All posts by World War Joe

Movies and Shows

Madame Web Had ZERO Post-Credits & ZERO Connections — What the Hell Was Sony Thinking?

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Look, it was obvious from the jump that Madame Web was going to bomb at the box office. But the real question that’s been eating at me is: what did Sony actually think was going to happen with this movie?

Zero post-credit scenes. Zero connections to anything else in the Spider-Man universe. They just dropped a completely standalone film with no plans for the future. And I’m sitting here like… why?

I talked about this same issue in an earlier video when I was breaking down the Echo and Agatha shows coming to Disney+. I asked: what if Echo turned out to be the greatest thing Disney+ has ever made? 50 million new subscribers, billions of views, the show is everywhere. Would they suddenly scrap all their plans and build the entire future around Echo? Would she be leading the Avengers? Probably not — because the show was built as a one-and-done. Same with Agatha. It’s a prequel. Cool. But then what? Are we ever seeing Agatha again in a meaningful way? Is her story getting resolved? Or is this just another expensive side project that goes nowhere?

That’s exactly what they did with Madame Web.

In the ’90s cartoon, Madame Web was tied directly into Spider-Man’s world. She was part of his storyline, helping him, guiding him — she actually mattered. In this movie? Nothing. She’s not in Tom Holland’s universe. She’s not in Andrew Garfield’s. She’s not in Tobey Maguire’s. Sony made a full theatrical movie about a major Spider-Man character… and then just left her floating in her own little bubble.

You can’t do that with franchises this big.

Look at what DC is doing right now. The Batman comes out, it’s a hit, and boom — they immediately greenlight The Penguin series. That show is clearly setting up bigger things, and we all know Robert Pattinson’s Batman is coming back to collide with Colin Farrell’s Penguin eventually. That’s how you do spin-offs. You plant seeds. You build toward something.

Madame Web? No seeds. No post-credits stinger like Ant-Man and the Wasp that basically saved the entire movie by teasing Endgame. This film was 100% disposable. You walk out and there’s literally nothing you can point to and say, “Okay, it was bad… but at least it set up X.” It didn’t flesh out the Sony Spider-Man Universe. It didn’t lead into Venom. It didn’t lead into anything. So what was the point?

That’s what I want to know from you guys in the comments:

•  What do you think the best-case scenario for this movie actually was?

•  If Sony had to make a Madame Web movie, which Spider-Man universe should she have been tied to — Tobey, Andrew, or Tom Holland’s?

•  And most importantly… why do studios keep wasting hundreds of millions of dollars on these half-baked, standalone “event” movies that go absolutely nowhere?

Because until they figure this out, we’re just gonna keep getting more Morbius-level disasters.

Let me know what you think down below. Smash that like button if you’re tired of these pointless cash-grabs too, and I’ll see you in the next one.

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Apple’s $250 Million Pit Stop: The F1 Movie That Forgot the Finish Line

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When a studio sets out to make a movie, the logic should be simple: spend modestly, earn big. But Apple’s latest cinematic detour with F1—a racing drama starring Brad Pitt—is a reminder that Hollywood still hasn’t mastered that math.

F1 has now become the highest-grossing original film of the year… with a box office haul of just $410 million. That might sound like a win until you realize the budget was reportedly $250 million, with some estimates ballooning closer to $300 million—and that’s before adding “significant marketing costs.” What marketing, exactly? The speaker hasn’t seen a single trailer, ad, or even whisper of the film’s existence in mainstream promo channels.

Let’s break this down. It’s a racing movie. Not Avatar. Not a CGI-heavy space opera. A film that, in theory, shouldn’t need hundreds of millions in digital effects. Yet here we are.

Brad Pitt remains a respectable name in film, but is he still a box office draw worth that kind of paycheck? The speaker raises the very real question: Could this movie have been made for hundreds of millions less without him? Probably.

And this isn’t an isolated incident. The pattern continues with big studio releases that “make” hundreds of millions and still somehow lose money. Quantum Mania, The Marvels, Thunderbolts—all examples of massive box office totals paired with even more massive losses.

Apple, flush with iPhone profits, seems to be treating its streaming service like a tax write-off. Movies like Napoleon appeared in theaters for a blink before heading to streaming, making one wonder: Why would anyone pay to see these in theaters if they’ll be online in a week?

Bottom line? F1 is the most profitable original movie of the year. And still, it’s a disaster. The math doesn’t add up—but then again, neither does most budgets today. 

World War Joe 

Movies and Shows

Netflix’s Assassin’s Creed: A Stealth Game Franchise That Can’t Escape Its Own Mistakes

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Netflix is officially moving forward with a live-action Assassin’s Creed series—and somehow, they’ve learned absolutely nothing.

