Dwayne Johnson & Karl Urban Starred In One Of The Worst Video Game Movies Ever

“Doom” was released when 1993 was coming to a close, a time that had already witnessed the rise of the first-person shooter (FPS) genre. While the FPS craze had just begun, “Doom” took it to the next level by embracing a snappy multiplayer-style gameplay with little to no focus on the game’s story. Multiplayer or co-op gaming might not be a novel concept today, but back then, the opportunity for gamers to gather and compete with each other during LAN parties helped foster a robust community like no other. At the forefront of these get-togethers and intense campaigns was “Doom,” which changed the face of FPS gaming and inspired countless titles that would mimic its core ethos down the line.

It is no surprise that the overwhelming popularity of “Doom” led to the creation of a longstanding franchise (which includes titles like 2020’s “Doom Eternal,” meant to be a sequel to 2016’s “Doom” reboot). Most of these titles share a core premise: an unnamed space marine known as “Doomguy” faces off against demons and other hellish creatures in a bloody, violent display of rage and machismo. The goal is to map out a base and move forward while destroying enemies, solving puzzles, and navigating a maze from time to time. The glaring lack of storytelling is a deliberate choice here. After all, why would anyone care about a story when they can keep shooting demons while industrial metal blares in the backdrop?

Andrzej Bartkowiak’s 2005 sci-fi action flick “Doom” makes the fatal error of overlooking this crucial aspect about the video game franchise it is loosely based on. Before its release (and eventual box office bombing), “Doom” was poised to break the video game adaptation curse. Moreover, Karl Urban and Dwayne Johnson had teamed up to play Doomguy and Sgt. Asher Mahonin respectively, while Rosamund Pike embodied Dr. Samantha Grimm. Let us dissect what went so wrong with the release of “Doom” 20 years ago.

“Doom” came out in 2005, and was yet to witness the eponymous video game franchise’s shift to a more story-focused shooting spectacle, like in the 2016 reboot and “Doom Eternal.” This would mean that a conscious decision was made to overlook the source material’s sparse narrative and craft one that would complement the film’s action-heavy search-and-destroy premise. This would have worked if “Doom” was crafted as per the promising seed ideas that echoed films like “Commando” or “Total Recall,” but a string of behind-the-scenes factors limited the adaptation’s potential from the get-go. Apart from being critically panned, “Doom” grossed a mere $58.7 million worldwide against a $70 million budget. Yeah, that is pretty abysmal.

As for the casting, Johnson was initially slated to play John Grimm A.K.A. Doomguy, but he was more drawn to the role of the somber military Seargent who embodied the darker aspects of humanity in this fictional world. Urban, who was fresh off playing Éomer in “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, ended up slipping into the shoes of the heroic protagonist. In hindsight, this feels like a misstep, as Johnson would have fared better as the unblemished hero fighting for a cause, while Urban would have excelled in a role that demands moral complexity. The crux of the issue here, however, is the bland and flimsy script, which reflects no genuine interest in the “Doom” franchise save for a handful of cursory references played off as a reverent homage.

While Rosamund Pike might insist that the failure of “Doom” can be partially attributed to her, this couldn’t be further from the truth. The production process for the film was truly doomed (no pun intended) from the beginning, and too many people who didn’t care about the games ended up being involved with the project. There’s also a prevailing misconception surrounding what the “Doom” games are about: yes, they are shoot-to-kill extravaganzas, but this aspect would fall flat without its strong counterculture ethos. “Doom” is about grotesque fantasy that comes alive on a visceral, visual level, where the demons are experiments gone wrong, reflecting mankind’s moral failures. Even in the absence of a traditional narrative, the world of “Doom” is as exciting, bloody, and malevolent as a fully fleshed-out one. One simply has to dig deeper.