What a great time to be a comic book movie fan! 2011 will undoubtedly be the most important year for superhero films; ever. Who would've thought that a little over ten years after Bryan Singer's
X-Men revitalized Hollywood's interest in super-powered crime fighters, we would be getting a summer filled with big-budget blockbusters that
won't showcase Batman, Superman or Spider-Man.
Marvel Studios has their one-two combo of
Thor and
The First Avenger: Captain America scheduled to be released only two months apart. DC Entertainment isn't sitting around waiting for Chris Nolan to finish off his Batman trilogy; their epic space adventure
Green Lantern will be released right between the two Marvel films. Think of it as the cream in a superhero Oreo cookie (I f*cking love Oreos).
After getting over the sheer excitement that these films are actually becoming a reality, you should take a step back and understand the inevitable risk that both studios are taking. Marvel Studios has close to a billion dollars vested into their first three independent projects,
Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and
Iron Man 2 already released plus their two currently in production.
Thor and
Captain America are the final two pieces to their
Avengers movie puzzle; a film that fans that could revolutionize the ensemble cast standard. If, for whatever reason, these films don't dominate their respective release timeframes and fail to meet certain set box office expectations, it's very likely Marvel will be hesitant to go full force on the
The Avenger.
It shouldn't be hard for them to make their mark, should it? Two highly-marketed superhero films being released back to back should definitely accrue plenty of worldwide interest.
But wait. . . there's more. Enter DC's
Green Lantern movie; which is the first time Warner Bros is top billing a superhero that
isn't the Man of Steel or the Dark Knight. You can guaran-damn-tee that if this film doesn't blow their box office expectations out of the water, the hope for Flash, Wonder Woman or (dare I say) Justice League movies is slim to none.
These three movies couldn't be MORE different from each other. Not only their characters and story lines, but their target audience. It's a given that every fanboy and girl will flock to theaters to see these films, but we make up a small portion of ticket sales. You have the Action movie genre (Indiana Jones), the Fantasy genre (Lord of the Rings), the Science Fiction genre (Star Trek) and many others; not including the random moviegoers who will see a film just because of the actors in it. How can you accurately gauge the possible success of a film when there has yet to be an official film clip or even promotional image released for it? You can't; but you use the information available to make a few educated assumptions. You'd be kidding yourself if you don't think the studios do that already.
I haven't taken the time to sit back and analyze the data yet. But I can't think of a better way to do it than alongside the members of the ComicBookMovie community. Below I've amassed what I believe to be the current information that can be used to hypothesize which of these three films will come out on top during the summer 2011 season. Now that you have the details, which do you think will reign supreme?
THOR Date: May 6th, 2011
Budget: est. $150 million US
Theater Release: Conventional, IMAX
Synopsis The Mighty Thor, a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth and forced to live among humans as punishment. Once here, Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth.
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Main Cast: Chris Hemsworth
Natalie Portman
Anthony Hopkins
Tom Hiddleston
Target Genres: Comic Book
Fantasy
Action
Largest Opening Weekend Gross (May) Spider-Man 3 $151,116,516
Shrek the Third $121,629,270
Spider-Man $114,844,116
Green Lantern Date: June 17th, 2011
Budget: est. $200 million US
Theater Release: Conventional, 3D, IMAX
Synopsis A test pilot named Hal Jordan is granted a green ring that bestows him with otherworldly powers. It also gives him membership in an intergalactic police force called the Green Lantern Corps, tasked with keeping peace within the universe.
Director: Martin Campbell
Main Cast: Ryan Reynolds
Mark Strong
Blake Lively
Peter Sarsgaard
Target Genres: Comic Book
Science Fiction
Action
Largest Opening Weekend Gross (June) Transformer: Revenge of the Fallen $108,966,307
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban $93,687,
WALL-E $63,087,526
*Don't get confused by the names, this fan poster on the left was made before the full cast was officially announced.
The First Avenger: Captain America Date: July 22nd, 2011
Budget: est. $160 million US
Theater Release: Conventional, IMAX
Synopsis A sickly young man by the name of Steve Rogers volunteers to participate in an experimental military program during World War II that turns him into the Super Soldier known as Captain America.
Director: Joe Johnston
Main Cast: Chris Evans
Sebastian Stan
Hugo Weaving
Hayley Atwell
Target Genres: Comic Book
War/Military
Action
Largest Opening Weekend Gross (July) The Dark Knight $158,411,483
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest $135,634,554
Spider-Man 2 $88,156,227
Information courtesy of The Numbers, Marvel and Warner Bros