Madonna's first feature-length film directed by her husband Guy Ritchie, Swept Away, has been swept under the carpet by its distributors. After failing to draw the crowds at the US multiplexes the movie will not be screened at cinemas in the UK and will now go straight to video.
"Following the disappointing box office results in the US, Guy Ritchie's Swept Away will not be theatrically released in the UK," said a spokesperson for Columbia Tristar. The film, which is a remake of a 1974 Italian movie of the same name, sees Madonna cast as a spoilt socialite who finds herself marooned on an island with a rough sailor who beats her into submission. Love then blossoms.
The film sunk at the box office grossing just £250,000 over the weekend of its US release. It will be a major setback for Guy Ritchie whose low-budget Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels made £36 million. Madonna's big screen career has so far been less of a success, and while Evita was well-received, uninspiring fare such as Shanghai Surprise – made with her first husband Sean Penn – and Who's That Girl were flops.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
