It seemed like a match made in heaven when filmmaker Susanne Bier announced the repairing of Silver Linings Playbook alum Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper for the movie Serena back in 2012. But Lawrence fans soon began to wonder if instead the film was destined for purgatory when, three years later, no American theatrical release came to fruition.
Jennifer Lawrence, an Oscar and Golden Globe winner, is still riding the peak of the fame wave, but even she is not immune to the occasional film flop. And the unconventional release of a flick that stars Lawrence and the other oft nominated Cooper leaves some to wonder if this is her flop.
Recent articles from media sources such as Variety announced the release of Serena to online streaming services such as iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, and Google Play a full three weeks before the U.S. theatrical debut at the end of March. And while Susanne Bier, the Danish director at the helm, blames the delay on the busyness of Lawrence with other projects stating the actress “only had one day off in two years” to do voice over work for the flick, its European release was met with heavy criticism and confusion.
Magnolia Pictures president Eamonn Bowles had discussed in an interview that he had seen multiple versions of the movie suggesting that even with Lawrence and Coopers unquestionable chemistry and talent, the film itself may have structural issues. And critics have lambasted the film, calling the use of someone with the talent caliber of Jennifer Lawrence a “waste.”
While the poor reviews may keep theatergoers from shelling out money for astronomical ticket prices, Magnolia Pictures’ move to put Serena on video-on-demand services is undoubtedly their way of betting that Jennifer Lawrence fans will still pay up to $10.99 to swoon over Lawrence in the privacy of their own homes, and they’re probably not wrong.
Last year, Jennifer Lawrence was named by Forbes as the highest grossing actor of 2014 and she continues to be one of the most sought after actresses in Hollywood.
Jennifer’s highly anticipated final Hunger Games film Mockingjay Part 2 comes out in November, while she is currently wrapping up her third David O. Russell film , Joy, set for a December, 2015, release. And in typical Jennifer Lawrence fashion, she won’t have much time to catch her breath, as it was recently announced she has agreed to star in the new Steven Spielberg biopic It’s What I Do: A Photographer’s Life of Love and War .
So it seems regardless of whether or not Serena even breaks even financially, it’s just a minor bleep on the successful Lawrence’s radar.
What do you think? Are you fan enough to stream Serena just to see another Jennifer Lawrence performance?
[Image courtesy of Craig Barritt/Getty Images]