Dakota Johnson Slams 'Madame Web' Creators for Lack of Vision

Madame Web has secured its place among cinema's most notorious superhero flops, failing spectacularly at the box office while drowning in negative reviews. The film made unwanted history with the worst opening weekend ever for a Sony Spider-Man movie and became the first Marvel-related release since Fox's disastrous Fantastic Four reboot to miss the #1 spot.

Even gaming visionary Hideo Kojima, creator of Metal Gear Solid and Death Stranding, couldn't be bothered with more than a six-word verdict. IGN's slightly more detailed take blamed an "overstuffed screenplay" crammed with "needless characters, tired tropes, and uninspired dialogue."

Following this embarrassment and the subsequent Kraven the Hunter debacle, Sony reportedly abandoned its Spider-Verse expansion plans to concentrate on next year's guaranteed success Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

What exactly doomed Madame Web? The post-mortem continues months later. Emma Roberts (who played Mary Parker) blamed internet culture's tendency to "turn everything into memes," noting how one trailer line became viral mockery despite not appearing in the final film.

Sydney Sweeney (Julia Cornwall/Spider-Woman) admitted she was just "going through the motions", using her SNL hosting gig to distance herself entirely from the role: "Trust me, you didn't see me in Madame Web."

Now leading lady Dakota Johnson delivers the most damning assessment yet, revealing systemic production issues that plagued Madame Web's development.

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Promoting her new rom-com Materialists, Johnson told the Los Angeles Times: "That failure wasn't on me."

"Today's system lets executives without creative instincts make committee decisions," she explained. "That environment kills authentic storytelling. Madame Web completely mutated from its original vision, and I became just another passenger. But big-budget misfires happen constantly."

These remarks expand on Johnson's earlier Bustle comments: "Art-by-spreadsheet never works. Studios underestimate audiences - people always smell phoniness."

The actress appears philosophical: "I'm not traumatized. I've done tiny indies that flopped too. That's showbusiness."

Sony's troubled Spider-verse currently comprises six films: both Venom movies, Morbius, Madame Web, the upcoming Venom: The Last Dance, and Kraven the Hunter. In April, Tom Hardy confirmed a Spider-Man/Venom crossover was never truly in development.

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