Just out of curiosity, how many of you out readers knew that there was a major studio tentpole called “Jonah Hex” scheduled for release in less than two months? Based on the popular DC comic-book, and starring the likes of Josh Brolin, Megan Fox, Will Arnett and John Malkovich? Please, don’t all raise your hands at once!
Don’t feel bad if you’re drawing a blank, as it seems Warner Bros., the studio that bankrolled the project, has next to zero interest in raising any awareness whatsoever for the undoubtedly pricey effort. While we’ve all been bombarded with pre-release clips, print ads and photos for “Iron Man 2,” “Robin Hood,” “Sex in the City 2,” “Salt,” “Knight and Day,” “Shrek Forever After” and “Toy Story 3” — just to name a few — “Jonah Hex has been all but MIA from the promotional game, minus an appearance at last year’s San Diego Comic Con and some leaked photos of Megan Fox in an ungodly-tight corset.
Although it’s been reported recently that a teaser trailer for the flick will appear on the SyFy channel on April 29, and be attached to the “Nightmare on Elm Street” remake on the 30th, it still feels like too little, too late at this point. For a film plagued with rumors of major behind-the-scenes difficulties, it’s usually best to build anticipation before the bad press hits. Not the case with old “Jonah Hex” it seems…
In the meantime, for your viewing pleasure, Entertainment Weekly has run an exclusive shot of Brolin in make-up as the titular character in their current summer preview issue (shown below) which can be found on newsstands this very moment. I’m not exactly sure why the studio chose to release this particular photo, as the prosthetic running across the side of the actor’s mouth looks really fake and terrible, but I suppose beggars can’t be choosers.
With a rapidly-approaching release-date of June 18, I’m going to be mighty curious to see how hard Warner Bros. works to sell this conceptually cool-sounding supernatural western to the public who, thus far, predominantly has no idea it even exists. Hopefully, they pull off a small miracle, as I’d really, really hate to see the always excellent Brolin have his first headlining step into blockbuster-land end in calamity.
How do you loyal IJMers feel about this new pic? Are you excited at all about “Jonah Hex” or completely ambivalent? Hop on your cyber-broncos and mosey on over to our forums and let us know!
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Follow Cam Smith on Twitter at http://twitter.com/camspcepisodes.
How under the radar has it been? Even with all of the comic book movie fans we have writing for It’s Just Movies, this is our first story on “Jonah Hex.”
i cant wait to see how hex turns out. Its too bad there hasnt been much promotion yet for it. Also I hope those rumors of behind the scenes issues dont derail the film’s completion and muck up the film.