General Movies & TV Thread

[rageofthegods]

Horror sits in the sweet spot of being cheap to make and having a loyal audience that (until recently) basically turned out for everything. The market for horror is showing signs of oversaturation though, and that's kind of scary - movies that used to open to 15m-20m are now opening 10m-15m or even below.

And yeah, it's a big tragedy that audiences don't turn out for comedies, dramas, thrillers, etc. anymore. Beyond those movies providing variety, it was a great training ground for directors to handle a slightly bigger budget without thrusting them into the blockbuster machine, where they have less control.

 

[Lucky Planet]

Horror sits in the sweet spot of being cheap to make and having a loyal audience that (until recently) basically turned out for everything. The market for horror is showing signs of oversaturation though, and that's kind of scary - movies that used to open to 15m-20m are now opening 10m-15m or even below.

And yeah, it's a big tragedy that audiences don't turn out for comedies, dramas, thrillers, etc. anymore. Beyond those movies providing variety, it was a great training ground for directors to handle a slightly bigger budget without thrusting them into the blockbuster machine, where they have less control.

I can't remember the names but I remember that some directors were saying that making comedies was harder now both because the audiences were bigger and more global and humor is too different for each region and also because studios don't want controversy or people being offended, ( I think the Wayans bros have said that before when a sequel to white chicks is brought up ) I know it was someone else that said it.

 

[rageofthegods]

I can't remember the names but I remember that some directors were saying that making comedies was harder now both because the audiences were bigger and more global and humor is too different for each region and also because studios don't want controversy or people being offended, ( I think the Wayans bros have said that before when a sequel to white chicks is brought up ) I know it was someone else that said it.

Eh, I tend to think the "easy offense" explanation is overblown, especially considering the decline of comedy is happening concurrently with the decline of a bunch of other adult-focused genres. I think it's more that people prefer to stream dramas and comedies at home. And yeah, the lack of international appeal is an issue that gives you less of a safety net if the movie doesn't work.

 

[HandsomePete]

Has anyone else pointed out that 16 of the Top 20 Highest-Grossing Movies at the US box office this year are all sequels/franchise entries? Insane.

I think the only ones that weren't if I'm remembering correctly were Wicked, It Ends With Us, The Wild Robot, and IF.

That’s been the trajectory for the past few years. Look at the top 10 films each year since 2019 and the vast majority coming from Hollywood (i.e. not China) are all IP films. The only original film to break through has been Oppenheimer (not counting stuff like Barbie or Mario).

Our loss as audiences, but people just don’t want to go out to financially support them.

One of my B-tier podcasts that I listen to when the A-tier goes on hiatus delved into this: either a long read or moderate listen...

How Hollywood’s Hit Formula Flopped—and What Could Come Next

The past 18 months have seen a major change in the film industry: The old franchise models have lost their luster, and original films are dominating at the box office. Lucas Shaw joins to explain!

www.theringer.com

One other upside for horror is that it is (or can be) relatively cheap to make. Don't need a headliner like a comedy more or less does these days.

 

[rageofthegods]

One of my B-tier podcasts that I listen to when the A-tier goes on hiatus delved into this: either a long read or moderate listen...

How Hollywood’s Hit Formula Flopped—and What Could Come Next

The past 18 months have seen a major change in the film industry: The old franchise models have lost their luster, and original films are dominating at the box office. Lucas Shaw joins to explain!

www.theringer.com

One other upside for horror is that it is (or can be) relatively cheap to make. Don't need a headliner like a comedy more or less does these days.

I can definitely buy that audiences are craving more original and daring movies (e.g. the miracle runs for The Substance, Longlegs and Civil War, overperformances for We Live In Time, Anora and Conclave, etc), and that's exciting...

...but I do think it's kind of funny to use Dune Part 2 as an example of the original movies audiences want.