Ethan Hawke Says Superhero Films Can Never Be 'Great' Like A Non-Superhero Movie

Actor Ethan Hawke grumbles over the notion that superhero movies could ever be considered “great” in the way other films are lauded and revered.

“They tell us ‘Logan’ is a great movie,” Hawke said in an interview with The Film Stage,  “Well, it’s a great superhero movie. It still involves people in tights with metal coming out of their hands.”

“It’s not Bresson. It’s not Bergman,” he added, referring to the legendary filmmakers Robert Bresson and Ingmar Bergman.

Hawke, the star of “Valerian And The City Of A Thousand Planets,” “White Fang” and “Sinister 2,” said big studios label their superhero films as “great” simply to make more money on them. 

“I went to see ‘Logan’ because everyone was like, ‘This is a great movie’ and I was like, ‘Really? No, this is a fine superhero movie,’” he said.

Superhero films, of course, have been making boatloads of money in recent years a fleet of boats, in fact. Marvel films alone in the last 10 years have globally grossed over $17 billion at box offices . But with that money has also come critical acclaim in many cases. Seven Marvel films currently rate at 90 percent or higher among critics on the Rotten Tomatoes site.

It’s also worth noting that 2008′s “The Dark Knight” is considered by many critics as not only the greatest superhero movie  of all time, but also a film that carved out a place for the superhero genre alongside “normal” films.

And if you don’t think “The Incredibles” is simply a great film... well, then we probably won’t agree on anything.