Remember the 2016 movie with Michael Fassbender? No? Exactly. Instead of delivering the assassin-centered story fans craved, we got a convoluted mess obsessed with the Animus and the “Apple of Eden.” That same misguided philosophy is likely creeping into this series, too—along with what seems to be a strategy focused more on headlines than quality storytelling.

I imagine the show would be more interested in scoring diversity points than in actually crafting a good narrative. There’s a growing trend where projects brag about their inclusive casting, then weaponize backlash to deflect from the real problem: the content just isn’t good.

You can already predict the PR cycle: puff pieces praising the vision, accusing audiences of bigotry for not tuning in, followed by a quiet flop and no season two.

Ubisoft, once a juggernaut of banger releases, now clings to fading relevance while the Assassin’s Creed games drift further from what made them popular in the first place—stealth, intrigue, and historical immersion. The newest games feel like off-brand Ghost of Tsushima clone, and now the Netflix series might follow suit. A better idea? Start small. Build interest with compelling side characters or spinoff content—then develop from there. But instead, it looks like they’re chasing social media impressions and bracing for bankruptcy.

At this point, fans can only hope for a miracle—or at least for Netflix to step aside and let Assassin’s Creed quietly vanish into the shadows where it belongs.

World War Joe

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Jake Paul in Creed 4?

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Jake Paul in Creed 4? Please No.

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Hollywood has a bad habit of chasing trends without understanding what actually makes something work. Case in point: the swirling rumor that Jake Paul might appear in Creed 4. Whether he’ll show up as a villain, a cameo, or a full-on opponent for Adonis Creed hasn’t been confirmed—but even as a whisper, it’s a bad idea.

Let’s break this down.

Jake Paul is a former Disney Channel star who pivoted to boxing—not through traditional routes, but by handpicking opponents like retired UFC fighters, ex-NBA players, and past-their-prime boxers. The man’s entire boxing career has been built more on spectacle than sport. And that’s not even touching the allegations that some of his fights are rigged, with slow-motion footage suggesting clear pre-arranged signals before knockouts.

So why inject that kind of circus energy into a franchise that, up to this point, has been about legacy, struggle, and legitimate athletic drama? The Creed series built itself as a worthy continuation of the Rocky saga—stories rooted in grit, growth, and real emotion. Jake Paul undermines that.

Some might argue it’s just a cameo. A blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment. But even then—why? What’s the point of putting a divisive internet personality in a franchise built on authenticity? It doesn’t boost credibility. It doesn’t honor the sport. It doesn’t add anything, except maybe headlines from the kind of sites that confuse buzz for quality.

Let’s hope this stays a rumor. Because if Creed 4 wants to keep swinging with heart, it shouldn’t be shadowboxing with YouTube gimmicks.

World War Joe

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Spiderman 3 Will Flop

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Ahsoka Season 2: Leia to the Rescue? Or Just Another Star Wars Rehash?

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On this episode of “Why Weren’t You in Season One?” I tackle the latest from Screen Rant, who boldly declare that Ahsoka Season 2 “must finally make one heartbreaking recast.” And by heartbreaking, they mean recasting Princess Leia—again. But… didn’t that already happen?

Let’s rewind a bit. Remember Rogue One? That final scene with Leia that led right into A New Hope? Yeah, that wasn’t actually Carrie Fisher. It was CGI. They even brought Grand Moff Tarkin back from the dead using digital sorcery—and the world kept turning. So why all the hand-wringing now?

The truth is, Ahsoka Season 1 already felt like it was missing half the galaxy. Where were Luke, Han, Leia? If we’re pretending Admiral Thrawn is the next Thanos-level threat, where were the actual big players? When Ewan McGregor’s wife asked for backup, the New Republic practically laughed in her face. Wouldn’t that have been the perfect time for Princess Leia to show up and lend some real weight to the mission? You know—troops, authority, relevance?

But no. Instead, we got a ragtag team trying to save the galaxy while the rest of the characters seemingly just scrolled past the group chat.

Now, Ahsoka Season 2 is somehow greenlit. Yes, one of the lowest-rated shows on Disney+—a series that most fans, especially the ones who care about Star Wars lore, universally panned—is getting a second season. It’s a move that feels less like a creative decision and more like a stubborn refusal to read the room.

And here’s the kicker: Screen Rant’s article argues that Leia “needs to be shown as the hero Carrie Fisher should have gotten to be.” That sentence alone is confusing enough, but the irony is worse. This same outlet has already published multiple articles claiming Leia was already the real hero of Star Wars. One in 2021: “10 Reasons Leia Was the Original Trilogy’s Real Hero.” Another in 2024: “Leia Was the Real New Hope in the Original Trilogy.”

