After Sony Pictures decided not to move forward with Silver & Black, Gina Prince-Bythewood moved on to tackle The Old Guard for Netflix, and she credits the scrapped Marvel project for her getting the chance to tackle another comic book adaptation. After all, just being attached to the high-profile Spider-Man spinoff was enough to put her on the radar of fans and studio bosses alike!
"I wanted to go edgier than some of the Marvel films," she told Indie Wire, reflecting on the project. "It was a question of how far could I push it in that Marvel universe."
As for the doors that opened, the filmmaker adds: "'Silver & Black' put me in the conversation. I was one of those couple of women people go to for these big films. I knew what kind of movies Skydance make. It was exhilarating and nerve-racking. I knew I loved this project, partly because I could do everything I wanted to do from the other film: an edgy superhero film with two women."
The site goes on to note that Prince-Bythewood had developed the looks for costumes and sets, scouted locations, storyboarded action scenes, and even worked with the VFX team before Sony changed course.
"Everything happens for a reason," she notes. "I learned so much in that year and half. All the stuff I was learning about doing a film of that scale I could transfer over to ‘The Old Guard.’ So it didn’t feel like a gigantic leap."
Things certainly worked out well for the director, though it is a shame we didn't get to see what she had planned for Silver Sable and Black Cat, as a recent plot leak definitely pointed to it being a fun ride.
Did you check out The Old Guard on Netflix this past weekend?