There's no doubt that the movie-going public likes what it sees in sequels at this time. It seems that the branding of the stories and characters keep fans coming back for more; and they don't seem to be tiring of it for now.
As Tom Ortenberg, president of Lions Gate, says, "The marketplace decides. If the marketplace is there to support it, you find a way to get it done."
Another new element in the sequel story is the continuation of sequels that seemed long over and mostly forgotten. This year Sylvester Stallone returned in Rocky Balboa, the sixth installment in the series, and Bruce Willis came back 12 years after the last "Die Hard" movie to bring "Live Free or Die Hard," the fourth film in the series. There is also the highly anticipated "Indiana Jones" coming up as well.
In the past it has also been a real negative to drop the original actor playing a character, as it hasn't worked. But the Batman series has shown you can build a franchise with a different actor playing the character. That probably works better wth the super hero type of character where the costume worn may be more important than the actual alter ego. Although James Bond has lasted through a number of men playing the British secret agent.
That will be tested again with Spider-Man, as Sam Raimi says, "I know there'll be a `Spider-Man 4, 5 and 6. I just won't be the guy that'll probably write the story, because I've got to clear my head."
Actors Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst have hinted they're reluctant at continuing on in the series.
Another question is how long will people continue to go to sequels. That answer seems to be a long way off, as there's no sign that fans are abandoning the idea of going to see them anytime soon.
What has helped make this work for Hollywood is the growing international market. I don't think they could produce the sequels at the cost they have been without the growing revenue from outside North America. That's one of the key changes in he market that has made this possible over the long haul.
Another thing the studios have learned, is in releasing this many blockbusters in a year, there is the tendency of theater-goers to not go to movies multiple times as they've done in the past. That's resulted in the need for a huge opening day or weekend, as most big movies this year have dropped by an average of 60 percent on the second weekend.
The biggest losers in all this will probably be the smaller and indie film producers. Until people tire of the sequel frenzy, it'll be hard for them to get their films heard above the crowded blockbuster marketplace.
Even with all the sequel hoopla though, the industry is still barely holding its own, and is in danger of not reaching the past domestic numbers record that it needed so badly to beat this year. Anything less than a record has to be considered very troubling for the industry.
I'll take forever for a $1,000 Alex. I know that they get tired and board, but as we move into a commoditized phase for content, branding is going to become increasingly important.
Top actors and actresses have always drawn in viewers, but when you look at how people find movies on things like TiVo's swivel search or Netflix, they look by those individual. Some independent movie is going to get an audience looking for them just by a title, director, actor, etc.
As things like YouTube become even more important the power equation will shift to the artists. Stephen Colbert already commands a massive audience that Comedy Central could not replace. Look at what Will Ferrell is doing at funny or die and you can tell that he is on the cutting edge of this movement.
Sequels may get old and become predictible, but it's the only control that the movie studios will have left. If Marvel gets their way, the studios won't even have much control over that.
Posted by: Davis Freeberg | July 19, 2007 8:11 PM | Permalink to Comment