Paul Rudd Responded To Martin Scorsese's Comments That Marvel Is "Not Cinema"

Speaking to Howard Stern, Rudd said: "I think we're trying to deal with human issues and things that are relatable that are not just rides."

Despite being a central player in Hollywood right now, Marvel Studios has lately found itself on the receiving end of criticism by other people in the industry.

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Famed director Martin Scorsese was one of the most recent critics, saying that movies produced by the Disney-owned studio were "not cinema".

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"I don't see them. I tried, you know? But that's not cinema," Scorsese said in an interview with Empire. "Honestly, the closest I can think of them, as well-made as they are, with actors doing the best they can under the circumstances, is theme parks."

He later added: "It isn't the cinema of human beings trying to convey emotional, psychological experiences to another human being."

Jennifer Aniston also seemed to throw shade in Marvel's direction when she suggested its dominance was "diminishing" the quality of other cinema.

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Aniston said that a huge factor in her decision to make the switch back to TV recently was the "amount of quality" being produced by streaming services like Netflix and Apple TV+.

"I actually started to think, 'Wow, that's better than what I just did,'" Aniston said. "And then you’re seeing what's available out there and it's just diminishing and diminishing in terms of, it's big Marvel movies. Or things that I'm not just asked to do or really that interested in living in a green screen."

However, those associated with Marvel were quick to defend the studio from the criticism. Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn said he was "saddened" that Scorsese would judge the movies without having seen them.

James Gunn @JamesGunn

Martin Scorsese is one of my 5 favorite living filmmakers. I was outraged when people picketed The Last Temptation of Christ without having seen the film. I’m saddened that he’s now judging my films in the same way. https://t.co/hzHp8x4Aj8

04:30 PM - 04 Oct 2019

And, when asked about Scorsese's comments, Robert Downey Jr. joked: "I mean, it plays in theaters."

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"I appreciate his opinion because it's like anything," Downey Jr. told Howard Stern. "We need all of the different perspectives so we can come to centre and move on."

Now, Ant-Man's Paul Rudd has jumped into the conversation after being asked by Stern what he made of the criticism.

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"I'm not insulted by anybody saying anything, really," Rudd said. When asked if he disagreed and thought Marvel counted as cinema, he added: "I think it is."

"Ultimately, you really care about relationships with people. It isn't all just special effects–driven," Rudd continued. "You wanna see people and human behaviour and talking to each other."

SiriusXM

Clearly disagreeing with Scorsese's comments about Marvel movies not "trying to convey emotional, psychological experiences" between humans, Rudd stated that the people involved "care about the characters".

Marvel

"In Ant-Man, I have a whole relationship with my daughter and the human struggles of being a superhero," he said. Appearing to respond to Scorsese's comment about theme parks, he continued: "I think we're trying to deal with human issues and things that are relatable that are not just rides."

As well as this, Rudd said that it came down to things changing in the industry, noting that studios "are not making middle-budgeted films as much".

SiriusXM

He said: "They're not making middle-budgeted films as much. And that's why so many of those writers are now going to television."

You can watch Paul Rudd's interview with Howard Stern here.