Marvel Studios Increases Output = Too Many Superhero Movies?

[random_havoc]

Man, 2006 was a brutal year for superhero movies

 

[Eddie]

Man, 2006 was a brutal year for superhero movies

Comic adaptations in general weren't a total wash. There were two excellent comic adaptations in Japan that year. The live action Death Note films both released in 2006 and Kenichi Matsuyama was nominated for a Japanese Academy Award for his performance.

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

The GA will never burn out on quality MCU films with a wide variety. Hell I'm hoping they crank it up to 4 a year. As long as they are good movies people will see them.

 

[Spade]

For those of you curious as to why studios keep betting on blockbusters, you might like the book Blockbusters: Hit-making, Risk-taking, and the Big Business of Entertainment. The gist of it is, 'cause they're reliable bets. People think studios make more profit on reasonably budgeted picture; in reality, most of the product the industry puts out is either at a loss or just manages to break even.

After the merger with NBC, Universal tried to bet on smaller scale productions, to no avail. They've lucked into profit as of late with comedies, but those won't sustain a whole studio forever. And what's the latest news from them? They're trying to make a classic monster cinematic universe. Sound familiar? It might sound tiresome and unimaginative, yet consider how many movies have come out with fresh original ideas only to make pennies on the dollar. The perceived insanity of Paramount's all-or-nothing bet on, say, Transformers only seems so if you think they make much off the rest of their slate. Studios will go avant garde when the approach stops being a losing bet.

 

[Jasyn]

Good, well written, and well cast CBM's (and most Pixar flicks) are pretty much the only thing that gets my butt into a theater seat these days, with some other rare movie exceptions. As along as Marvel Studios keeps up a high quality of production, the more movies the merrier in my book. I also would be glad to see FOX and SONY continue to succeed with their licensed properties as long as their movies have soul and are honoring their well-loved source material.

 

[KangConquers]

I really think we're heading for a comic book movie bubble burst in about 5-10 years.

Fortunately, as Marvel fans, Sony, Fox, and Disney will have hit almost every corner of the Marvel Universe before this happens.

Feel kind of sorry for DC fans though.

 

[metaphysician]

Even if the "bubble" does burst, though, I suspect Marvel Studios will *still* remain floating, because they will have a reputation for good, consistent quality.

 

[First Avenger]

Man, 2006 was a brutal year for superhero movies

2007 was worse IMO.

 

[DrCosmic]

Crowding won't burst the bubble. As long as the zeitgeist says the world needs saving, superhero movies will be in vogue.

The overcrowding problem, as mentioned before, applies to more than just superhero movies, but blockbuster action flicks in general. That will continue to drive down profits until the studios do something to either drive them back up (rumblechairs! smell-o-vision!) or they get abandoned until some kind of equilibrium is reached. This might involve a couple well known studios closing down incidentally.

 

[Da Games Elite]

I don't think the bubble will burst so much as deflate. Action films are a good comparison to superhero films in this respect. In the eighties, there was a huge boom of action films that were over the top, but, into the early nineties, these films decreased in number. There are still 80's-esque action movies, as seen with The Expendables, but there are fewer in number.

Same with slasher movies. Freddy Krueger, Jason Vorhees, Michael Myers, and Leatherface still are around and kicking. However, there were slow periods for these characters. The slasher genre hit a high in the early eighties, slowed down, then Nightmare on Elm Street made them popular again. Then, a slow period until Scream.

Really, only a few film genres truly have the bubble totally burst, like Westerns. Even then, they bounce back for a bit.

I think that superhero films have already followed this same pattern. Things got big for awhile, cool off, get big again, and then cool off again. Just look at 2006, then 2007...THEN 2008. It'll probably follow this pattern over and over again, until something kicks it up a notch.

 

[DrCosmic]

There's also the real life issues that feed these. After the cold war, um, cooled down, there was no more room for fighting terrorists about to blow stuff up, y'know?

Most genres have a *reason* they're popular and others aren't. After the space race died down so did Sci-fi films. After the modern world filled with gunplay, people stopped looking for it in westerns. The reason for superheroes isn't going anywhere.

 

[Destructus86]

How is Marvel doing this? Releasing so many great flicks...adapting characters without sacrificing the source material? I mean...there are people at my job that have zero interest in comics or even comic films...except when it comes to Marvel, then they go see them and are interested in the interlocking stories.

They must have some seriously talented people working in the background to make all these things come together so well.

 

[Raiden]

How is Marvel doing this? Releasing so many great flicks...adapting characters without sacrificing the source material? I mean...there are people at my job that have zero interest in comics or even comic films...except when it comes to Marvel, then they go see them and are interested in the interlocking stories.

They must have some seriously talented people working in the background to make all these things come together so well.

I think it's the passion Marvel has when they make those movies. They aren't perfect, and made mistakes along the way, but I think their heart is always in the right place.

 

[CateTheGreat]

I'd rather play Crystal Bloom for 2 hours than see another Hulk stand alone. But I can't WAIT to see an Avengers/Guardians crossover and if they really plan to end each phase with another Avengers sequel, I'm down with that.

