Neo. The Only. The One.
THE ONE
'Batman V Superman' Should Be Marketed As 'Man Of Steel 2,' Not A 'Justice League' Prelude
‘Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice’ image courtesy of Warner Bros.
Zack Snyder has been making the interview rounds to promote the “Crash the Super Bowl“ Doritos contest in which he is participating and has been dropping random tidbits about Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. I’m not going to dissect every word, but there was a tidbit in an interview with Canoe yesterday that caught my eye. When asked about the status of a second Man of Steel movie, rumors regarding which have been bouncing around the Internet for a few weeks (“George Miller will direct!” “It would’ve starred Supergirl and Brainiac!” “Etc., Etc!.”), Synder exclaimed “I think in a way Batman v Superman is Man of Steel 2.” Now others, including Henry Cavill, have been on record in the past saying that Dawn of Justice is less of a Superman sequel and more of its own separate thing. But, even with rumors concerning Ben Affleck’s Batman taking over the movie floating around, there is genuine value in continuing to pump the notion that Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is indeed a Man of Steel sequel with a bunch of added value elements as opposed to something akin to a Justice League backdoor pilot.
I wrote a few months back that it was in Walt Disney DIS -0.98% interest to sell the upcoming Captain America: Civil War not as a glorified Avengers 2.5 or an Iron Man 4, but rather as a straight-up Captain America 3. The reason for that was simple. The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and Iron Man 3 all made over $1 billion worldwide while Captain America: The Winter Soldier made a “mere” $714 million worldwide last year. If the media and the pundit class treats the upcoming Marvel sequel as a glorified Avengers movie, that will increase the film’s box office expectations, perhaps to a level that the film cannot quite reach. It would be great if the film played like an Avengers chapter. But it is just as likely that the film, which stars Steve Rogers and features appearances by Tony Stark and pretty much every major Marvel character along with first-time appearances by Spider-Man and Black Panther, will merely play like a third Captain America film and thus perform just a bit better than The Winter Soldier.
Regardless of how naive that may sound to you, Disney does not want the film going out next May with the bar for success being at the level of an Avengers picture or an Iron Man sequel. I would argue the same situation applies to Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Yes, there is hope that this Batman/Superman/Wonder Woman superhero smackdown will absolutely crush the worldwide box office when it drops on March 25th, 2016. But we should remember that Man of Steel, with all the hype in the world and a token connection to the Dark Knight trilogy (thanks to Chris Nolan serving as a producer) ended up with “only” $668m worldwide. Without dismissing those who genuinely liked and vigorously defended the Superman reboot, the general reception was one of relative indifference. The film barely made more than Thor: The Dark World, which was considered a glorified “time out” entry in the Marvel Phase 2 narrative.
That’s why Warner Bros./Time Warner TWX +0.00% Inc. tossed Batman into the would-be sequel along with Wonder Woman, Lex Luthor, and would-be cameos by Aquaman and possibly The Flash. Yet it’s quite possible that the realistic box office expectations for Dawn of Justice are more in line with “better than Man of Steel” as opposed to “ better than The Dark Knight Rises.” But the more than the filmmakers and studio heads try to distance themselves from Man of Steel, the more the film comes off like a would-be Justice League backdoor pilot and/or a new Batman movie. That’s fine and all, but that also creates a much higher level of expectations for would-be global box office success. I have not seen Dawn of Justice, and I have no idea how it will be received here and abroad. But I would argue that it would be in Warner Bros.’ interest to stress that it is in-fact a Man of Steel sequel and should be held to that specific standard in terms of the box office narrative.
If Man of Steel made $668 million worldwide in 2013, then logically a $750m or $800m total for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice would be seen as a marked improvement and thus a relative triumph (same as Thor: Ragnarok). But if Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is viewed as a glorified Justice League dry run, or even as a stand-alone Batman movie in this current box office environment, the expectations will be that much higher for what constitutes success. Again, that may sound like underestimating to the point of naivety, but Warner does not want a situation where anything under $1 billion is viewed as a disappointment. Of course, over the long haul, having a movie that connects with audiences and gets them excited about the next ten movies coming down the pike is more important than hitting an arbitrary benchmark, but that’s for another day.
I have no idea if Snyder’s comments were merely in reaction to the discussions about a would-be Man of Steel 2, rumors about Batman taking over the movie (and the DC cinematic universe as a whole), or merely an honest attempt to set the record straight. And frankly I don’t care. But, as much as Warner Bros. and company want to tout their upcoming superhero team-up movie as the first big shot in their new DC Comics franchise, they may well be looking at a movie that is merely received as a Man of Steel 2. However unlikely that scenario may seem to you or me, it is still possible and thus it is beneficial for the proverbial powers-that-be to temper expectations accordingly. As such, it is to their benefit for Warner to promote Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice as a glorified Man of Steel 2. After all, if the movie does clear $1 billion worldwide, it is better to be looked at as a surprise, a major accomplishment, or a 49% jump from Man of Steel, than as business as usual.
