How Disney's Horrible Marketing Changed Sci-Fi Movies
Posted by Jonathan Klotz | Published
In the long, storied history of Disney, the company has had many successes, including the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and all of its animated output in the '90s. At the same time, they have made the biggest bombs.
2012 sci-fi adventure John Carter at the time of its release, it was the lowest-grossing film ever made, a title it may eventually lose Joker: Folie a Deux at the end of the year. An epic sci-fi adventure based on classic pulp novels, John Carter it should have been a huge success, but it never had a chance, thanks to the worst marketing campaign ever.
How John Carter Trailers Killed the Movie
The first trailer for John Carter it didn't explain anything about the plot of the movie and the scenes were set on Earth and the shots of Barsoom (or Mars, as we know it) looked like they were from two completely different movies.
The second trailer has been edited and begins with Carter fighting in an arena before entering the space of an unknown planet with Led Zeppelin's “Kashmir” playing. Like everything about this film, it was way off the curve, as today, every trailer has a stripped-down, epic version of a classic rock song playing over the trailer, but in 2012, this confused most viewers. .
Even worse, there is nothing about being based on the pulp fiction novels of Edgar Rice Burroughs, nothing about being an adventure 100 years in the making, no mention of how to play Taylor Kitsch, then Hollywood was pushing it as the next big thing. In interviews leading up to its release, Kitsch spoke publicly about his disappointment with the film's marketing, which lacked any kind of “hook” or jaw-dropping special effects shot to leave an impression on viewers. Even his other sci-fi dud, A warshipincluded a screenshot of the alien ship in all its glory to tease moviegoers about the coming battle.
Disney Even Got the Name Wrong
John Carter it didn't have a million dollar figure in any car, which is ironic since it was worth $260 million in 2012 (up from $357 million, or so. Miracles). Aside from the poorly received trailers, the worst decision was made months ago when the title was changed from being John Carter of Marsbook reference adaptation, Princess of Marsto easily John Carter. No one knew who “John Carter” was, except him ER fans, and the name, by itself, doesn't tell you anything about what the movie is about.
That may sound like a strange problem, and you'd think that surely, people would look into it to see what it's all about; After all, the Internet existed in 2012, but this problem is not only found John Carter. That's one of the things that hurts in the first place John Wick. First of all John Wick the comedy was full of depressed Keanu Reeves, and being named, no one knew that it was a serious game, and many ordinary audiences thought that Dr.am. It wasn't until after the film had been in theaters for two weeks that word spread, and the film became a hit.
Making the name worse was the marketing campaign, “Are You the Real John Carter?” Disney's marketing team held a contest asking people named John Carter to enter a contest to attend a special screening of the film. What it actually did was make people think that John Carter it should be some kind of mystery movie, like Blake Lively's later marketing Simple Gracewhich asked, “Where's Emily?” and successfully created a buzz about the central mystery of the movie.
John Carter a sci-fi adventure film, not a mystery, but again, the marketing muddied the waters and left it unclear what kind of film it was. The marketing campaign, by the way, cost over $100 million and did nothing but hurt the film.
John Carter's Failure Ruined Science Fiction Movies, And It Still Happens
At the time of its release, John Carter it was another in a line of sci-fi flops, from Disney itself Mars Needs Mothers to Cowboys and Aliens just a year earlier, and its historic downfall changed the course of sci-fi films in Hollywood. John Carter entertainment film, but in the following years, we started to get dark, and gritty sci-fi, as again, the studios became more dangerous and did not want to gamble on a potential new franchise. Unless it was based on a comic book (Guardians of the Galaxy) or novel (Valerian and the city of a thousand planets), no sci-fi adventure films went into production after Disney failed.
It's time to throw a big budget at test scripts it's over, and that's still true today. The only genre that tries to push the envelope is horror, thanks to low-budget hits like M3GAN again The scary one. Big studios rely on old IP to mine or develop legacy, which is why Disney is remaking it old animated movies: a sure thing.
John Carter is a Fun Movie
What makes the film's lasting legacy, one of throwing us into a world of panicked studios unwilling to try something new and different, is too pressing to John Carter good movie. Taylor Kitsch has never been a huge household name, but he does a great job as a Civil War veteran stranded on an alien planet. It's a shame he didn't get the chance to build this franchise.
The works of Edgar Rice Burroughs had a major influence on science fiction, with the DNA of Princess of Mars seen in major franchises such as Star Wars or Guardians of the Galaxy. Proof that despite the failure of John Carter, the film was ahead of its time.
John Carter is currently streaming on Disney+. Give it a chance.
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