Graphic by Antonio Mochmann
On Nov. 9, 2023, the Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) strike officially ended after months of protesting for better wages, streaming residuals and restrictions on the use of artificial intelligence.
In the last month of negotiations, conflicting reports gave the impression that the strike could extend into 2024. It was hard to tell if there was an end in sight, as the heads of the studios representing the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) repeatedly pulled away from negotiations. Though sources claimed this was due to the studios’ unwillingness to compromise on terms, their true intentions remained unclear until today.
Sources close to the AMPTP have revealed that the studios planned to release what they called “The Big Movie.” The film was to include a massive crossover between movie franchises that seemingly have no connection with one another. Characters Spider-Man, Iron Man and Thor would team up with Star Wars’ Luke Skywalker, Fast and Furious’ Dominic Toretto, Transformers’ Optimus Prime and many others to fight an unknown evil.
The studios claim that they fought for the use of AI to digitally recreate the faces of actors in an effort to make this movie. The script would be written entirely by AI, and actors that could not appear — physically or morally — to reprise their roles in the movie would be digitally replaced.
Though the script for the movie was never completed, drafts of scenes have leaked and circulated online. In one scene, Ethan Hunt from Mission: Impossible, played by Tom Cruise, attempts to steal the Infinity Gauntlet — as seen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe — from Russian operatives. He stops in his tracks when he is confronted by Maverick from the Top Gun movies and Nick Morton from The Mummy, both also played by Tom Cruise. Another scene attempts to recreate the final fight scene in Avengers: Endgame, when Captain America is joined by his team from across the galaxy to fight against an enemy.
“I can’t do this alone,” says Ethan Hunt. He falls to his knees, defeated. “My scientology powers are spread too thin!”
“Don’t worry,” says the Terminator over an earpiece. “We’re here to help!”
From the skies, a DeLorean flies into the scene and lands behind Hunt. The Terminator exits the car followed by Marty McFly from Back to the Future, Agents K and J from Men In Black and the Ghostbusters, who ride atop the DeLorean. The Big Bad Guy laughs with his army of goons.
“We’ll never lose,” the Big Bad Guy exclaims in a devilish, raspy voice. “Tom Cruise will surely have an existential crisis!” His army’s laughter suddenly dies down. “Oh. He’s right behind me, isn’t he?”
Bob Iger, CEO of the Walt Disney Company, commented on The Big Movie in an interview with The Press. “This is what they took from you,” Iger said. “The characters you love were going to be seen together on the big screen. I’ve always been about the fans and what they want to see.”
He revealed the Big Movie idea first dawned on him while watching his grandson play with his action figures. “Iron Man alongside a Bugs Bunny McDonalds collectable fighting against a big red truck. And I thought to myself, ‘That doesn’t make any sense, how would those characters come into contact? How does the big truck fight back?’ But then it dawned on me. It doesn’t need to make sense for it to grab people’s attention.”
He claimed that, as long as people’s favorite characters interacted, a coherent plot was secondary in the goal of making money. “Besides, ‘The Big Movie’ will make plenty of sense after a few rounds of ChatGPT.”
Despite his ambitions, the internet seems to disagree. The phrase “The Big Flop” was trending on X — a testament to the state of the industry and the disconnect studios have with their audiences. Numerous users claimed that they would actively boycott the industry if such a movie were to exist.
X user BigGuy wrote in a post, “Why do studios seem to think cameos and bringing in characters just for their faces is what makes people watch their movies? Was the Flash movie not enough of a signal that that just won’t sell?”
SAG-AFTRA has since responded to plans to make The Big Movie. In a statement, they said simply, “Trust us. We would not let you see that garbage.”
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