How long will super-hero movies be hot?

[Ascended]

People have been saying the super hero movie bubble would burst for the better part of twenty years now. So far they've all been wrong. In fact, there's more Oscar buzz around some of these movies than there ever has been before, and they still keep breaking record after record.

I doubt the bubble is close to bursting yet. It'll eventually happen of course, but I don't think its right around the corner.

But who knows, maybe Infinity War will jump the shark.

[Lee Stone]

Superhero movies have been going strong for over a decade.
They won't be going away. Not entirely.
The Marvel films have done for the superhero genre what Star Wars did for sci-fi.

The genre, itself, will stick around and we'll see more hybrid genres like superhero sci-fi (Guardians of the Galaxy), superhero horror (New Mutants), superhero comedy, etc.

As for how long a genre can sustain itself, look to Law & Order and Gunsmoke. 20 years seems to be about right.
However, the Universal Horror films would be the more fitting comparison.
Their horror movies were pretty successful from Dracula (1931) up to Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954), however it continued for about two more years to Creature Walks Among Us (1956). Universal's Horror line lasted roughly 25 years.
And the horror genre was kinda fizzling until Hammer Films came out with Curse of Frankenstein (1957), Dracula (1958) and Mummy (1959).
These carried the genre up through the '70s when psycho slasher films started to crop up and change the genre. Hammer's Horror line lasted 17 years, with Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires (1974) drawing it to a close. Then Hammer's last film, before taking an almost 30 year hiatus, was five years later.

The Marvel films could last longer than Universal Horror because there's room for expansion when the lead actors move on, especially with teams like Avengers and Guardians giving opportunities to introduce new characters alongside established ones.
And their production value is so on point that lesser known franchises barely need an introduction, as witnessed by Guardians, Doctor Strange and Black Panther.
With them re-acquiring Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four and the X-Men, the pool of characters to draw from has expanded enormously, and they have over 50 years of comics material to draw from.

What we're witnessing right now is the genre permanently moving from comics to live action, where it will likely stay for the foreseeable future.
The real question should be how long will mainstream comics last now that the superhero genre has found success in a more profitable medium?
And if mainstream comics survives, will superheroes be pushed out to make way for other genres?

While the Marvel Cinematic Universe is indeed the pinnacle of the current superhero genre's history, much like fantasy, sci-fi and horror before it, the genre will cool down and become a mainstay of cinema with regular films still being produced.

[The Dying Detective]

Superhero movies have been going strong for over a decade.
They won't be going away. Not entirely.
The Marvel films have done for the superhero genre what Star Wars did for sci-fi.

The genre, itself, will stick around and we'll see more hybrid genres like superhero sci-fi (Guardians of the Galaxy), superhero horror (New Mutants), superhero comedy, etc.

As for how long a genre can sustain itself, look to Law & Order and Gunsmoke. 20 years seems to be about right.
However, the Universal Horror films would be the more fitting comparison.
Their horror movies were pretty successful from Dracula (1931) up to Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954), however it continued for about two more years to Creature Walks Among Us (1956). Universal's Horror line lasted roughly 25 years.
And the horror genre was kinda fizzling until Hammer Films came out with Curse of Frankenstein (1957), Dracula (1958) and Mummy (1959).
These carried the genre up through the '70s when psycho slasher films started to crop up and change the genre. Hammer's Horror line lasted 17 years, with Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires (1974) drawing it to a close. Then Hammer's last film, before taking an almost 30 year hiatus, was five years later.

The Marvel films could last longer than Universal Horror because there's room for expansion when the lead actors move on, especially with teams like Avengers and Guardians giving opportunities to introduce new characters alongside established ones.
And their production value is so on point that lesser known franchises barely need an introduction, as witnessed by Guardians, Doctor Strange and Black Panther.
With them re-acquiring Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four and the X-Men, the pool of characters to draw from has expanded enormously, and they have over 50 years of comics material to draw from.

What we're witnessing right now is the genre permanently moving from comics to live action, where it will likely stay for the foreseeable future.
The real question should be how long will mainstream comics last now that the superhero genre has found success in a more profitable medium?
And if mainstream comics survives, will superheroes be pushed out to make way for other genres?

While the Marvel Cinematic Universe is indeed the pinnacle of the current superhero genre's history, much like fantasy, sci-fi and horror before it, the genre will cool down and become a mainstay of cinema with regular films still being produced.

I've always suspected that at some point comic companies might convert to studios due to the rapidly shrinking market share maybe it is time for them to move on from printed entertainment to on screen entertainment.

[WebLurker]

People are complaining of social justice in Star Wars because of Rey having near perfect mastery of the Force.

I've heard the arguments and find that most of them ignore how Force users are shown progressing elsewhere in canon.

I know Snoke was not a big deal but based on how he was presented in the first film I wanted to see him become one.

Fair enough.

