Summary
Will Smith’s new sci-fi movieResistorhas the opportunity to end one of the actor’s most concerning career trends by finally giving him another hit in the genre. Early in his blockbuster career, the sci-fi genre seemed to be one of Will Smith’s strong suits. While the actor first rose to prominence with roles inSix Degrees of Separation,Bad Boys, andThe Fresh Prince of Bel Air, it was 1996 and 1997’s one-two punch ofIndependence DayandMen In Blackthat cemented his superstar status. Since then, sci-fi has been second only toWill Smith’s action movies.
Most of Smith’s most successful sci-fi movies blended the genre with action, from 2004’sI, Robotto 2007’sI Am Legend. In contrast, Smith’s forays into fantasy, likeWinter’s TaleandCollateral Beauty, received a more mixed reception. This explains whythe sequelI Am Legend 2is one of Smith’s most exciting upcoming projects, although the original post-apocalyptic blockbuster is as much a horror movie and an action movie as it is a sci-fi story. Smith’s recent sci-fi movies haven’t fared as well as his early entries into the genre did with audiences and critics.
4 Canceled Steven Spielberg & Will Smith Movies (& Why They Didn’t Happen)
Will Smith and Steven Spielberg have tried extremely hard to make a movie together, but for various reasons, not one of their projects has worked out.
What Is Will Smith’s New Sci-Fi Movie?
Resistor Is Based On Daniel Suarez’s 2014 Sci-Fi Novel Influx
Resistor’s script comes from screenwriters who worked onBullet TrainandTop Gun: Maverick, meaning the project boasts plenty of blockbuster potential.
Despite this inconvenient fact,Will Smith will return to the world of sci-fi with his upcoming movieResistor.Resistoris based on Daniel Suarez’s 2014 novelInflux, which follows the story of a particle physicist whose gravity-reflecting device earns the ire of the Bureau of Technology Control. A group committed to suppressing technological innovation for fear that it will cause a social revolution, the Bureau of Technology Control attempts to imprison the novel’s hero in its thrilling dystopian story.Resistor’s script comes from screenwriters who worked onBullet TrainandTop Gun: Maverick, meaning the project boasts plenty of blockbuster potential.
Thoughall threeMen In Blackmovieswere box office successes,Resistorsounds like a return to more self-serious sci-fi for Smith. The movie’s premise calls to mindI, Robot, with its knotty mystery and shadowy corporate villains. Unfortunately, that is not the only Smith project thatResistorresembles. Director And Lee’sGemini Manalso saw Smith play a beleaguered antihero who was unfairly targeted by a shady company with a dark secret, but this 2019 flop wasn’t well received by critics or audiences. Instead,Gemini Manwas the latest in a string of sci-fi failures for the actor.
Will Smith’s Last 3 Sci-Fi Movies Haven’t Worked
After Earth, Bright, and Gemini Man All Failed To Resonate
Whether viewers judge them by their critical reception, their commercial performance, or a combination of the two, there is no denying thatWill Smith’s choice of sci-fi movies hasn’t seen him succeed sinceI Am Legend(or arguably evenI, Robot). IfI Am Legend’s Richard Matheson adaptation is considered a sci-fi movie, then its mixed reviews are more than ameliorated by its massive box office success. However, since then, Smith’s last three sci-fi movies have undeniably been failures. 2013’sAfter Earthwas derided by critics, making many end-of-year lists despite competition fromThe Lone Ranger.
Smith’s choice of sci-fi movies has grown progressively worse with all three being badly reviewed,Brightonly being a success on streaming, andGemini Manfailing on every front.
Although Netflix’s expensive action fantasyBrightwas popular with viewers, it was similarly hated by critics and never spawned its promised sequels. Meanwhile,Gemini Manwas both a box office bomb and comfortablydirector Ang Lee’s worst movie ever. Smith’s recent sci-fi movies have all fared poorly, with all three being badly reviewed,Brightonly being a success on streaming, andGemini Manfailing on every front.
Will Smith Used To Be The King Of Sci-Fi Movies
Independence Day and Men In Black Made Smith A Star
Men In Black IIdid admittedly struggle with critics, but it remained a massive hit and proved that Smith could still produce crowd-pleasing sci-fi efforts while simultaneously starring in award-winning dramas likeAli.
AlthoughBad Boyswas a big success in 1995, it was also a gritty R-rated action movie. In contrast, it is tough to overstate just how instrumentalIndependence DayandMen In Blackwere to Smith’s blockbuster success.Men In Blackgave Smith his first massive franchise and, even now, theBad Boysseries can’t break its box-office record. Meanwhile,Independence Daywas the first major test of Smith’s leading man potential. Director Roland Emmerich’s alien invasion disaster movie even hedged its bets by pairing the actor with the more experienced Jef Goldblum, but Smith’s charisma made him its breakout star.
Men In Black IIdid admittedly struggle with critics, but it remained a massive hit and proved that Smith could still produce crowd-pleasing sci-fi efforts while simultaneously starring in award-winning dramas likeAli. Similarly,I, Robotwas a huge hit whose middling reviews couldn’t dim Smith’s star power.I Am Legend’s divergences from Matheson’s source novel earned some criticism, but the movie was well received, and its financial success speaks for itself. AlthoughWild Wild Westwas undeniably a major outlier, the fact that the ambitious sci-fi Western attempted to blend the two genres accounts for its failure among Smith’s successes.
Can Will Smith Reclaim His Sci-Fi Crown?
Resistor Could Be The Start Of Something Big For Smith
WhileI Am Legend 2’s sequel storyis Smith’s most exciting upcoming project,Resistorproves that the actor isn’t averse to taking risks and revisiting a genre that hasn’t been kind to him recently.Will Smith’s infamous Oscars slap cost him a lot of audience goodwill, but the box office success ofBad Boys: Ride or Dieseemingly proves that this backlash has begun to die down. As such,Resistormight be just what the actor needs to re-establish himself as the king of the genre. This relies on a few factors aligning in the star’s favor.
IfI Am Legend 2can repeat the original movie’s box office success, this will likely increase interest inResistor. It will be tough forResistorto avoid feeling like an overly familiar dystopian sci-fi story, so Smith’s star power will be central to selling the movie. Now thatBad Boys: Ride or Diehas proven Smith remains a multiplex draw,I Am Legend 2can remind viewers of his historical prowess in the sci-fi genre. If this works, thenWill Smith’sResistormay go on to become the movie that regains him the title of cinematic sci-fi’s reigning king.
