison Ford Reportedly Joining J.J. Abrams’ Upcoming Film With Glen Powell
A few weeks ago, it was reported that Glen Powell was tapped to star in J.J. Abrams‘ upcoming film with Warner Bros. Jenna Ortega was recently in talks to join the project alongside Powell (via Deadline) and now, it seems the much secretive film has signed another big star. As reported by popular scooper DanielRPK (via Flickering Myth), Harrison Ford has reportedly been added to the cast.
Ford and Abrams have already worked together on The Force Awakens and the new film comes from an original script from the latter. It will indeed be exciting if this is true and fans should wait for an official confirmation about this exciting report. The plot of the film is rumored to be about “a young married couple struggling to survive against a supernatural entity”, and will reportedly not include a time travel element.
Powell and Abrams recently collaborated on the documentary The Blue Angels as producers. As the Twisters actor’s star power continues to rise, he is choosing bonafide filmmakers like Abrams and Edgar Wright to further cement him as a bankable movie star.
