Paul Feig says everyone thought 'Bridesmaids' will flop
Paul Feig says everyone thought 'Bridesmaids' will flop
Los Angeles, Director Paul Feig, whose 2011 movie "Bridesmaids" went on to cross USD 300 million at the worldwide box office, says no one believed he could succeed with his women-led comedy but fate had a different plan.
Feig spoke at the panel of SXSW, where his latest film "Another Simple Favor" starring Blake Lively and Anna Kendrick, was screened.
The 62-year-old filmmaker said everyone made him feel as if the future of how women's ideas would be treated in the industry was dependent on the success of his film.
"So many female writer friends of mine were going out and pitching female-led comedies, and they all heard from the studios: ‘We have to wait and see how ‘Bridesmaids’ does,'” Feig said, according to entertainment news outlet Variety.
The pressure was so that he even questioned himself if he was going to "ruin movies for women".
"I was like, ‘F**k! Don’t put that on me. Am I going to ruin movies for women?'. I don’t think with ‘The Hangover’ they said, ‘I’m gonna wait to see all these dudes on screen before we do this again.’ But thank god it did well."
Starring Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy and Rose Byrne, the romantic comedy follows Wiig's character, who has to serve as a bridesmaid for her best friend .
Also known for his films like "Freaks and Geeks" and "The Heat" and "Spy" among others, Feig said he was told till the day of the release that the film won't work.
"Right till the day we came out, we were predicted to not do well. We were told, ‘You have to make USD 20 million on opening weekend, or you will be considered a failure.’"
"And we did a midnight screening the night before that didn’t go well. They were like, ‘It’s gonna be USD 13 million. Sorry, it’s a bomb.’ All day, I was walking around, like, ‘I guess I destroyed comedy for women.'"
Feig recalled how he got the good news in the end.
"Melissa McCarthy and Ben Falcone were over at our house for dinner, and suddenly, the texts ’20 million. 21. 22.’ So we all got in the car. We went down to the Arclight Cinema and it was packed. It was the greatest moment of our lives," he said
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