Out of all the live-action adaptations churned out in recent times, there have been some so horrifying to see that many pretend that it doesn’t exist. In honour of that, we have compiled some of the worst live action adaptations that make you want to pull your hair. These films are bad enough to hate-watch and question every shred of their existence with a fiery passion. Without any further ado, check these films out below.
Worst Live Action Adaptations
Percy Jackson and the Olympians The Lightning Thief
While most fans were incredibly excited to see this film, they were more annoyed to see that none of their excitement translated onto the screen. The casting wasn’t done well, the storylines didn’t seem to match, and worst of all, the adaptation didn’t involve the contribution of the author who wrote the series. Instead of getting an actual good product, viewers got a watered-down version of their favourite characters and series. Starring Logan Lerman, Pierce Brosnan, Rosario Dawson and many others, Percy Jackson and the Olympians The Lightning Thief is currently streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.
The Lion King
The live-action mess from Disney has truly caused waves. On the one hand, the cast members like Beyonce, Donald Glover, Chiwetel Ejiofor and others in this film are incredibly talented. However, the live-action aspect doesn’t translate emotion well on screen. They manage to tell the heartbreaking story of Simba and Mufasa, but they don’t emote it well through the animals. Animation provides creators with the opportunity to draw multiple ways of expression. But, the CGI aspect limits the creators in their ability to play with facial mobility, especially when it comes to animals.
The Lion King (2019) is currently available to rent on Apple iTunes.
Justice League (2017)
Even forgoing a lot of the controversy this film came with, there is no reason to enjoy this film apart from the prospect that it brings together iconic characters from comic books back onto the screen. Unlike other films in the same comic universe, the urgency isn’t played out well, the characters don’t have time to interact, and overall, it is a film that doesn’t satisfy the spectacle. The tropes are old, reused, and seem outdated for a film coming out this late. Starring Gal Gadot, Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Ezra Miller and others, Justice League (2017) is currently streaming on Apple TV+.
Beauty and the Beast
While live-action Disney princesses are a hard sell, this film didn’t try to cater to the audience. Instead of making some changes to the original storyline and giving it a new flair, this version hardly does any of that. It sticks to the original Stockholm syndrome storyline and gives some of the most concerning modern-day storylines till now. She may be captured, but at least she has an education and can read.
Even though the cast is phenomenal, including Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Josh Gad and others, it has no real redemption. Beauty and the Beast is available to stream on Disney+ Hotstar.
Cinderella (2021)
Instead of giving her another opportunity that would make her big, Camilla Cabello was stuck with this one. Along with Nicholas Galzatine, Pierce Brosnan, Idina Menzel and other talented actors, this film should have been a musical beauty. However, the parody songs and the general quality of the music was so low that it didn’t matter how talented the singers and the performers were. Instead of race-bending characters in Euro-centric narratives, the writing itself should include people of colour and their experiences in it.
Cinderella (2021) is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.
Morbius
While the initial excitement was already down in the dumps, the release of the film confirmed why it was. In trying to stray away from the Spider-man-ness of the universe, they managed to trap themselves in it. According to critics, the film had incoherent scripts and bad writing that tipped good performances over the edge. The movie even became a big meme on the internet, with fans ironically rallying for a sequel they could hate on. Even though this movie stars Jared Leto, Matt Smith, Michael Keaton and other big names, it doesn’t manage to make a mark.
Morbius is currently streaming on Netflix.
Ghost in the Shell
While the Scarlett Johansson debacle was already enough to cause a stir in the film-watching community, the more concerning reason this film didn’t do well is that the writing manages to strip everything that makes this film cyberpunk and instead makes it a superhero origin film with repeated tropes that don’t make the film a very interesting watch. Apart from Johansson, Ghost in the Shell stars Pilou Asbæk, Takeshi Kitano, Michael Pitt and others, and is currently streaming on SonyLIV.
The Maze Runner
One of the most epic science fiction dystopic novels was reduced to such little significance in this series of films. Apart from the fidelity argument that doesn’t include many parts from the novels, the parts they manage to include don’t entirely explain the context and the story world clearly. The reason why this film stings worse than others is that the casting in this film is absolutely iconic. With Dylan O’Brien, Thomas Brodie Sangster, Will Poulter, Kaya Scodelario and others, they had become an indispensable team.
The Maze Runner is currently streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.
Divergent
Once again, the casting served beautifully in this film, Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Zoe Kravitz, Miles Teller and other talented people. This film didn’t manage to hit the main emotional points of the film that make it interesting. If the first film only doesn’t share his actual name, Tobias, then the rest of the narrative doesn’t make sense at all. Even though we only learn his real name in the second movie, book readers know how that information could have changed the course of the story completely. It feels like it left the character barren.
Divergent is available to stream on Zee5.
The School for Good and Evil
Compared to the book series, which came out in 2013, the recently released film feels like a regression in the trope of fantasy. The books managed to build a world rivalling Harry Potter, but the movies leave much to be desired. To be honest, many things seem pretty normal when they’re in books, but the moment someone says it in a film or television series, it is so cringe, which is exactly what happens with this movie. All of the scenes that seemed iffy were because the writing would have surely been great, but the visual execution was a nightmare.
Starring Sophia Anne Caruso, Sofia Wylie, Jamie Flatters, Kit Young and others, The School for Good and Evil can stream on Netflix.
Which of these films do you think is worse than the others? Is there any we have missed? Let us know in the comments below.
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