Hollywood is afraid to produce true scifi. Instead we get little boys on broomsticks

Why has Hollywood stopped making serious scifi? It is all about risk and money. “Scifi is hard to fund — it’s never a slam-dunk. You have to put a certain level of budget into these films.”

If scifi has always been hit-or-miss with studios, investors these days seem less willing to gamble. Who knows if The Terminator could have gotten the green light in this environment? It was made in 1984 for $6M — the kind of midrange budget that rarely exists any more — and starred a little-known weight lifter with an unpronounceable name.

Star Wars, a monumental struggle for George Lucas to produce, would likely be a non-starter these days. Blade Runner? Perhaps too dark to get financing. And 2001: A Space Odyssey? With its cast of unknowns, enigmatic ending and (in inflation-adjusted figures) more than $50M budget, it just wouldn’t compute with today’s backers.

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