What went wrong with Waterworld, Kevin Costner’s big-budget flop, released 30 years ago?
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.
So risky, in fact, that Jaws director Steven Spielberg urged caution. As Rader recalled: “Spielberg was unequivocal: ‘Do not shoot on water!’”
In the year 2500, with most of Earth flooded, The Mariner (Costner) sails the world in a souped-up trimaran, trading dirt with fellow survivors and drinking his own urine.