ROTTEN TOMATOES: "Batman & Robin" Writer Gets $4 Million for "Da Vinci" Prequel Comments

"Batman & Robin" Writer Gets $4 Million for "Da Vinci" Prequel

by Scott Weinberg | November 24, 2006

Summary

Oscar-winning screenwriter Akiva Goldsman is allegedly earning a $4 million dollar paycheck for his adaptation of Dan Brown's "Angels & Demons," which features the character played by Tom Hanks in an adventure that predates what went on in "The Da Vinci Code." Yeah, just like what happened with "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom." Back to Article

(1-36 of 36 posts) | Reply

arpeggio191 writes:
on Nov 24 2006 07:28 AM

awesome. now if only joel shumacher would direct it. we'd have tom hanks wearing a really nice, but casual suit, with nipples and a giant cog piece.

(Reply to this)

synergyred writes:
on Nov 24 2006 07:58 AM

Damn. Talk about a hit or miss guy. He's written some amazing scripts and some HORRIBLE one. I wonder how Angels and Demons will end up

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gratefuldawg writes:
on Nov 24 2006 08:33 AM

[b]Talk about expensive knee pads...[/b]
Did he make a deal with the devil? How could such a hack continue to get work in such a fickle industry.

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Bob* writes:
on Nov 24 2006 08:35 AM

In reply to this comment (#849626)
rofl! great now you gave me a reason to had nightmares! XD

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Now it's dark writes:
on Nov 24 2006 08:38 AM

Seems like a perfect fit.

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Mad Dog writes:
on Nov 24 2006 08:49 AM

Wait..He's paid 4 million? He wrote one of the worst movies in history ( Batman and Robin) and he's getting paid 4 million??I'm in the wrong business....

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KwazyWabbit writes:
on Nov 24 2006 08:58 AM

This guy looks like he has his good scripts and bad. I loved The Da Vinci Code so I am looking forward to this film. I wonder who the director will be. I sure hope Hanks returns as well.

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agentjames007 writes:
on Nov 24 2006 09:05 AM

Wow that's weird. He either has crappy scripts or good ones.

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MyDearestFosca writes:
on Nov 24 2006 09:30 AM

Good... GOD! How is this guy getting another chance at this francise after the critical bombing of Da Vinci Code?!

Wait, I can guess... it made a lot of money. The public WANTED THE DA VINCI CODE to be good, even though it was anything but, so they saw it over and over again. It's another case of PHANTOM MENACE syndrome.

A sad state of affairs indeed.

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dracus writes:
on Nov 24 2006 11:25 AM

If this news doesn't bring on the second coming then there is no God.

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jeremyf1977 writes:
on Nov 24 2006 11:49 AM

Will Mr. Freeze and Poison Ivy be in this one? And will there be puns amongst puns?

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Bigbrother writes:
on Nov 24 2006 12:25 PM

Keep in mind this guy also has A Time to Kill and Cinderella man on his resume. Both of which were pretty good movies. I'm not saying B&R wasn't craptacular to the extreme, I'm just saying maybe a lot of that had to do with Joel Shumacher, The costume designers and Arnold's totally aweful delivery of Mr. Freeze's lines. Also, I didn't think Da Vinci Code was bad at all. A bit long and totally historically impossible, but that's more Dan Browns fault than anyone else's all in all I found it a decent bit of fiction.

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dagreenman18 writes:
on Nov 24 2006 04:04 PM

wo, im so confused, on one hand i wanna punch his nads off for Batman Forever and Batman & Robin. on the other hand, i want to thank him for Cinderrella Man ( TOTALLY underrated movie ) and A Beautiful Mind. it's a conundrum for sure.

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Paul_Is_Drunk writes:
on Nov 24 2006 08:25 PM

How? Why?

This just completely destroyed my world vision. How can one man be so good and so bad at the same time?

Surely some scientists are working on this problem as we speak.

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TradeYourselfIn writes:
on Nov 24 2006 08:49 PM

[b]You're right![/b]
University of Minnesota just started a five million dollar study on it. Unfortunately it's probably a waste of time, since how Goldsman can write scripts that good and that bad at the same time is probably one of those mysteries that soon will be mentioned with one breath along Bermuda Triangle Loch Ness monster, etc.

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Simple Minded writes:
on Nov 24 2006 09:01 PM

I can't believe the same guy wrote "Batman and Robin" and "Cinderella Man". Talk about hit or miss!

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GandalfTheWhite writes:
on Nov 24 2006 09:13 PM

In reply to this comment (#849642)
I don't know you, but I like you already.

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GoldenGoat writes:
on Nov 25 2006 06:05 AM

I'm with you guys... I can't imagine a writer with greater discrepancy between their best and worst work.

I mean, he's written a BEST PICTURE WINNER (albeit an unjust one, as Fellowship was robbed of that Oscar) and simultaneously, one of the WORST MOVIES EVER in Batman and Robin.

Seriously. Wtf.

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Lionclaw writes:
on Nov 25 2006 10:21 AM

[b]That's a misleading article title, not cool.[/b]
Yeah, like others have been saying, Goldsman has more than made up for Batman & Robin. A Time to Kill, A Beautiful Mind, I Robot, Cinderella Man, and Da Vinci Code wasn't bad, either. In my opinion, the only thing wrong with this is that Hollywood doesn't know how to branch out and give other writers a chance. It's pretty sad that the same 2 or 3 guys write all the major dramas and thriller adaptations these days. It's even more sad that most of the studio movies these days are adapted from books or comics. Now, if Akiva Goldsman were to come out with an ORIGINAL screenplay, then I'd be very interested to hear about that.

