Comic book movies are absolutely huge at the moment – nobody can deny that. The Marvel Cinematic Universe is the highest-grossing movie franchise of all time, five comic book movies have grossed over $1 billion (something only twenty-three movies in total have ever done) and seven of the top fifty highest-grossing movies ever made have been comic book offerings.
However, some people still think that the genre’s bubble will burst very soon – after all, up until the end of the 1990s/the start of the new millennium, comic book movies weren’t really very popular, prominent or frequent at all.
That being said, here at DailySuperheroes.com, we can’t see the genre ever dying – and we certainly hope it doesn’t. There are too many factors in the genre’s favour for it to ever disappear permanently and that’s what this article is going to be about. Here are ten reasons the comic book movie genre will never die…
A Huge History Of Source Material
When you ask people which comic book story arcs they’d like to see adapted on the big screen, they’ll give you a huge variety of answers; Planet Hulk, World War Hulk, Final Crisis, The Death of Superman, House of M, Kraven’s Last Hunt, Secret Wars, Hush, Flashpoint and Siege are just some of the stories you’ll hear them tell you.
The reason you’ll get such varied answers from different people is because the history of comic books is teaming with epic stories. There are enough comic book stories arcs already in existence to effectively keep the comic book movie genre going forever!
Even if Marvel, DC, Image, Dark Horse and company were to stop publishing comic books right now, movie producers would never run out of material to work with.
Ongoing Source Material
In addition to a rich history of brilliant comic book storylines, there are also a number of ongoing arcs and series that will be well worth using as source material for movies in the future.
The current Hawkeye, Ms. Marvel and Thor comic books are all fantastic, for example, and will surely influence the production of comic book movies in the future.
Amidst the classic storylines, it’s easy to forget that some of the stuff being published right now could easily go on to be just as iconic – but the fact is that scripts for future movies really are writing themselves right now, as we speak, in the form of countless brilliant ongoing comic book titles.
New Material Will Adapt Accordingly
The likes of Marvel and DC now know all too well that movies are a huge part of their respective brands – after all, both companies have had movies that have grossed more than $1 billion worldwide – so they won’t want to stop having their titles turned into live action productions.
Therefore, in the event that the comic book movie genre ever looks as though it is on the decline, both companies – and their nearest rivals, of course – will start to adapt their comic books accordingly.
Market research would go into finding out what kind of comic books the fans think would make good movies and the comic books themselves would start to reflect that. Then, with years of planning in place, the movies themselves will start to reflect the altered comic books. Simply put, there’s no way Marvel, DC and company will ever stop knowing what kind of movies their fans want, now that they know how lucrative their movies can be.
They’re Timeless
One very important thing about comic books is that they’re timeless and, as a result, so are the movies that are based on them.
Superman’s first appearance in a comic was in 1938, Batman’s was 1939, Spider-Man’s was 1962 and Iron Man’s was 1963 – and look at how insanely popular those characters still are today in both comic books and their movies. Heck, Captain America (first appearance 1941) was actually born in 1920 and took part in World War II, yet he is still adaptable in a modern movie. And look at the Watchmen – their comic book was set in an alternate 1980’s, but a great movie was made about them in this millennium nevertheless.
The very nature of these characters makes them always work in a modern setting. Minor details can be altered to make that possible in the trickier cases but, as a general rule, comic book characters will work on screen in any era – and that makes the comic book movie genre effectively immortal.
Female Superheroes
The comic book movie genre has been almost completely dominated by male characters – especially in terms of those in titular roles.
Since comic book movies started being made, only 1984’s Supergirl, 1995’s Tank Girl, 1996’s Barb Wire, 2004’s Catwoman and 2005’s Elektra have been released theatrically with a lone female headlining them (all of which were awful, without exception, incidentally). That being said, Wonder Woman will be released in 2017, Captain Marvel will be released in 2019 and the likes of Black Widow and Scarlet Witch are currently flying the flag for the females in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as part of the Avengers.
