The Minecraft Movie is bad. We all know that. I’m pretty sure even the studio and actors know that. It was never going to take itself that seriously, because, well… it’s Minecraft. It wasn’t going to boast cinematic potential, considering it’s a movie for kids based on a game with a large audience of children, so it kind of made sense to approach it in a lighter, jokier way.

However, the momentum of popularity kept up because of how much of a meme the film is. Sure, it’s a kids' film, but for the 20-somethings that grew up on Minecraft, the draw was the TikToks of the songs and terrible moments of the film making the rounds, and clips of crowds screaming at already familiar, cringe-worthy quotes from the trailers circulated as well. Apart from the messes that were being left for the movie theater staff to deal with, it was an equally lighter, jokier reception.

The harm now, however, is in the movie's second theatrical release. A Minecraft Movie: Block Party Edition.

Block Party Edition Is Lazy Greed, And Fans Will Eat It Up

We’ve seen theatrical re-releases of bad films before. Morbius is the obvious example, where the internet collectively convinced the studio to release the film a second time, only to let it fail again. However, A Minecraft Movie is now the second-highest-grossing video game movie of all time, and despite requests from theater workers and even the movie’s actors for fans to stop screaming and shouting during the film, the Block Party Edition is marketed as a “sing-along” and a “meme-along”.

Humanity has gone too far.

The release of this version has nothing to do with the fans or the memes. It’s got to do with greed. I don’t think anybody from either the consumer side or the production side was under the guise that this was going to be a good movie - as far as the marketing goes, it was a joke from the beginning - but it certainly is profitable. How can the studio make even more money from the bad, memed film? Release it again as a “meme-along”. Movie theatre workers everywhere are having nightmares about this phrase.

Why Would Studios Put Effort In When Memes Are This Successful?

What does this mean for future video game adaptations? It’s not entirely negative, of course, but I am concerned about some of the harm done when it comes to effort and what makes something financially worthwhile.

We’ll continue to have passion behind production, as evident with projects like HBO’s The Last of Us and Amazon’s Fallout, but when we’re seeing more and more video game adaptations, why would some studios put effort in when a “meme-along” will likely take it to the top of the box office? Sure, there have been plenty of straight-up ‘bad’ adaptations over the years - plenty more than there have been good - but when it feels like we’re starting to see some finally hit the mark more often, a film leaning into being ‘bad’ and skyrocketing because of that doesn’t feel like a good result.

Sure, I can see the approach working for some adaptations. It was probably for the best that a movie based on Minecraft didn’t try to take itself seriously, and I can see the upcoming adaptation of Helldivers benefiting from a similar approach, purely because of its already comical nature. But there’s a doorway open now - a doorway with the words “meme-along” slapped onto it.

When the first one to open that door became the second-highest-grossing video game movie of all time, it won’t be the last time the door is passed through.

Minecraft

Created by Markus Persson Video Game(s) Minecraft, Minecraft Dungeons, Minecraft Legends, Minecraft Caves and Cliffs Expand Collapse