Just as Hollywood finally seemed to be waking up to the fact that its movies are no longer profitable mainly because they are so damned expensive, a report drops about the cost of Red One.
The Wrap has gone into a lot of detail about some developing issues with the Christmas-set action comedy. Headlining the report is the news that the budget has soared to an incredible $250 million. The report also says that a number of problems are caused by the relative inexperience of producer Hiram Garcia, Johnson’s Seven Bucks Productions president, and Johnson himself.
The report says that Johnson was repeatedly late on-set. On one occasion he turned up nearly eight hours late and the crew were forced to shoot around him.
The report also, amusingly, talks of Johnson attempting to save time on set by urinating into a water bottle rather than the bathroom.
Amazon MGM Studios executives Julie Rapaport and Glenn Gainor are also highlighted in the report.
Predictably, Amazon Studios have attempted to get out in front of this, and have released a statement:
“Dwayne Johnson and Seven Bucks have been incredible partners on ‘Red One’ – a film that audiences of all ages are going to love this holiday season.
Our testing has been very strong – the reaction from CinemaCon speaks for itself – and we couldn’t have made it without Dwayne’s constant work and support.
Any reporting that implies that we got to this point with him showing up seven-eight hours late to set is both ridiculous and false.”
The report mentions that Johnson’s timekeeping has been an issue on other projects, too.
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