However, the surface has hardly been scratched. When you consider that everyone from Superman to Spider-Man, Iron Man to Batman, Wolverine to Green Lantern, Spawn to the Hulk, Ghost Rider to the Mask, Steel to the Phantom, Howard the Duck to the Spirit, Jonah Hex to the Crow, Hellboy to Thor, Daredevil to the Shadow, Captain America to Green Hornet and Judge Dredd to Ant-Man have had their own movies, the females are really lagging behind. They represent a whole new area to explore on a live action movie basis – and that could last for a hell of long time on its own when you consider how long the males have been carrying the genre.
Big Actors Now WANT To Play Comic Book Characters
There was a time when the idea of a top, top actor portraying a comic book movie character was laughable. Back in the early days of the genre, it happened rarely. Then, it went on to be seen as a coup. Now, it’s totally commonplace and the best actors in the world are now actively pursuing roles in the genre.
With the likes of Robert Downey, Jr., Sir Ian McKellen, Sir Patrick Stewart, Sir Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Jeff Bridges, Scarlett Johansson, Emma Stone and Jamie Foxx having appeared in comic book movies, it’s becoming respectable and trendy to appear in them and the genre is no longer seen as a campy popcorn joke like it used to be.
Stars set to appear in future comic book movies include the likes of Benedict Cumberbatch, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Channing Tatum, Tilda Swinton and Chiwetel Ejiofor, while the likes of Eddie Redmayne and Jake Gyllenhaal have openly expressed their interest in the genre. With such star power behind them, comic book movies really aren’t going anywhere.
It’s Taking Over Television
Very few movie franchises have ever spun-off canonically on to the television, but the Marvel Cinematic Universe has done so with several shows so far. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Agent Carter and Daredevil are already airing, while Jessica Jones is days away, and Luke Cage, Iron Fist, The Defenders and Damage Control are all planned.
Once a genre gets on television and into people’s homes, you can expect it to be a mainstay – and it will continue to bring in new fans episode by episode.
Moreover, while DC don’t actually have any television shows directly connected to their movies, they are certainly contributing to the live action comic book adaptation hype with a number of shows, including Flash, Arrow, Gotham and Supergirl. The existence and future planning of all these series is a sure-fire sign that the genre as an entity isn’t going anywhere.
There Are Several Genres Within The Genre
It might sound like a silly sentence, but comic book movies don’t actually have to be comic book movies. Although some might say that the comic book movie genre is a sub-genre itself (perhaps of science fiction), the fact is that there are plenty of other genres hidden within comic book movies.
Take Captain America: The Winter Soldier for instance – it was a brilliant example of conspiracy fiction. Take Guardians of the Galaxy – it was an awesome space opera. Take The Dark Knight – it’s a truly superb thriller. There are numerous other examples.
Essentially, the comic book movie genre will never die because it can always take on the form of countless other genres. If audiences get bored of them, movie producers can quite easily turn them into something else entirely.
Comic Books Aren’t Just About Superheroes
When most people think of comic books, they think of costumed superheroes and eccentric megalomaniac supervillains. Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, Iron Man, Doctor Doom, Darkseid, Lex Luthor and The Joker – those are the character that generally springs to mind when you mention comics. But they’re not all like that at all.
You only have to see The Walking Dead – which is obviously an example of the zombie horror genre – to realise how versatile comic books are. Just look at how popular that has been as a television series. It’s proof that live adaptations of comic books can be a success without them including superheroes and the like.
Some great examples of recent non-superhero comic books that would make great movies include Saga (pictured above), which would make a truly wonderful space opera, Sex Criminals, which would make an awesomely bizarre erotic crime drama, Southern Bastards, which would make an absolutely incredible redneck exploitation movie and Punk Rock Jesus, which would make a really cool and satirical cinematic take on science-fiction and reality television.
It’s A Staple Part Of Hollywood
Seriously, the comic book genre of movies is now simply a staple part of Hollywood. It’s as much an established genre as any other and you don’t see people claiming any of those will disappear.
The idea of it disappearing completely is like suggesting that horror, romance, action or comedy movies will die a death – it’s ludicrous.
The amount of money being brought into the film industry by comic book movies means that the industry’s bigwigs simply won’t allow it to disappear. The most powerful and influential executives will work to ensure it stays fresh and doesn’t go anywhere – it’s simply far too lucrative to them as a genre to totally vanish.
What do you think? Will the comic book movie genre bubble ever burst? Have we got it right? Have your say below!
