Yet this keeps happening, time and time again.
Even now, there are two live actionJungle Bookmovies in various stages of production, for example.
And let us not forget whenK-9andTurner And Hoochonce did battle…
But how have the movie showdowns of old turned out?
And are there any instances where everyones a winner?
Er, not many as it happens… On paper, his movie was a more modest affair.
But still, people really didnt go forHouse On Haunted Hilleither.
In truth, bothThe HauntingandHouse On Haunted Hillare mainly forgotten.
It would take a long time too for someone to schedule a big horror film in high summer again… For some time, Kevin Costner had been chasing the idea of bringing theWyatt Earpstory to the big screen.
That changed when Costner got interested (hed eventually make a western TV series,Hatfields & McCoys).
That said, Costner had previously been attached to the project that would becomeTombstone.
Costner leftTombstone, believing that the character of Wyatt Earp and not Doc Holliday should be the main focus.
Val Kilmer signed on shortly after Costner departed.
Tombstonewas reportedly a very, very bumpy production, and was even said to have been ghost-directed.
Yet it started production first, and made it to the screen first.
Reviews werent bad either.
Buena Vista ended up with a hit on its hands.
Over at Warner Bros., though, the Costner-headlinedWyatt Earpwas a very different beast.
A three-hour plus western biopic, one that whizzes past the infamous gunfight at the OK Corral.
critics near-savaged it in the summer of 1994.
This is one of those showdowns where we like the differing films for differing reasons.
Oh, and some free trivia:Kurt Russell reportedly ghost-directed Tombstone…
The best film:Depends what mood youre in.
As a result, three Columbus-themed projects went into development.
And in this case, three Columbus-themed films actually made it to the screen.
The highbrow one came from Ridley Scott.
The critical response wasnt bad, and some of Scotts visual work in the movie remains excellent.
Yet coming off the back ofThelma & Louise, it wasnt the big hit that had been anticipated.
That said, it was a fair better endeavour thanChristopher Columbus: The Discovery.
The coup, though, was getting the-then reclusive Marlon Brando to star.
It came to something that even theCarry Onteam couldnt make box office gold out ofCarry On Columbus.
One fell apart fairly quickly, and that left two competing adaptations.
The promising one was to be helmed by Kathryn Bigelow.
Off the back ofPoint BreakandStrange Days, she was set to directCompany Of Angels.
But the movie gods had other ideas.
Mission To Marscame first.
Gary Sinise and Tim Robbins led the cast, and hopes were high for the March 2000 release.
The film cost $100 million to make, but grossed a surprisingly low $110.9 million.
Mainly because its not very good.
The opening was interesting, but the film went downhill from there.
Most surprisingly, and disappointingly, it didnt feel like a De Palma film at all.
It felt like De Palma as a director for hire.
Terrific to look at, though.
Furthermore, Kilmer also apparently refused to even say the name of Sizemores character.
Director Anthony Hoffman valiantly tried to hold the film together, but his efforts were mainly in vain.
WhileRed Planethas a couple of decent moments, the $80 million production fell hard at the box office.
Its $33 million take was reflective of the scorn the movie had attracted.
The best film:Er, do we have to pick?
Its like choosing between two relatives you dont like much.
And at that stage, it was the most advanced of the projects.
First up was Ivan ReitmansNo Strings Attached, and it sure benefitted from making it to the screen first.
Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher headlined the movie, which went by the title ofFriends With Benefitsat first.
Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis starred this time, forEasy Adirector Will Gluck.
First out of the traps in 1997 wasDeep Impact.
Quite good, that was).
It would prove to be its first major live action hit.
The juggernaut turned up later in the summer, though.
Armageddonwas a huge bet for Disney.
As an insurance policy, he had Bruce Willis on a multi-picture deal, and madeArmageddonone of those films.
Its science was, er, a bit on the dramatic side, though.
Whats not to like there?
In truth, they had volcanoes in common, but not a fat lot else.
Roger Donaldson, ofNo Way Outand (yes!
It had a six month head start overVolcano, but still did middling business at best.
So the focus then switched to 20th Century FoxsVolcano.
For this one, Fox brought in Mick Jackson, whose biggest hit to date remainsThe Bodyguard.
Its a huff and puff effort this one, albeit very much in the template of a disaster movie.
Neither volcano movie would emerge particularly victorious, although the cheaperDantes Peakbrought home a good chunk more cash.
The best film:Volcano.
Mirror Mirrorwas cheaper to make, costing $85 million.
In the opposite corner,Snow White And The Huntsmanwas a big Universal blockbuster.
Rupert Sanders directed, and Kirsten Stewart at the height of herTwilightpowers took the title role.
Furthermore, audiences backed it.
At one stage, after all, there were two such projects on the go.
The most promising was inspired by an article (then book) by Richard Preston.
However, there was competition from across town.
Casting was going well too, not least when Dustin Hoffman was recruited to headline the movie.
Furthermore, there were problems onCrisis In The Hot Zone.
Rewrites had beefed up Robert Redfords role, and that put a question mark over Jodie Fosters involvement.
Warner Bros., meanwhile, was winning the game of brinkmanship, and scrambledOutbreakinto production.
That wasnt the end of the story, though.
The film would be released in 1995, and prove to be a box office hit.
It would be over 15 years until the next mainstream virus thriller, Steven SoderberghsContagion.
But Katzenberg, having heard about Pixars project, didnt want to be second to market.
He dramatically moved up the release of computer animated movieAntz, gambling that Pixar couldnt and wouldnt follow suit.
A successful one, too.
A Bugs Life, though, would do better.
Plus, it had those glorious outtakes in the end credits, too.
Still: two really good films in this instance…
It was a more modestly-budgeted film, costing $70 million to make againstWhite House Downs $150 million.
Olympusarrived in cinemas first too, and it felt like an old-style, hard-edged, quite nasty action film.
A successful one, too.
The sequel,London Has Fallen, arrives next year.
But the profit was lower, soOlympusultimately won out.
A shame, though.
Yet it feels like Roland Emmerich on home turf, fully in on the joke.
See also: is this 2013s most unfairly overlooked blockbuster)
Im fully aware others dont agree.
Ive had this argument before…
But were going with shopping centers.Paul Blart: Shopping Centre Copis a much better title.
There was a friendly rivalry between the two projects, as it happened.
Theyre totally different movies, he said.
The lighter, bubblierPaul Blartstarred Kevin James, and was a surprise hit in January 2009.
It earned $183 million at the global box office off a modest budget.
A sequel followed, albeit taking six years (!)
to make it to the screen.Paul Blart 2wasnt very good though.
Observe And Report, meanwhile, was a very dark beast, influenced byTaxi DriverandThe King Of Comedy.
The film didnt quite work, but its without doubt the one that stays in your head the longest.
It cost $18 million to make, took nearly $27 million, and a sequel didnt follow.
The best film:Observe And Report
The box office winner:Paul Blart
