Time Out! Why Strike Delays Might Be Good for Ailing Superhero Movies

Available to WrapPRO members

Studios should take the time to revamp their comic-book content strategies

Superman, Spider-Man and Deadpool show their support for the strikes
Superman, Spider-Man and Deadpool show their support for members of the Writers Guild of America East and SAG-AFTRA

DC’s “Blue Beetle,” with its soft $25 million opening, is the latest superhero movie to prove that the genre isn’t the surefire box office hit it used to be. And whether or not the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes are taking their toll, studios could use this time to take another look at their superhero movie strategies.

“What’s affecting superhero movies or other big IP franchises isn’t a labor stoppage,” a top agent told TheWrap. “It’s that Gen Z is now the main theatre-going demographic and they don’t care about superheroes nearly as much as Millennials and Gen X. And that’s a massive problem for Marvel/DC.”

Comments