Part 6/8:
This trend, she argued, undermines the core of filmmaking—creativity driven by passion and vision. According to Johnson, audiences are not as naive as studios believe; they have a strong intuition for when movies are made purely for profit and not for storytelling. This realization is reflected in the film’s poor performance and the harsh reviews it received.
Industry Lessons and Future Directions
The fallout from Madam Webb underscores an ongoing crisis within Hollywood, where the emphasis on marketing, franchise-building, and algorithmic success threatens to erode the art of filmmaking. Johnson's candid critique serves as a rare voice of honesty in an environment often characterized by PR spin and silence.