August 14, 1998
LOS ANGELES (AP) - The big-screen remake of ``The Avengers,'' one of the most anticipated movies of the summer, may be headed for trouble at the box office, with the studio declining to show it to critics before its release Friday.
Traditionally, studios that have little faith in a film refuse to screen it early for reviewers and instead take their chances with the general public. The latest instance was MGM's summer flop, ``Dirty Work.''
With a budget estimated at more than $60 million, ``The Avengers'' is among the biggest films of 1998 for Warner Bros., which has had a solid - if unspectacular - year with ``City of Angels,'' ``A Perfect Murder'' and ``Lethal Weapon 4,'' along with the disappointing ``The Quest for Camelot.''
``The Avengers'' stars Ralph Fiennes as the dapper John Steed and Uma Thurman as the leather-jumpsuit-wearing Emma Peel in special-effects-laden adaptation the 1960s British television show. Sean Connery plays the villain.
Warner Bros. spokeswoman Charlotte Kandel said the studio made the ``difficult decision'' not to screen the movie for critics because ``we just wanted to have this film start on an even playing field.'' She said reviews would inevitably compare the film to the TV series and not judge it on its own merits.
``'The Avengers' is such a unique property. I think that it holds a genuine place in people's affection,'' said Kandel. ``We want the public and the press to make up their own minds at the same time.''
The Los Angeles Times quoted an unidentified studio spokesman as saying the filmmakers were still tinkering with the special effects on two reels as of last Friday. The source also said there would be no gala premiere for the picture because its three stars had scheduling conflicts and were unavailable.
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