Michael Bay was in a slight stump when he released the 2005 sci-fi action movie The Island. Before this, he had released two films in his Bad Boys buddy cop franchise, a disaster movie in Armageddon, an action thriller in The Rock, and his war epic Pearl Harbor. However, when looking back at his Hollywood career, most fans could recite all those movies and not remember The Island. This film had a hugely talented cast but has become mostly forgotten over the 20 years since its release.

Before The Island, Michael Bay had directed different types of movies, albeit all in the action genre. However, Pear Harbor and The Island were a one-two punch that had some questioning Bay’s talents as a director. Both movies were critical failures, with Pearl Harbor sitting at 24% on Rotten Tomatoes and The Island slightly higher at 39%. However, after The Island flopped, Bay stopped experimenting and directed three straight Transformers movies before trying someone original again. So, what happened to Bay’s star-studded, highly original science fiction movie?

Michael Bay’s The Island Is Largely Forgotten, But Had A Seriously Impressive Cast

The Island’s Cast Was Full Of Big Names

Michael Bay has never struggled to find big-name actors to star in his movies. His Bad Boys franchise had Will Smith and Martin Lawrence in the lead, Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage starred in The Rock, and Pearl Harbor was stacked with talent, all led by Josh Hartnett and Ben Affleck. While those actors remain remembered for their roles in Bay’s movies, even his biggest stars’ fans barely remember their appearance in The Island. ​​​​

By 2005, Ewan McGregor was a cult favorite for movies like Trainspotting and a mainstream star thanks to his role as Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars prequels. Scarlett Johansson already gained award recognition for movies like Ghost World and Lost in Translation. Djimon Hounsou, Sean Bean, Michael Clarke Duncan, Steve Buscemi, and Shawnee Smith joined them to offer a mᴀssive cast of big-name stars, even for 2005. It was shocking the film didn’t find a bigger audience.

Why The Island Wasn’t More Successful

Critics Blasted The Movie For Style Over Substance

Several things were holding down The Island when it hit theaters. For one thing, there was still a backlash from Pearl Harbor. After making three crowd-pleasing movies, Bad Boys, The Rock, and Armageddon, Bay tried something serious with Pearl Harbor. However, his over-the-top sensibilities made the bombing and explosions more memorable than the actual characters, which is a ᴅᴇᴀᴅly mistake in a war movie about a real-life American tragedy. It stalled Bay’s momentum as well as that of lead actor Ben Affleck.

That led to Bad Boys II, which received terrible critical reviews, although it has since received a more positive reappraisal from action movie fans. However, The Island was something different. It didn’t fit what fans wanted to see from Michael Bay, a return to the style that won audiences over in the 1990s. The Rotten Tomatoes critics’ consensus says it all and reveals it failed for the same reasons as Pearl Harbor:

“A clone of THX 1183, Coma, and Logan’s Run, The Island is another loud and bombastic Michael Bay movie where explosions and chases matter more than characters, dialogue, or plot.”

Based on audience disappointment after Pearl Harbor and the critics all turning on Michael Bay, dishing out nothing but negative reviews, The Island never had a chance. Even the audience members who reviewed it complained about aspects that held the film back, including the idea that the story’s rules made little sense and the action scenes overwhelmed the story beats. With a $120 million budget, it only made $35 million domestically and $163 million worldwide (via The Numbers).

Michael Bay’s The Island Isn’t A Classic By Any Means, But It’s Still Underrated

The Island Has Big Ideas Behind Its Explosions & Action Scenes

The Island is a science fiction story with a great premise, but it often squanders it with giant action set pieces. The film is a dystopian thriller with Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson starring as clones Lincoln Six Echo and Jordan Two Delta, who learn that their existence is only to allow organ harvesting for the humans they were cloned from. When they learn this, they want to escape into the real world, but the company that made them has other plans.

While it is true that Michael Bay often delivers style over substance, that is what his fans have come to expect, and his actors know this before coming into his projects. Despite this, McGregor, Johansson, and the rest of the fantastic cast do what they can to give their characters motivations and keep them sympathetic, even when involved in car chases and explosive action sequences. With ideas of cloning, ethics, and idenтιтy, great themes exist under The Island’s hood, and the movie deserves a second look.