Director Venkat Prabhu has a theory for why his latest Vijay-starrer, The Greatest of All Time (The GOAT) did not work in Telugu and Hindi. Talking to fans on X (formerly Twitter) Spaces, the director used his trademark wit to conclude that his favourite Indian Premiere League (IPL) team could’ve been the reason.

‘We are all CSK fans’

The GOAT’s much-talked-about climax occurs at the Chepauk Stadium and is set against a Chennai Super Kings (CSK) match. Vijay’s character races against time to stop a bomb from exploding. While Venkat was happy with the output, and he claims so was Vijay, he says this aspect might have limited the film’s appeal outside Tamil Nadu.

“Because of that, Mumbai Indians (MI) and RCB (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) fans troll me,” he joked in Tamil, adding, “We are all CSK fans - it’s in our blood and we can’t deny that. Maybe, it’s because of the CSK connection that this movie didn’t appeal much to Telugu and Hindi audiences. I don’t think they enjoyed the moment like we did.”

According to Sacnilk.com, The GOAT earned ₹44 crore net on its opening day in India, ₹39.15 crore in Tamil, ₹1.85 crore in Hindi, and ₹3 crore in Telugu. It made ₹151 crore net approximately in India so far. According to the producers, AGS Entertainment, the film has crossed ₹288 crore gross worldwide.

Venkat also explained the climax as a “Die Hard-style scene”. He also claimed that while they considered a cameo by former CSK captain MS Dhoni to add gravitas to the scene, it never materialised. “We couldn’t make it happen,” he said.

About The GOAT

Vijay plays dual roles in The GOAT, which also stars Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan, Ajmal Ameer, Jayaram, Sneha, Laila, Meenakshi Chaudhary, Vaibhav, Yogi Babu, Premgi Amaren, and Yugendran. The film tells the story of Gandhi, a former leader of a special anti-terrorism squad who teams up with his old co-workers to address issues from his past. Sivakarthikeyan and Trisha Krishnan have cameo appearances in the film.

Read Also: Jennifer Garner’s relationship with John Miller in jeopardy due to her attention towards Ben Affleck: Report

HOW DID YOU LIKE THIS ARTICLE? CHOOSE YOUR EMOTICON !