Do fanboys or gals determine the success of superhero movies?

[badlands]

Is thee any evidence for this or against this theory?

[august]

If ten million fans buy tickets on a film's opening weekend, I think we can safely say that they will ensure its success. :laugh:

Complaining fans - who swear they are fans (presumably of particular genres) even when they clearly are not fans of things they complain about - swear they have influence.... but
fan complaints didn't stop the success of The Phantom Menace and its sequels and spin-off, and fan adulation of Serenity didn't help it at the box office.

[badlands]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/dorothypomer...nightmare/


Are movie critics?

[august]

Are they....._______? :confused:

If you mean are the instrumental in a film's success.... I'd say sometimes, and sometimes not. Things like the Transformers and Fast + Furious films don't get good reviews, but
still make plenty of money. But if a film really isn't very good, and is unlikely to appeal to a general audience, word of mouth will spread that around pretty quickly, as will actual reviews.

[Michael]

There is a general perception of a demographic that fits certain assumptions about fans of science fiction and fantasy, and that demographic (quite broad in definition) can make or break a movie at the box office. But the majority of those people, though fans of science fiction and fantasy, do not describe themselves in terms like "fan boys" (very often).

Most people who buy movie tickets tend to fall into several demographics because of their varied personal interests. So the fanboy consumer model, even if inspired by hardcore fans, is an artificial construction used for marketing estimates.

[august]

Exactly - if enough "fans" - defined as people willing to spend cash money on a sci-fi or fantasy film as they have for, say, Avatar or The Avengers - then it will be hugely successful.

But that includes middle-aged suburbanites and older who don't buy merchandise and don't memorize trivia - they just enjoy a broad range of genres.