Kevin Costner spoke about the cancellation of his second film, “Horizon,” in theaters on Saturday during a Venice Film Festival press conference, saying it was “probably a reaction” to the first film's poor box office performance.
“It wasn't a smash hit,” Costner said of the first film. “I've made a lot of movies that way, which have stood the test of time.”
He added that releasing “Chapter Two” six weeks after “Chapter One” was “a studio decision,” and “it became a studio decision not to release it.” However, Costner insisted that everything went well because he was able to screen “Horizon 2” in Venice.
“For me, it was part of my plan, which was that I always wanted to release films five or six months apart. This would have allowed me to come to Venice,” he said. “I would never have come to Venice, because they wouldn’t show the film here if it had already been released.”
He thanked Venice Film Festival artistic director Alberto Barbera for being “the biggest reason this happened”.
“Alberto gave me my dream and didn't let it be crushed,” he said, adding: “Damn, the gun keeps saving me!”
Horizon 2 was a last-minute addition to the Venice program, with news on July 31 that it would premiere out of competition on the final day of the festival. Earlier that month, the U.S. release of Chapter 2 was canceled from its Aug. 16 premiere after the first installment in the franchise, which had a budget of around $100 million, grossed just $11 million on its opening weekend.
However, these setbacks only “increased his desire” to continue what he intends to be a four-part series.
“Sometimes, when things don’t come easy to us, we want to walk away. But there’s something inside of me that makes me want to when things don’t go well,” Costner said. “It’s a story, it’s a piece of entertainment that I think can stand the test of time. When I feel rejected, unlike anyone else, when I open my eyes and see my disappointment, my desire grows.”
Asked if Horizon had a lesson for the current state of America as the presidential election approaches, Costner said, “It's not a political message to anyone.”
“The Horizon is not a message to my country, it is a reminder to my country of how difficult the journey people have been on,” he added.
Costner returns to direct and star in Chapter Two, with the returning cast of Sienna Miller, Sam Worthington, Jena Malone and Danny Huston. The film continues the events of Chapter One of the saga, which is described as a “multifaceted portrayal of the expansion of the Civil War and the settlement of the American West.” In addition to directing and starring, Costner co-wrote with John Baird (The Explorers Guild) and produced through his Territory Pictures company.
Horizon is set to be a four-part series, meaning there are two more films in development. Principal photography on Chapter 3 began in May and is expected to wrap next year.
At the end of the press conference, Costner said that all of the Horizon films had been scripted, and called Chapter Three “devastating.”
“You get to know all these people, and life keeps throwing them around and you see it,” he said.
On making the third film, Costner said he had to “hurry up and not let the rock fall down, I had to put my hand on it again and start pushing it up.”
However, the path ahead for “Horizon” still seems uncertain. “I don’t know how I’m going to be able to make ‘Three’ right now, but I’m going to be able to do it,” he said.
