The Greatest Showman #637 - Hindsight

"The Shadow," directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp, was once remembered as the beginning of Johnny Depp's career downfall.

In 2010, "Alice in Wonderland" reignited Johnny Depp's career, grossing over a billion dollars worldwide. Before that, a string of disappointments—including "Public Enemies" and "The Tourist"—had eroded his standing as Hollywood's leading man, a title that Robert Downey Jr. snatched with the meteoric success of "Iron Man." However, "Alice in Wonderland" temporarily reversed Depp's fortunes, convincing studios of his continued box office appeal. Warner Bros. was one such believer, securing him for "The Shadow," helmed by his longtime collaborator Tim Burton.

But this proved to be the beginning of a nightmare. Over the next few years, Depp's filmography suffered a catastrophic decline: "The Lone Ranger," "Transcendence," "Mordecai," "Alice Through the Looking Glass"—five consecutive failures that resulted in a complete career collapse. "The Lone Ranger," with a massive $220 million budget, and even the comparatively modest "Mordecai" at $60 million, were financial disasters. Depp's status as a bankable star was obliterated, and the term "box office poison" became synonymous with his name. And it all started with "The Shadow."

With a $150 million investment, "The Shadow" only managed to gross $79 million domestically and $245 million worldwide. Factoring in high promotional costs, Warner Bros. suffered an estimated $100 million loss. Moreover, the film lacked merchandising potential, and its performance in the home media market was abysmal. The financial blow was staggering.

Despite these grim results, "The Shadow" was initially viewed as a surefire blockbuster. Warner Bros. was confident, investing heavily not only in production but also in a star-studded cast that included Eva Green, Helena Bonham Carter, Michelle Pfeiffer, Jonny Lee Miller, Chloë Grace Moretz, and even the legendary Christopher Lee. The studio expected nothing less than a global box office haul of $700–800 million.

To demonstrate their confidence, Warner Bros. positioned "The Shadow" in a competitive summer slot: the second week of May 2012. It was sandwiched between two major tentpoles—Marvel's "The Avengers" the week before and Universal's "Battleship" the week after. This aggressive scheduling reflected their belief that "The Shadow" could hold its own against the superhero juggernaut, with media even hyping it as "Johnny Depp vs. Robert Downey Jr." for box office supremacy.

So, what went wrong?

The failure boiled down to poor creative choices. "The Shadow," adapted from a cult-classic TV series, had numerous potential directions, but the production team opted for a comedic, soap-opera style. The result was a weak script, incoherent storytelling, underwhelming characters, and a lack of engaging visual elements. Worse yet, the climax was dull and uninspired, failing to generate even basic popcorn entertainment.

Critical reception was lukewarm at best, with a mediocre 55% aggregate score—comparable to "Alice in Wonderland"—but audience reactions were far worse. Rotten Tomatoes audience scores, IMDb ratings, and CinemaScore results revealed a significant drop in enthusiasm. Ultimately, under the overwhelming shadow of "The Avengers," "The Shadow" vanished without a trace.

From a retrospective standpoint, could "The Shadow" have succeeded? Perhaps—but only with drastic changes. The film was deeply entrenched in Tim Burton and Johnny Depp's signature gothic aesthetic, a style that had grown stale due to its overuse in their collaborations. Neither the script nor the visuals offered anything fresh, and the humor lacked impact. If "The Shadow" had any chance of survival, it would have required an entirely new creative team—something Warner Bros. wasn't willing to consider.

For Renly, this failure wasn't surprising. He had the benefit of foresight, knowing the commercial trajectories of the next several years. Yet, he wasn't content to be merely an observer of history. The future he knew would only take him so far—2017 at most—and he had no intention of stopping there. To carve out his own legacy, he had to challenge the status quo and reshape history itself.

Andy watched Renly's expression carefully, searching for clues to his thoughts. "Do you have any special ideas?" he finally asked.

Roy looked slightly surprised—Renly had only just started reading the script. Could he already have formed an opinion?

Renly simply smiled and shook his head. "No. I'm not interested."

"Oh?" Andy raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not Johnny Depp, and I don't want to be Johnny Depp," Renly stated matter-of-factly. "Warner Bros. might understand that, but Tim Burton doesn't. He expects unconditional loyalty from Johnny, and I won't play that game. I don't fit into his creative mold."

Johnny Depp would jump at the chance to work with Tim Burton again. Renly, on the other hand, had no such obligations. He understood his own acting style and knew that trying to force himself into Burton's vision would be futile.

Andy considered Renly's words carefully, his fingers interlocked as he weighed the implications. "Renly, would you at least finish reading the script before making a decision?"

He wasn't ready to dismiss "The Shadow" outright. Warner Bros. had allocated massive resources to the project, and a high-profile film like this could be a stepping stone for Renly's career. If Renly excelled in a gothic role, it could prove his versatility and lead to more lucrative opportunities.

Renly nodded. "Of course. Even if you hadn't asked, I would have finished reading it."

Andy acknowledged the response with a nod. "To be honest, Warner Bros. is putting all their weight behind this project. It's a major opportunity. If it succeeds, it'll give us leverage to negotiate better contracts. This could help us position ourselves against Universal."

"Does this mean 'The Messenger' is off the table?" Renly asked, shifting the conversation. The last time he had reviewed potential scripts, "The Messenger" and "21 Jump Street" had stood out as promising projects. With "21 Jump Street" delayed, "The Messenger"—a smaller, independent film—was the remaining contender.

Andy sighed. "It's still an option, but it's not a studio tentpole. 'The Shadow' is where the real industry power lies."

Renly simply smiled. He wasn't one to blindly follow industry trends—he was here to reshape them.