Disney’s John Carter has become one of Hollywood’s most notorious box-office disappointments. But what if the problem wasn’t John Carter at all?
Edgar Rice Burroughs didn’t simply create a hero having adventures on Mars. He created Barsoom: an entire world of competing city-states, ancient cultures, strange creatures, political rivalries and larger-than-life characters spread across eleven novels.
Trying to introduce all of that in a two-hour blockbuster was always going to be a challenge.
In my latest SciFiPulse Now video essay, I argue that John Carter was made in the wrong format. Instead of another movie or even a conventional streaming series, I think A Princess of Mars should be adapted as an old-school television event: two 90-minute episodes giving audiences time to discover Barsoom, understand its cultures and become invested in John Carter and Dejah Thoris.
Think Roots, North and South or, for science-fiction fans, V. Big stories presented as genuine television events.
Perhaps John Carter didn’t prove audiences weren’t interested in Barsoom.
Perhaps we’ve simply never been given the chance to experience it properly.
Until next time, may your leaps be mighty, your sword stay sharp, and don’t forget to subscribe before you return to Earth.
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