Dave Bautista, far left, Morena Baccarin, and acob Batalon in a scene from Prime Video film Wrecking Crew.Jason Laciste/Amazon Prime
Next week, Prime Video will release a new film starring two household-name action stars (Jason Momoa and David Bautista), directed by a filmmaker who previously helmed a gigantic comic-book movie for DC Studios (Angel Manuel Soto) and, to judge by the number of explosions and car crashes and gun fights in its trailer, made with a budget to rival the GDP of a small island nation. I would tell you the movieโs title, but there is ultimately little point in doing so โ by this time next month, the film (all right fine, itโs called The Wrecking Crew) will have very likely disappeared into Prime Videoโs algorithmic vortex, never to be seen or heard from again.
This isnโt an isolated incident. Upon learning of the existence of this new Momoa/Bautista joint โ an act of discovery only afforded to me by the nature of my job, part of which is to track every single new release โ I couldnโt help but start to recall countless other ostensibly high-profile streamer movies that have been instantly vapourized from the public consciousness.
Eddie Murphy and Pete Davidson in Prime Video action-comedy The Pickup.Amazon Prime
For instance, does anyone out there know that Eddie Murphy starred in a new action-comedy last summer called The Pickup? That John Cena and Idris Elba played world leaders forced to run for their lives in a buddy flick called Heads of State? Or that Mark Wahlberg headlined a new adaptation of author Donald E. Westlakeโs beloved Parker series, directed by Hollywoodโs go-to action-comedy guru Shane Black? What about Fountain of Youth, a globe-trotting adventure starring John Krasinski and Natalie Portman? Or Swiped, which stars Lily James in a Social Network-like tech-world thriller dramatizing the rise of the dating app Bumble?