Andrew Garfield’s' The Uprising' Sparks Controversy Over Robin Hood Subtitle
Focus removes the subtitle and goes back to using only "The Uprising" in the film’s marketing campaign
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Image credits: The Uprising/Publicity
The Uprising, Andrew Garfield's new film, has become the center of controversy because of its marketing. The production was even presented as The Uprising: The Rise of Robin Hood, putting the famous outlaw in the subtitle.
The campaign also started using the phrase “Witness the Rise of Robin Hood” and showed Garfield dressed as the hero—wearing a dark green hood and carrying a bow and arrow. Now, Focus Features has backed off and removed Robin Hood from the title, promoting the film simply as The Uprising. The reference to the character now appears only secondarily in the promotional material.
The change drew attention because the film had been presented as a historical epic about the Peasants' Revolt of 1381 in England. Garfield plays the character known as Ploughman, while Cosmo Jarvis portrays Wat Tyler, the historical leader of the rebellion against King Richard II.
Although the production takes place during events that helped inspire the Robin Hood legend, The Uprising is not officially being presented as an adaptation of the outlaw's story. Focus Features itself keeps the title The Uprising on its website and describes the plot as a story based on the 1381 revolt.
The situation became even more curious because Entertainment Film Distributors, which is handling the U.K. release, told Metro that the movie is not a Robin Hood film. According to the company, any marketing materials published in other countries making that association were neither issued nor approved by it.
The strategy divided audiences on social media. Viewers questioned the earlier decision to link a politically charged film, marked by class struggle, to a figure from English folklore. They argued that it was an unnecessary marketing move.
The connection between the two themes, however, is not entirely illogical. Although the Robin Hood legend is usually set decades before the 1381 revolt, the story of the peasant movement is considered one of the influences that inspired later versions of the legend.
Directed by Paul Greengrass, the film opens in U.S. theaters on September 10.