'Batman V Superman' Should Be Marketed As 'Man Of Steel 2,' Not A 'Justice League' Prelude
I agree.
‘Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice’ image courtesy of Warner Bros.
Zack Snyder has been making the interview rounds to promote the “Crash the Super Bowl“ Doritos contest in which he is participating and has been dropping random tidbits about Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. I’m not going to dissect every word, but there was a tidbit in an interview with Canoe yesterday that caught my eye. When asked about the status of a second Man of Steel movie, rumors regarding which have been bouncing around the Internet for a few weeks (“George Miller will direct!” “It would’ve starred Supergirl and Brainiac!” “Etc., Etc!.”), Synder exclaimed “I think in a way Batman v Superman is Man of Steel 2.” Now others, including Henry Cavill, have been on record in the past saying that Dawn of Justice is less of a Superman sequel and more of its own separate thing. But, even with rumors concerning Ben Affleck’s Batman taking over the movie floating around, there is genuine value in continuing to pump the notion that Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is indeed a Man of Steel sequel with a bunch of added value elements as opposed to something akin to a Justice League backdoor pilot.
I wrote a few months back that it was in Walt Disney DIS -0.98% interest to sell the upcoming Captain America: Civil War not as a glorified Avengers 2.5 or an Iron Man 4, but rather as a straight-up Captain America 3. The reason for that was simple. The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and Iron Man 3 all made over $1 billion worldwide while Captain America: The Winter Soldier made a “mere” $714 million worldwide last year. If the media and the pundit class treats the upcoming Marvel sequel as a glorified Avengers movie, that will increase the film’s box office expectations, perhaps to a level that the film cannot quite reach. It would be great if the film played like an Avengers chapter. But it is just as likely that the film, which stars Steve Rogers and features appearances by Tony Stark and pretty much every major Marvel character along with first-time appearances by Spider-Man and Black Panther, will merely play like a third Captain America film and thus perform just a bit better than The Winter Soldier.
Regardless of how naive that may sound to you, Disney does not want the film going out next May with the bar for success being at the level of an Avengers picture or an Iron Man sequel. I would argue the same situation applies to Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Yes, there is hope that this Batman/Superman/Wonder Woman superhero smackdown will absolutely crush the worldwide box office when it drops on March 25th, 2016. But we should remember that Man of Steel, with all the hype in the world and a token connection to the Dark Knight trilogy (thanks to Chris Nolan serving as a producer) ended up with “only” $668m worldwide. Without dismissing those who genuinely liked and vigorously defended the Superman reboot, the general reception was one of relative indifference. The film barely made more than Thor: The Dark World, which was considered a glorified “time out” entry in the Marvel Phase 2 narrative.
That’s why Warner Bros./Time Warner TWX +0.00% Inc. tossed Batman into the would-be sequel along with Wonder Woman, Lex Luthor, and would-be cameos by Aquaman and possibly The Flash. Yet it’s quite possible that the realistic box office expectations for Dawn of Justice are more in line with “better than Man of Steel” as opposed to “ better than The Dark Knight Rises.” But the more than the filmmakers and studio heads try to distance themselves from Man of Steel, the more the film comes off like a would-be Justice League backdoor pilot and/or a new Batman movie. That’s fine and all, but that also creates a much higher level of expectations for would-be global box office success. I have not seen Dawn of Justice, and I have no idea how it will be received here and abroad. But I would argue that it would be in Warner Bros.’ interest to stress that it is in-fact a Man of Steel sequel and should be held to that specific standard in terms of the box office narrative.
If Man of Steel made $668 million worldwide in 2013, then logically a $750m or $800m total for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice would be seen as a marked improvement and thus a relative triumph (same as Thor: Ragnarok). But if Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is viewed as a glorified Justice League dry run, or even as a stand-alone Batman movie in this current box office environment, the expectations will be that much higher for what constitutes success. Again, that may sound like underestimating to the point of naivety, but Warner does not want a situation where anything under $1 billion is viewed as a disappointment. Of course, over the long haul, having a movie that connects with audiences and gets them excited about the next ten movies coming down the pike is more important than hitting an arbitrary benchmark, but that’s for another day.
I have no idea if Snyder’s comments were merely in reaction to the discussions about a would-be Man of Steel 2, rumors about Batman taking over the movie (and the DC cinematic universe as a whole), or merely an honest attempt to set the record straight. And frankly I don’t care. But, as much as Warner Bros. and company want to tout their upcoming superhero team-up movie as the first big shot in their new DC Comics franchise, they may well be looking at a movie that is merely received as a Man of Steel 2. However unlikely that scenario may seem to you or me, it is still possible and thus it is beneficial for the proverbial powers-that-be to temper expectations accordingly. As such, it is to their benefit for Warner to promote Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice as a glorified Man of Steel 2. After all, if the movie does clear $1 billion worldwide, it is better to be looked at as a surprise, a major accomplishment, or a 49% jump from Man of Steel, than as business as usual.
'Batman V Superman' Should Be Marketed As 'Man Of Steel 2,' Not A 'Justice League' Prelude
I agree.
This a Forbes contributor article.
