Firefly

Are you guys starting to hear that fanfare? Those distant drums? Are you slapping on your side-arms, pulling on your long brownish-colored coats and thumbing your crisp new bills in anticipation of the cinematic event of the year? Well, it’s official: on April 22nd you, the true the blue the loyal, can step right up with the rest of America and WAIT FIVE MORE MONTHS.

Heh. See, sometimes studios shuffle around release dates...

Okay. Don’t panic. right now you’re panicking. you’re thinking, "how could they do this to me?" But what you SHOULD be thinking is: "How could they do this to JOSS?". Seriously. That pity is mine and I want it back.

So what happened? Well, nothing terribly original. April got crowded with a lot of titles aimed at a similar demographic, and the studio decided September was a clearer corridor for the film to make the kind of impact it should. This isn’t about a lack of confidence in the film — in fact, they told me this before they even saw it. And now they have seen it, and unless they’re way better liars than I’m used to, they dug it. Actually, they dug it pretty large, which is a good sign since there’s not a single finished effect in the film. There’s no reworking the end, no reshoots, no "does it have to be in space?". It’s just a marketing issue. Now you’ll get to watch lots of trailers in the summer. And hopefully, by the time it comes out, other people, people who ain’t us, will get a whiff of what we’re up to, and come along too.

I love this movie. I HATE waiting to show it too you. I felt pretty much the way I imagine you’re feeling right now when they told me. But these guys know what they’re doing, and they’re trying to protect their investment, not bury it. So I gotta be a grown-up. The release date is September 30th. Hopefully it won’t change again.

Spread the word. Keep the faith. And gleam the damn cube already.

 j.

joss | November 23, 05:12 CET

Hey, Willowy, opening before Star Wars would have been mondo beyondo, but opening in a month crowded with crowd-drawin’, flashy early-summer titles might not be. As my editor Lisa explained, "April is the new May". We don’t wanna get buried...ALIVE!

joss | November 23, 05:33 CET

You guys are sweetumses. If I was here to rouse you to action, I’d be wearing pants. I mean, using... rhetoric... (note to self: delete pants thing.) The fact is, I’m crushed, because I’m so anxious for you all to see what we’ve done. I want the world to know that Nathan Fillion is the next Harrison Ford (Well, he IS). I want them to see how amazing Summer Glau is... not to mention the whole cast and Jack Green, the greatest DP in DP-land, everybody just did such good work it almost makes me wish I’d written a coherent script! Or, I mean... um, hey, no pants! (Note to self...) So there you have it, or me, disappointed and impatient. But I really do believe in this studio. They supported this project since before I’d even thought up the SURPRISINGLY COHERENT script (nice save!) and they’ve been very up-front about their scheduling and marketing stratgies. so I stand with their decision, but, as Abe Simpson would say: "They’re in for the frowning of a lifetime!"

How’s that cube coming? Gleamy?

joss | November 23, 06:00 CET