The Old, The Familiar, The Comfortable - That's Today's Hollywood

Remakes, sequels, franchise films - that's what drives Hollywood these days.  The major studios pop-out these films on a regular basis and plan for more of the same - it's what moviegoers crave and are willing to part with their cash for.

Indies, foreign, documentaries, serious dramas, etc. are auditorium fodder for the multiplexes, in-between fillers as exhibitors wait for the next box office bruiser to be released - and it appears that this scenario is going to be in play for some time to come.  The six majors (Disney, Fox, Paramount, Sony, Universal, and Warners) will continue to focus on what they know works. The only concern is keeping up with the technology.  Technology has made movies more expensive to make as each time a new special effect, immersive sound, or visual enhancement is achieved and delivered it raises the entertainment expectations of moviegoers for more and better.

Generally, a major release ($100 million or more cost) needs to make 2.5-3 times its budget before it can be considered a success.  That's why the studios favor known box office winners with a ready-made audience.  Hence the remake or sequel -  give moviegoers the familiar, the old and successful, the comfortable - with characters and story-lines that they can relate to.  Books have become a huge source for movie content.  Marvel comic characters, for example, come with a large and supportive audience that already knows the background story and traits of their favorite heroes.  Fan boys and girls that range in age from 12 to 65 - the older generations were comic fans, the younger video game fans of the same characters.

It is now common for a remake or sequel to outperform the original movie.  This is particularly true of franchise films which build one-upon-the-other making the characters more and more familiar to the audience, and thus more and more believable.

The old, the familiar, the comfortable is what Hollywood banks on - and it's paying off.

Best
Jim