James Mangold, the American film director, producer, and screenwriter partially known for his work on two X-Men films—namely, Logan (2017) and The Wolverine (2013)—has shared his thoughts on cinematic universes and multiverses as part of a new interview regarding his latest film, A Complete Unknown, stating that he doesn’t like them and how they’re the “death of storytelling.” The comments from Mangold, whose future projects include a new Star Wars film for Disney, come on the same week that Deadpool & Wolverine, the latest multiverse film from Marvel Studios, is set to arrive in U.S. theaters.
Mangold said, after having been asked whether Joaquin Phoenix would re-appear as Johnny Cash in his new film:
- “I don’t do multiverses…I love Joaquin, but he’s not 30, or whatever Johnny was at this moment. They’re both young people in that moment in life.”
- “It’s weird that I’ve even worked in the world of IP entertainment because I don’t like multi-movie universe-building. I think it’s the enemy of storytelling. The death of storytelling.”
- “It’s more interesting to people the way the Legos connect than the way the story works in front of us.”
- “For me, the goal becomes, always, ‘What is unique about this film, and these characters?'”
- “Not making you think about some other movie or some Easter egg or something else, which is all an intellectual act, not an emotional act. You want the movie to work on an emotional level.”
A trailer for Mangold’s latest film:
Film synopsis:
Set in the influential New York music scene of the early 60s, A COMPLETE UNKNOWN follows 19-year-old Minnesota musician BOB DYLAN’s (Timothée Chalamet) meteoric rise as a folk singer to concert halls and the top of the charts – his songs and mystique becoming a worldwide sensation – culminating in his groundbreaking electric rock and roll performance at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965.