Mother!: Paramount defends film following dreadful audience rating score

'We don’t want all movies to be safe - and it’s okay if some people don’t like it'

Paramount Pictures has officially defended controversial new film mother! amid negative audience reaction and poor box office sales.

The critically-divisive film, starring Jennifer Lawrence and directed by Black Swan filmmaker Darren Aronofsky, has been cooking up a storm since its release being handed a rare Cinemascore F grade from movie-goers and making only $13 million internationally from a budget of approximately $30 million.

Megan Colligan, worldwide president of marketing and distribution for Paramount, has released a statement telling film fans they should check out the “audacious and brave” feature for themselves before casting judgement - and lashed out at streaming service Netflix in the process.

Colligan said:

“This movie is very audacious and brave. You are talking about a director at the top of his game, and an actress at the top her game. They made a movie that was intended to be bold. Everyone wants original filmmaking, and everyone celebrates Netflix when they tell a story no one else wants to tell. This is our version. We don’t want all movies to be safe. And it’s okay if some people don’t like it.”

Previous films to have received the dreaded F grade from audiences include The Box, from Donnie Darko director Richard Kelly, and Steven Soderbergh's Solaris remake.

While Paramount has a point - why shouldn't bold films be given the light of day? - the studio certainly guilty of fanning the arthouse film out wider than usual due to the star appeal of lead actor Lawrence. Many people's assumptions that mother! is a conventional horror were incorrect, something that has perhaps pushing audiences to new Stephen King adaptation It which is making box office history.

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