Prince of Persia – The Lion of Central Casting

Disney's Prince of Persia was a bold endeavor. With a $185 million price tag, it shattered the ceiling for video game adaptation budgets. The House of Mouse made a bet, and it was a big one.

Unfortunately, it was also a bad one. The Prince of Persia franchise is popular, but general audiences have rarely flocked to movies based on games. Thus, despite it being the most successful of the bunch—grossing $336.4 million worldwide—its receipts weren't enough to warrant a sequel.

Poor reviews, 37% on Rotten Tomatoes, coupled with a soft domestic opening, under $91 million, doomed its franchise prospects.

What it's really remembered for, though, is its bizarre decision to cast Jake Gyllenhaal as the titular Prince of Persia. In fact, the majority of the major players are white, rendering this just another tone deaf Hollywood endeavor.

Now, sit back, uncork a Pumpkin Ale, and hop on an ostrich! I, the Thunderous Wizard (@WriterTLK), Capt. Cash, and Chumpzilla are rewinding time to nudge the casting director for this film in a more appropriate direction.

This Week’s Segments:

• Introduction/Plot Breakdown – Defy the Future. (00:00)
• Lingering Questions – After a word from our brothers in beer at Hop Nation USA, we discuss what wrong with this movie—whitewashing, of course. (36:43)
• The "Sands of Time" Trivia Challenge – The Double Turn Podcast does some parkour to warm up, and then Chumpzilla challenges the field to trivia about the movie. (51:50)
• Recommendations – We offer our picks for the week and next up: We continue "Hops and Star Powered Flops" with 47 Ronin. (59:36)

And, as always, hit us up on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram to check out all the interesting factoids—the odd demand for a sequel and more—from this week’s episode!

You can find this episode of Hops and Box Office Flops on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Podbean, Spotify, Acast, TuneIn, iHeartRadio, Vurbl, Amazon Music and more!