Audiences eventually grow tired of the same ol', same ol' stories.
Rom-Coms. Spy films. Mysteries. Musicals. Westerns.
Especially westerns.
Movie genres come and go, and for a while the biggest genre of the past quarter century showed signs of slippage.
Superhero movies.
Sure, the MCU-led genre reigned supreme for what felt like ages. "Iron Man." "Doctor Strange." "Black Panther." And, most of all, the "Avengers" films.
That was so 2019, and the buzz in Hollywood since then has been sobering. Superhero fatigue is here, and it means trouble for an industry addicted to men (and women) in tights.
The culprits?
- "Madame Web"
- "Kraven the Hunter"
- "Eternals"
- "Joker: Folie a Deux"
- "The Marvels"
- "Black Adam"
- "Supergirl"
- "Blue Beetle"
These films all disappointed at the box office and with most moviegoers. "Madame Web" may have a glorious second life as a camp classic, to be fair. "Supergirl," too?
Cue the "superhero fatigue" cries. And they didn't fall on deaf ears. A panicked Disney, course-correcting after the "Avengers" newest star, Jonathan Majors, got cancelled, went all in for this December's "Avengers: Doomsday."
Sure, Robert Downey, Jr.'s Tony Stark/Iron Man died in "Avengers: Endgame," but we'll throw all the money at him to return as the villainous Doctor Doom. We'll also bring back Steve Rogers/Captain America from quasi-retirement as well as almost any actor who once played a superhero.
Welcome back, Kelsey Grammer (as the blue-haired Beast). You mean the great Ian McKellen is 87? No matter. Throw that Magneto helmet on him and tell him it's showtime. Patrick Stewart, returning as Professor X, is a veritable kid at 86.
You can see the flop sweat on the Mouse House, no?
A funny thing happened this summer, something that pumped the brakes on all that "superhero fatigue" talk.
"Spider-Man: Brand New Day."
The fourth film in the saga, once again starring Tom Holland as the web slinger, had a massive opening weekend tally en route to becoming the biggest domestic moneymaker of all time. That wasn't an isolated super-incident. The big money maker this weekend? The 2019 blockbuster "Avengers: Endgame," re-released with new footage to tease the upcoming "Avengers: Endgame."
That's roughly $25 million for a seven-year-old movie we can all watch at home and likely saw multiple times already.
Even more startling? The early ticket sales for "Doomsday," out Dec. 18, are looking big. Huge, even.
But why?
Let's not rule out nostalgia. We've known these core characters for decades. We grew up with them, and it's comforting to have them back in our lives. It's also a sign of how hungry we are for heroes on the big screen.
Newer films like "Primetime" attack people who, despite their flaws, helped expose child predators. Other stories ask us to cheer on hit men who only kill the people who deserve it. Netflix's upcoming "East of Eden" reboot softens the story's villain, big time.
Some moral compass, right?
Captain America, Spidey and friends are the good guys, the white hat types who save the day over and again. Let's hope we'll never grow tired of that kind of story.
