Kevin Costner’s unappealing anti-hero and bad writing were only some of the problems this expensive box-office failure had to contend with
This is the latest instalment in our From the Vault feature series, in which we reflect on culturally significant movies celebrating notable anniversaries.
It was supposed to be a modest B-movie. The elevator pitch: “Mad Max – on water”. But somewhere along the line, Waterworld – which turns 30 this month – morphed into the most expensive blockbuster of its era, and one of Hollywood’s most legendary flops.
Fresh from the 1991 smash hit Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, star Kevin Costner and director Kevin Reynolds had the world at their feet. But the project they chose next, a 1980s script by Peter Rader, rewritten by David Twohy (The Fugitive), was much riskier.
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