 

[Figs]

I don't believe in this notion of "oversaturation" at all. If Marvel does three movies a year, then you add in say, one from WB and one from Fox. That's 5 whole whopping comic films in one year. The way Marvel is spreading them out is a great idea. When that many films are back to back in the span of 2-3 months I can understand people getting a bit burnt out. When you compare 5 to the numerous other movies that are released throughout the year or even just the summer, that's not a large number.

I feel comic book films are going to stay strong so long as the quality of said films is kept high.

 

[metaphysician]

How is Marvel doing this? Releasing so many great flicks...adapting characters without sacrificing the source material? I mean...there are people at my job that have zero interest in comics or even comic films...except when it comes to Marvel, then they go see them and are interested in the interlocking stories.

They must have some seriously talented people working in the background to make all these things come together so well.

Its probably a ton of factors combined, but I'd say most of the thanks goes to Kevin Feige. He's the brains behind the whole endeavor, as well as the guy who had the guts to go all-in. Marvel bet everything, and then put together a royal flush.

 

[CyclopsWasRight]

List of major superhero movies per year.

2002 (2 movies): Blade 2, Spider-man 2

2003 (3 movies): X2, Daredevil, Hulk

2004 (6 movies): Hellboy, The Punisher, Spider-man 2, Catwoman, The Incredibles, Blade Trinity

2005 (4 movies): Elektra, Batman Begins, Fantastic Four, Sky High

2006 (2 movies): X3, Superman Returns

2007 (3 movies): Ghost Rider, Spider-man 3, Fantastic Four 2

2008 (7 movies): Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Hancock, Hellboy 2, The Dark Knight, Punisher WZ, The Spirit

2009 (2 movies): Watchmen, X-men Origins

2010 (2 movies): Kick-Ass, Iron Man 2

2011 (5 movies): The Green Hornet, Thor, X-men First Class, Green Lantern, Captain America,

2012 (4 movies): Ghost Rider 2, Avengers, Amazing Spider-man, The Dark Knight Rises

2013 (5 movies): Iron Man 3, Man of Steel, The Wolverine, Kick-Ass 2, Thor 2

2014 (5 movies): Captain America 2, Amazing Spider-man 2, X-men Days of Future Past, Guardians of the Galaxy, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

2015 (3 movies): Avengers 2, The Fantastic Four, Ant-Man

2016 (5 movies): Batman vs Superman, Captain America 3, Sinister Six, Marvel Untitled, X-men Apocalypse

2017 (5 movies???): The Wolverine sequel, Fantastic Four 2, Marvel Untitled #1, Marvel Untitled #2, Marvel Untitled #3, DC untitled????

Seeing them all listed like that shows how lucky we are

 

[random_havoc]

2007 was worse IMO.

Good point

 

[eon001]

I think were reaching a point where the superhero movie is becoming it's own genre. Is there too many action movies? Romance? Drama? etc.
The more movies we get the higher the chance we'll see more duds just like any other movie genre. As a big nerd I welcome the saturation. For each cruddy movie, we'll get a decent one so I'll take the hit. Keep em coming Marvel.

 

[MessiahDecoy123]

So DC is also planning two movies per year.

So with Marvel's three, DC's two, and another two from Sony/Fox that bring the total to 7 movies per year.

Is 7 superhero movies every year over-doing it?

 

[cherokeesam]

So DC is also planning two movies per year.

So with Marvel's three, DC's two, and another two from Sony/Fox that bring the total to 7 movies per year.

Is 7 superhero movies every year over-doing it?

Is 7 horror movies every year over-doing it? 7 romance movies? 7 crime dramas?

It's a genre. That's all. As more superhero movies come out, the cream will rise to the top and the dregs will sink to the bottom. But as long as the genre remains viable in any other medium, so will superhero movies.

 

[Spooderman]

Is 7 horror movies every year over-doing it? 7 romance movies? 7 crime dramas?

It's a genre. That's all. As more superhero movies come out, the cream will rise to the top and the dregs will sink to the bottom. But as long as the genre remains viable in any other medium, so will superhero movies.

Do Horror, Romance, and Crime Dramas make 700M at the BO and require a massive budget?

 

[Spiderine]

The fact remains that some films are hits and critically praised and some are or will be disappointing failures at the box office. And its been like that for a while.

 

[MessiahDecoy123]

The fact remains that some films are hits and critically praised and some are or will be disappointing failures at the box office. And its been like that for a while.

Not including Kick-Ass 2 and Wolverine the last NINE superhero movies have made over 600 million.

 

[Spiderine]

Not including Kick-Ass 2 and Wolverine the last NINE superhero movies have made over 600 million.

And one of those franchises is still in a troubling decline. That's not a trend any studio wants to see. That's disappointing for them. But we are still talking about a span of 14 years of numerous films being released and many of them didn't meet expectations. Marvel Studios is on Mt Everest right now. WB is just now establishing their universe so we shall see and Fox looks to have right the ship for now. Sony looks to be doing some risky projects so you never know.