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Michael J. Fox will probably never escape Marty McFly for most of us. After all, Back to the Future made him a Hollywood favorite, and it’s hard to think of him without that iconic role. But you’ll be surprised to know that Fix did a lot more time travel in a DeLorean.
In fact, one of his most unusual movies came from Tim Burton, and I think we’ve been sleeping on it for too long. The movie had almost everything you would expect from a big Hollywood hit. There was Jack Nicholson, Danny DeVito, Natalie Portman, and Sarah Jessica Parker. But somehow, things didn’t go as planned.
If you haven’t guessed it yet, I’m talking about Mars Attacks!, the ridiculously weird alien invasion movie that tanked at the box office. But I don’t think the movie deserves all the criticism it gets for poor earnings. In fact, looking at its worldwide numbers and the kind of movie Burton was trying to make, calling it a flop seems unfair.
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Mars Attacks! Made Just $37 Million In The US, But Its Worldwide Earnings Tell A Different Story
Let’s talk about the numbers first. Mars Attacks! earned around $37 million at the domestic box office, according to Box Office Mojo. For a movie that’s packed with some of the biggest industry legends, that was definitely not the result anyone was expecting. But the numbers don’t tell the full story.
The movie actually earned more than $101 million worldwide. That’s nearly three times its domestic collection, which makes the $37 million figure look a little less disastrous.
Sure, the movie wasn’t secretly a hit, but I still think there’s a difference between a movie that didn’t make enough money and one that deserves to be forgotten. And Mars Attacks! definitely belongs in the second-chance category.
Was Michael J. Fox Really That Bad in Mars Attacks!?
The movie takes us through a Martian invasion that initially seems peaceful. But instead of giving us a serious alien thriller, Burton turns the whole thing into complete madness. And that’s part of the reason I liked it.
In the movie, Michael J. Fox wasn’t playing another lovable hero in Mars Attacks!. He was actually playing a pretty selfish guy. Fox appeared as Jason Stone, a television news reporter who sees the alien invasion as his chance to get ahead in his career.
Michael J. Fox actually played a pretty selfish character in Mars Attacks!, and honestly, it was refreshing to see him do something so different. Fox played Jason Stone, a television news reporter who sees the arrival of Martians as the perfect opportunity to boost his career.
While everyone else is trying to understand what’s happening with the alien invasion, Jason is more interested in how he can use the situation to his advantage. We’re so used to watching him play the lovable Marty McFly that seeing him as a sleazy, self-centered reporter feels like a fun change. He brings plenty of energy to the role without trying to make Jason more likable than he actually is.
The problem is that Mars Attacks! has a ridiculously crowded cast. With such high-profile actors, Fox’s performance can easily get overlooked. But for me, it wasn’t. In fact, it was a pleasure to see Fox experimenting with his career during the 1990s.
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