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Paul_Is_Drunk writes:
on Nov 25 2006 11:42 AM

In reply to this comment (#849645)
Your ideas intrigue me, and I'd like to subscribe to your newsletter.

...

I see.

(Reply to this)

Ashron writes:
on Nov 25 2006 12:26 PM

In reply to this comment (#849646)
Go Homer!

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GoldenGoat writes:
on Nov 25 2006 05:28 PM

I'm sorry, but NOTHING can "make up" for Batman and Robin.

That's a blight upon one's very soul.

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meinink2y writes:
on Nov 25 2006 06:52 PM

I surely hope that "Angels and Demons" turns out better than "DaVinci Code." I think it should, as the book seems to lend itself better to the big screen than its sequel. As long as we get a "Cinderella Man"-caliber script, and not "Batman and Robin" with Catholics.

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Doomherald writes:
on Nov 25 2006 10:45 PM

In reply to this comment (#849645)
[b]?[/b]
He made up with I, Robot? Are you on crack?

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Thradar writes:
on Nov 25 2006 11:43 PM

Ugh. I watched The DaVinci Code DVD last night. Maybe the book was better, but the movie was a lifeless pile of crap.

Now we get a sequel? Oh boy. As long as we lap up the crap they keep serving us...the more we'll get.

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Super Moose writes:
on Nov 26 2006 09:03 AM

I am beside myself. This man has only written crap (they all suck, especially A Beautiful Mind) yet he gets more money than I'll see in forty years.

I'm in the wrong job market. Quick find me a monkey and let it through feces on a piece of paper and I'm sure Sony will give me at least a million. It'll be the story of a writer who is given more money for nothing than was spent on aids relief in Haiti last year.

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Joe Utichi writes:
on Nov 26 2006 10:58 AM

As Kevin Smith once said, in Hollywood you fail upwards.

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southfrisco writes:
on Nov 26 2006 01:08 PM

[b]It is Opie's fault[/b]
Well since Imagine Entertainment is in play and Opie is probably going to direct this one I can see why Goldsman was tapped for doing the prequel. Opie seems to like his work as he has penned three Opie directed movies thus far:

1. A Beautiful Mind
2. Cinderella Man
3. The Da Vinci Code

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meatcake writes:
on Nov 26 2006 03:46 PM

[b]Just because his name is on it....[/b]
doesn't neccessarily mean it is 100% the script he wrote. What you people need to understand is, 9 times out of 10, a film can say in the credits that the screenplay was writen by one person, but in actuality, they wrote ONE draft, penned a contract that said their name MUST be attached to the project but then it was re-written by multiple script doctors. I have a friend of mine that makes quite a good living by simply bumping up scripts. He gets a script and is payed a hefty sum to "add more action" or "bump up the love interest" etc. So in all actuality, Akiva may only have a few scripts to his name that reflect what he presented on the page day 1.

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GreenBastard writes:
on Nov 27 2006 03:59 AM

He should have to pay four million after having anything to do with Batman & Robin!

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killermonkey8822 writes:
on Nov 27 2006 04:25 PM

who what a mix like seriously he goes from batman & robin too a beautiful mind........that's fucked up..........i could swear that those scripts are by two different people

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Brandcrusader writes:
on Nov 28 2006 09:44 PM

[b]Needs a director who can put the Pace in the Chase[/b]
This film needs an action and drama director who knows how to put "the Pace in the Chase", unlike Ron Howards effiorts who got the production right but put me to sleep on the direction. I read and loved both Dan Brown books Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons and couldnt put them down (I even forgave Dan Brown with his templated plot construction set up at the start of both books) . Angels and Demon should be great film with the right director, who knows how to do the old Time is running out routine. I would recommend Paul Greengrass who did the The Bourne Supremacy who got the pace right in that film.

Regards

Brand Crusader

(Reply to this)

Matanuki writes:
on May 01 2007 08:59 AM

In reply to this comment (#849638)
There is no cool way for any actor playing Victor Freeze to say, "Yo, Batman. Chill out." Face it. This is one writer who has found his kryptonite. He's done some good work, but he's not yet escaped the hate cloud over his head for having written probably the most poorly written script for a comic book movie ever produced. I'd of forgiven him some time ago if it were Superman he screwed up, but Batman! He'll get no slack from me.

(Reply to this)

Matanuki writes:
on May 01 2007 09:01 AM

In reply to this comment (#849645)
Well first he'd have to have an original thought.

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Matanuki writes:
on May 01 2007 09:07 AM

In reply to this comment (#849658)
This is why he deserves so much hate for Batman & Robin. He put heart in these other scripts. Batman & Robin was just a paycheck to him. That's assuming he actually wrote the films that followed. I'm skeptical.

(Reply to this)

killermonkey8822 writes:
on May 01 2007 09:41 PM

In reply to this comment (#849663)
hmm......... yeah i guess you're right he will do a shitty movie for money....... but when he actually sees something that he finds very dramatic that he likes he will work his ass off....... makes alot of sense when it comes to those capatlist movie pigs these days.

(Reply to this)

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