J.J. Abrams on Spoilers in 'Wired' article

[BlackLantern]

http://www.wired.com/techbiz/people/magazine/17-05/mf_jjessay?currentPage=all

In my profession, this mentality is illustrated by the spoiler: that piece of information meant to be kept secret, like the end of a movie or TV show or novel. Spoilers give fans the answers they want, the resolution they crave. As an avid fan of movies and TV myself, I completely understand the desire to find out behind-the-scenes details in a nanosecond. Which, given technology, is often how long it takes—to the frustration of the storytellers. Efforts to gather this intel and the attempts to plug leaks create an ongoing battle between filmmakers and the very fans they are dying to entertain and impress. But the real damage isn't so much that the secret gets out. It's that the experience is destroyed. The illusion is diminished. Which may not matter to some. But then what's the point of actually seeing that movie or episode? How does knowing the twist before you walk into the theater—or what that island is really about before you watch the finale—make for a richer viewing experience? It's telling that the very term itself—spoiler—has become synonymous with "cool info you can get before the other guy." What no one remembers is that it literally means "to damage irreparably; to ruin." Spoilers make no bones about destroying the intended experience—and somehow that has become, for many, the preferred choice.
In some cases, spoilers don't just prevent the intended experience of something, they prevent the very existence of it. Case in point: I had spent close to two years working on a version of a Superman script for Warner Bros. Then an early draft was leaked, reviewed, and spectacularly decimated on a Web site that I still adore and read daily. It wasn't just that the review was bad. Which it was. I mean, like, kraptastically bad. And probably deserved (I'm the idiot who made Lex Luthor a Kryptonian). What was so depressing wasn't just that the thing being reviewed was an old version of a work in progress. What killed me was that the reviewer—and then readers of that reviewer—weren't just judging my writing. They were judging the movie. A movie that was barely in preproduction and many drafts away from final. A film that ultimately never got made—in small part because that review, and subsequent posts, made studio decisionmakers nervous. The fact is, that Superman film might have been awful. Or it could have been something else. We'll never know.

 

[Ongie]

***redacted***

 

[Prison Mike]

we should just get rid of the internet. no spoilers!

 

[Majic Walrus]

we should just get rid of the internet. no spoilers!

Spoiler

Bruce Willis is really dead through the whole movie!

 

[The Apatow Crew]

Spoiler

Bruce Willis is really dead through the whole movie!

Noooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[BlackLantern]

I like J.J. Abrams. He seems like a genuine guy.

I feel bad about his Superman script, and I see where he's coming from. People can have preconceived notions for, literally, years before a movie comes out.

What if the internet had been around back in 1977? "What's George Lucas doing? There's a giant, hairy gorilla on set and a bunch of guys fighting with sticks." Harry Knowles would have torn it apart.

I think it might be a healthy thing for fans to step away a bit and keep the mystery. However, it's really hard to help ourselves. Ultimately, the burden is on the studio. Fans will never resist spoilers. The studios are going to have to get better at keeping their secrets.

Good read. Thanks for posting.

It's a great article.....Studios are trying but info always slips through the cracks or is leaked to generate buzz....I know for some films studios will send someone to an actors office or house with a script and they will have to sit there until the actor is done reading it and carry it back to the studio

 

[Ghostvirus]

I like J.J. Abrams. He seems like a genuine guy.

I feel bad about his Superman script, and I see where he's coming from. People can have preconceived notions for, literally, years before a movie comes out.

What if the internet had been around back in 1977? "What's George Lucas doing? There's a giant, hairy gorilla on set and a bunch of guys fighting with sticks." Harry Knowles would have torn it apart.

I think it might be a healthy thing for fans to step away a bit and keep the mystery. However, it's really hard to help ourselves. Ultimately, the burden is on the studio. Fans will never resist spoilers. The studios are going to have to get better at keeping their secrets.

Good read. Thanks for posting.

1. This is happening with Wolverine right now!

2. Harrison Ford felt exactly the way you mentioned while making Star Wars.

I judge a movie by its Trailer, & Star Power, Filmmaker history.

 

[Ongie]

***redacted***

 

[BlackLantern]

well Fox didn't even have a special effects department....Lucas had to cobble people together into what would eventually be ILM

Studios are skittish these days...they won't dump money into a big budget film if it doesn't look like they'll make it back

 

[Zephyr Alexian]

well Fox didn't even have a special effects department....Lucas had to cobble people together into what would eventually be ILM

Studios are skittish these days...they won't dump money into a big budget film if it doesn't look like they'll make it back

True, but FoX is the worst. They ruin, not only the budget, but manipulate directors into molding more mainstream films as opposed to what's best for the story.

 

[BlackLantern]

True, but FoX is the worst. They ruin, not only the budget, but manipulate directors into molding more mainstream films as opposed to what's best for the story.

He was making this movie in the late 70's....look at all the films from back them...it's all very gritty stuff....nothing special effects laden was coming out with any regularity....

also it was 30 years ago....don't transfer your hate for Fox to back then....completely different movie making back then

 

[Ongie]

***redacted***

 

[The Lizard]

Spoiler

Bruce Willis is really dead through the whole movie!

Bruce Willis was dead at the end of Sixth Sense, and I...

 

[Ion Kenshin]

I have a subscription to this mag. It's great. I really enjoyed that article. I really do try to stay away from spoilers as much as possible.

 

[Ongie]

***redacted***

 

[Ion Kenshin]

I agree completely

 

[Hotwire]

we should just get rid of the internet. no spoilers!

But then where would the pervs get their porn?

 

[Ongie]

***redacted***

 

[Maximum Carnage]

From their cars outside the school's playground, obviously. KEEP THE INTERNET!!! KEEP IT!

Too far? :/

 

[Ongie]

***redacted***

 

[Maximum Carnage]

Indeed, sir. Indeed!

 

[M.O.Steel]

 

[Aesop Rocks]

Spoiler

The Titanic sinks.

 

[M.O.Steel]

while i feel bad for him, and i thought the new star trek was amazing, in all honesty, parts of his story were awful (some were AMAZING). krypton not exploding, luthor being kryptonian, jor-el dying and transferring his life force, suit-in-a-can...AWFUL. Some were amazing though. the listening over the andes (which singer tried but didn't really work), the "i make my own windows"

that being said, those things were the first things to be dropped in the 2nd version. so i do feel bad for him. and i always thought, and still think, he should consider publishing a "what if" story arc comic book using his script/ideas.

 

[M.O.Steel]

Spoiler

The Titanic sinks.

highest grossing movie of all time (inflated) and highest number of oscars. you sure?

i think so tot:, definitely overrated, but many many many would disagree with you.