Willem Dafoe Says People Would Rather Watch ‘Something Stupid’ Than Challenging Films

Four-time Oscar nominee Willem Dafoe expressed his opinion on streaming platforms and its impact on viewers refraining from watching films at the cinemas. 

Dafoe expressed his opinion that people would rather watch movies at home, rather than viewing them in theaters, “which is tragic”, Dafoe tells The Guardian, “because the kind of attention that people give at home isn’t the same. More difficult movies, more challenging movies can not do as well, when you don’t have an audience that’s really paying attention.” He goes on to say that people would rather watch “something stupid” instead of films with substance. 

Dafoe has a reputation for working with scores of directors and starring in challenging roles such as Robert Eggers’ The Northman and The Lighthouse, and his most recent performance in Yorgos Lanthimos’ Poor Things. The actor doesn’t refrain from admitting he’s “been very fortunate,” when reminiscing his past works including his role as Green Goblin from 2002’s blockbuster Spider-Man. “They aren’t making movies the same way they used to,” Dafoe continues. He adds, “Streaming, they’re becoming like a monopoly, they have the means of production and distribution. And so it’s very complicated.”

It’s not just streaming platforms that Dafoe blames. He admits studios and filmmakers have also changed over the years. “There aren’t ballsy producers like there used to be. There are some savvy ones, but you don’t have the same kind of characters that you used to have, that would sell their house to make a movie, and do crazy things to get it done.”

The veteran actor was recently honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Dafoe has projects along the way such as Tim Burton’s sequel Beetlejuice 2 and will return his collaboration with Robert Eggers in the vampire remake Nosferatu.