I’m starting to get the feeling that maybe we’re at the apex of the superhero movie. Okay, right now superhero movies are very popular and they’re making loads of money but it seems like they’re also becoming over exposed. This year there are four traditional superhero movies set to be released; Iron Man 3, Man of Steel, The Wolverine and Thor: The Dark World, and next year five; Captain America: The Winter Soldier, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, X-Men; Days of Future Past and Guardians of the Galaxy.
Is there really a big enough market to sustain nine superhero movies in two years? And remember, these movies don’t just need to be successful, they need to be, pardon the pun, SUPER successful since each has a budget of (probably) around $200 million with additional millions being spent on marketing.
With these kinds of expenses these kinds of movies can literally make more than $300 million at the box office, like G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Battleship and Wrath of the Titans did, and be considered a disappointment.
It doesn’t help that the superhero movie is starting to get a bit redundant in the story department too. Quick, which superhero movie am I describing here?
Superhero fights villain and the villain is stronger than the superhero. It looks like villain is surly going to win, but superhero steps up and saves the day by defeating the villain at the last minute.
It’s a trick question, that plot line pretty much sums up every superhero that’s been made in the last decade.
Now don’t get me wrong, I absolutely adore superhero movies. I’m just wondering that if at some point in the near future we’ll all look back at 2013 as the high point for the superhero movie. Where budgets got out of control compared to grosses and only movies that would go onto make billions at the box office would be considered a success.
I’m sure all of these nine superhero movies are hoping to be the next The Avengers or The Dark Knight Rises in terms of profits. But history shows us that there really can only be one or two (at most) of these a year.