[astro@work]

I think the genre will be around for as long as well-made movies with ORIGINAL ideas keep getting produced.

If the movies start to feel like they're repeating themselves, that's where the box-office will start dropping off.
The characters don't necesarily need to be A-listers in the comics. Ant-Man and the GOTG certainly weren't.
Aquaman could sell well (if it's well done right) for the same reason that GOTG did.

[The Dying Detective]

I've heard the arguments and find that most of them ignore how Force users are shown progressing elsewhere in canon.

Unfortunately when you're expecting some more on the lines of how the original trilogy worked well super fast progress can annoy people because I think that's what everyone was expecting.

[Marvel/DC Fan]

I think it will eventually fizzle out. I don't think they will go away completely but probably go down to a movie or two a year.

[Lee Stone]

I think the genre will be around for as long as well-made movies with ORIGINAL ideas keep getting produced.

If the movies start to feel like they're repeating themselves, that's where the box-office will start dropping off.
The characters don't necesarily need to be A-listers in the comics. Ant-Man and the GOTG certainly weren't.
Aquaman could sell well (if it's well done right) for the same reason that GOTG did.

Aquaman could very well be DC's next Wonder Woman. Especially if they downplay the League (except for maybe Wonder Woman), focusing more on Atlantis and less on superheroics. Matter of fact, if it does well, Aquaman and Wonder Woman could steer the DCEU towards more fantasy with Atlantis and Paradise Island being the key settings (with logical room for crossing over).
I'd then introduce Warlord, Arion, Shazam or Amethyst to strengthen the core movies before bringing traditional superheroes back with a totally revamped League.

Even the Omega Men could be an easy backdoor entry back into traditional superheroes. Their mythos is primarily space-opera, comes with a unique setting in the Vega System and a strong villain in Blackfire. Not to mention, it could set the groundwork for a Titans film by introducing Starfire and a Green Lantern film by reviving the Corps in a more fitting tapestry.

It's really all about approach, and I think DC's best bet right now is not to go straight superhero, but to delve into the hybrid genres.

[astro@work]

It's really all about approach, and I think DC's best bet right now is not to go straight superhero, but to delve into the hybrid genres.

Many of Marvel's top properties work because they're not ~necesarily~ straight superheroes:
Hulk- radiation monster
Black Widow- spy
Iron Man- Tech experiment
Thor-Norse God romping around mythology

Cap is definitely straightforward superhero, but many of the rest have some sort of angle that doesn't force a mask & cape sensibility.

And The Omega Men could easily have been the cinematic GOTG movie that Marvel did. I am hopeful for Aquaman to work as a movie because there is a rich non-superhero mythology to work with.

[BaneBreaker]

With how the arguments over the Star Wars being tainted by social justice are going I don't predict a good future for any of them plus they killed Snoke too early.

If those arguments occur on Youtube channels and message boards, probably a contingent that's pissed off all the time and not worthy of caring about.

[Güicho]

I doubt the bubble is close to bursting yet. It'll eventually happen of course, but I don't think its right around the corner.
.

This will be what finally bursts the bubble- https://www.cbr.com/rob-liefeld-extr...-netflix-deal/

Liefeld’s eXtreme Universe developed for the big screen.

I think the genre will be around for as long as well-made movies with ORIGINAL ideas keep getting produced.

Unless they are all treated as self parody like DP, which is already done.
Not an original idea in the lot, just everything redone to the pathetic eXtreme.

[BaneBreaker]

Well it was fun while it lasted. Guess the costume dept should get to work on pouches now, that way they have enough

[Carabas]

I think the decline will come when they recast Captain America or Iron Man. Will they go the James Bond route and simply recast him and this is him now or will they go the Spider-man route and redo everything. And in spider-man's case, we didn't like the redo, so we redid it again. Regardless of the path they choose, if it isn't done well, the decline will begin here.

I suspect they will simply not recast but perma-kill them. Maybe have Bucky put on the suit. Or they can fill the Cap-shaped hole in their line-up with the Black Panther.

This is not the comics. They do not really need an Iron Man or a Captain America. Their audience has not bought into the 'status quo is god' BS that has ruined the comics.

[Carabas]

I don't see how they can replace those guys, especially Downey.

Something I just thought of -- the Star Wars movies may have already passed their peak.

The Star Wars movies peaked in 1980.

Yes, and Wonder Woman too. They should make money for a while. The thing is, DC and Marvel don't seem to have another breakout female or black character.

They may have dozens.
The Black Panther wasn't a breakout character until it broke out after Marvel decided to treat it as seriously as any of their other movies.
The Black Panther was not a breakout character before the movie came out. He was one of those cancelled over and over again characters you usually call failures.

[the illustrious mr. kenway]

I'm guessing when Archie/Valiant/Dark horse etc starting throwing their hat in the ring is when the bubble might burst.

The superhero genre would last longer than most genres because its more malleable and can adapt easier to different storytelling trends.