NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� Eight years ago, Steven Spielberg predicted that the superhero movie would one day go
Spielberg鈥檚 comments caused a widespread stir at the time. 鈥淎vengers: The Age of Ultron鈥� was then one of the year鈥檚 biggest movies. The following year would bring 鈥淐aptain America: Civil War,鈥� 鈥淒eadpool鈥� and 鈥淏atman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice.鈥� The superhero movie was in high gear, and showing no signs of slowing down.
But Spielberg鈥檚 point was that nothing is forever in the movie business. These cycles, Spielberg said, 鈥渉ave a finite time in popular culture.鈥� And the maker of 鈥淓.T.,鈥� 鈥淛urassic Park鈥� and 鈥淛aws鈥� might know a thing or two about the ebbs and flows of pop-culture taste.
As 2023 draws to a close, no one is sounding the death knell of the superhero movie. The Walt Disney Co.'s made $845.6 million worldwide and Sony's ($691 million) was one of the most acclaimed films of the year. Marvel is still mightier than any other brand in the business.
But more than ever before, there are chinks in the armor of the superhero movie. Its dominance in popular culture is no longer quite so assured. A cycle may be turning, and a new one dawning.
For the first time in more than two decades, the top three movies at the box office didn鈥檛 include one sequel or remake: 鈥淏arbie,鈥� 鈥淭he Super Mario Bros. Movie鈥� and 鈥淥ppenheimer.鈥� The last time that happened was 2001, when 鈥淗arry Potter and the Sorcerer鈥檚 Stone,鈥� 鈥淪hrek鈥� and 鈥淢onsters, Inc.鈥� topped the box office.
No, it鈥檚 not exactly a lineup of originality like, say, 1973, when 鈥淭he Exorcist, 鈥淭he Sting鈥� and 鈥淎merican Graffiti鈥� led all movies in ticket sales. 鈥淏arbie鈥� and 鈥淭he Super Mario Bros.,鈥� based on some of the most familiar brands in the world, will generate spinoffs and sequels of their own.
But it鈥檚 hard not to sense a shift in moviegoing, one that might have reverberations for years to come for Hollywood.
鈥淭here鈥檚 an inflection point in 2023,鈥� says Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for data firm Comscore. 鈥� is just one part of that story. Audiences, they want to be challenged. I think the tried and true is not necessarily working.鈥�
from Warner Bros., was the year鈥檚 runaway hit, with more than $1.4 billion in ticket sales worldwide. It was a blockbuster like none seen before: an anarchic comedy that set a string of records for a movie directed by a woman.
Nearly as unprecedented was the success of a three-hour drama that nearly grossed $1 billion. As different as it and 鈥淏arbie鈥� were, they were each and personal statements by its directors.
At the same time, the Walt Disney Co.鈥檚 Marvel, a hit-making machine like none other in movie history, faltered like never before. 鈥淭he Marvels鈥� , collecting $200 million globally. DC Studios, in the midst of a revamp, saw disappointing results for 鈥淭he Flash鈥� and 鈥淏lue Beetle鈥� before watching
Both Marvel and DC have already made moves to right their ships. Bob Iger, Disney's chief executive, has called turning around Marvel his top priority. He said the superhero studio has suffered greatly from too many films and series leading to 鈥渄iluted quality.鈥� The James Gunn, Peter Safran-led DC, meanwhile, won鈥檛 officially launch until 2025 with
In the meantime, something else will have to fill the void. That was a theme in 2023, too, when marred release plans and including Warner鈥檚 鈥淒une: Part Two,鈥� Sony鈥檚 next 鈥淕hostbusters鈥� movie and MGM鈥檚 鈥淐hallengers.鈥�
Those disruptions will continue in 2024. Analysts aren't expecting a banner year for Hollywood in part because films like the next 鈥淢ission: Impossible鈥� film and the 鈥淪pider-Verse鈥� sequel, both delayed by the strikes, won鈥檛 make their original dates.
Overall ticket sales in U.S. and Canadian theaters for 2023 are expected to reach about $9 billion, according to Comscore, an improvement of about 20% from 2022. The industry is still trying to regain its pre-pandemic footing, when ticket sales regularly surpassed $11 billion. Output of wide-releases in 2023 (88) still trailed those in 2019 (108) by 18.5%.
Hollywood is still coaxing moviegoers back to theaters 鈥� something 鈥淏arbie,鈥� 鈥淥ppenheimer鈥� and 鈥淢ario鈥� went a long way to helping.
鈥淚t reinforced something that we鈥檝e known for 100 years in the business: People like going to the shared experience out of the home,鈥� says Jeffrey Goldstein, distribution chief for Warner Bros. 鈥淭hey love being entertained. Movies are a good financial proposition and can bring in a mass audience.鈥�
鈥淚t probably started with 鈥楳ario鈥� last April,鈥� adds Goldstein. 鈥淚 think that showed audiences again that theaters are a fun place to be to. And it showed studios and content creators: Up your game.鈥�
If 2023 is any guide, hits will come from increasingly unpredictable places.
That was the case with a film released just two months after Swift鈥檚 recorded concerts in . It grossed $250 million worldwide, and was followed by the similarly released 鈥淩enaissance: A Film by Beyonc茅,鈥�
More surprising was 鈥淪ound of Freedom,鈥� a $15 million film from the independent Angel Studios, which matched Swift with $250 million worldwide. It was released with a unique 鈥減ay it forward鈥� program that allowed people to donate tickets.
Going into 2023, no one was betting 鈥淪ound of Freedom鈥� would outgross 鈥淭he Marvels鈥� or that would have a bigger opening weekend than
鈥淭here are going to be examples of big-budget, traditional blockbusters that do well,鈥� says Dergarabedian. 鈥淏ut for every one of those, there have been two that failed. An audience that鈥檚 finding a lot of interesting material on streaming is becoming more open to films like 鈥楪odzilla Minus One,鈥� , . There鈥檚 a shift in audience taste and studios need to get a handle on this.鈥�
That poses as much of a challenge as an opportunity to studios. If more-of-the-same no longer has quite the same appeal for moviegoers, an industry that for years has depended on sequels, prequels, reboots and remakes to make up the bulk of its profits may require new creativity.
The Western didn't vanish all at once. After two decades of ubiquity, it began going out of style in the 1960s. And the Western, of course, continues to be rich territory for filmmakers. This year, 81-year-old made his first Western in 鈥淜illers of the Flower Moon," the three-hour-plus $200 million epic from Apple Studios.
The superhero movie, likewise, won't ever die. But its heyday might have reached its
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Jake Coyle, The Associated Press