So which is it? Leia was already the real MVP… or we need to force her into Ahsoka Season 2 to prove it all over again?

Disney seems dead set on rewriting the mythos, show by show. And now, it looks like Ahsoka Season 2 is shaping up to be less about Ahsoka and more about Leia 2.0—probably a CG version, because let’s be real, they’re not going to recast her. Much like Luke in The Mandalorian, we’ll likely get a face-mapped digital Leia, slapped onto a body double and run through some AI filters. It’s not about the story anymore—it’s about keeping IPs on life support with nostalgia cameos and legacy-brand cameos.

At this point, does it even matter when the show comes out? Will anyone notice? Season 1 already came and went with all the fanfare of a whisper. So what’s Season 2 supposed to fix?

Let me know what you think. Should Leia have been in Season 1? Will Season 2 turn the ship around? Or are we just watching Disney dig a deeper hole in a galaxy far, far away?

Movies and Shows, Podcast

Daredevil Born Again: A Reality Check for Disney+

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Daredevil Born Again was supposed to be the show that brought back the Netflix-era magic of Marvel’s most beloved street-level hero. But now? It’s struggling to even match Agatha All Along in viewership numbers.

Disney+ was once an unstoppable force, delivering hit after hit, but those days are gone. Shows like Loki, WandaVision, and Falcon and the Winter Soldier had intrigue, but Daredevil had something more—an existing, passionate fanbase. After all, the Netflix Daredevil series is widely considered one of the best superhero shows ever made.

Yet, Daredevil Born Again premiered with only 7.5 million views in its first five days, compared to Agatha All Along’s 9.3 million and Loki Season 2’s 10.9 million. That’s an embarrassingly low number for a franchise that once dominated. Even The Acolyte, which Disney immediately canceled, had better numbers.

So, what went wrong?

Disney promised a fresh start, a return to form after scrapping their initial episodes and hiring new talent. Yet, signs of forced messaging and political themes crept back in. The leaked plot about corrupt cops tattooing The Punisher’s symbol had already turned fans off before release. And when the actual show confirmed those fears, many fans checked out.

The biggest issue? Fans simply don’t care anymore. After years of letdowns, Disney burned through goodwill, and now even a Daredevil revival can’t reignite interest.

Movies and Shows

One of the Greatest Mysteries of Our Time: Vulture in Morbius

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Michael Keaton recently admitted that even he doesn’t understand his cameo as Vulture in Morbius. And honestly, who does? This post-credits scene is one of the most confusing in cinematic history.

Let’s break it down:

  • In Spider-Man: No Way Home, villains who knew Peter Parker’s identity were transported back to their original universes.
  • But for some reason, Vulture—a villain from Tom Holland’s universe—was transported into the Morbius universe instead.
  • Somehow, he also got his high-tech flight suit back… even though it was created using alien tech from The Avengers battle in New York.
  • And despite all this, Vulture immediately decides that Spider-Man is responsible for his situation and randomly seeks out Morbius, even though Morbius was just a doctor-turned-vampire with no major presence in the city.

None of this makes sense.

Michael Keaton himself admitted he had “no idea” what was happening, and that Sony just pitched him a vague idea, probably alongside a big paycheck. Sony clearly wanted to set up a Sinister Six team-up, but they had no plan. Now, years later, there’s still no follow-up, leaving this scene as nothing more than a bizarre cliffhanger with no resolution.

Was Morbius hinting at something bigger? Or was this just another example of Sony scrambling to connect a universe that doesn’t actually fit together?

Videogame Reviews, Videogames

Why Spider-Man 3 Will Flop

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Predicting the future of video games can be tricky, but based on recent trends, Spider-Man 3 is headed for trouble. Spider-Man 2 rode the success of its predecessor, yet it introduced elements that divided players. While the first game delivered strong combat, a gripping storyline, and stayed clear of controversy, its sequels progressively leaned into social messaging.

The Miles Morales spin-off was generally well-received, but Spider-Man 2 brought in what some consider unnecessary political symbolism, self-insert characters, and forced inclusivity. Interestingly, the Middle Eastern version of the game omitted these elements, sparking debates on whether such changes impact sales.

Now, with Spider-Man 3 placing Miles as the sole protagonist, the game’s success will no longer be buoyed by Peter Parker’s popularity or pre-order momentum. If trends continue, pre-order numbers will decline, and defenders of the game will be quick to attribute criticism to race rather than consumer disinterest. Just like The Marvels, expect a campaign to shield it from failure.

Will Spider-Man 3 defy expectations, or will it crumble under its own weight? Time will tell.