The Future of the Franchise Culture in Hollywood

With the overview of the 2023 cinematic landscape seemingly upsetting the franchise culture that has been the status quo for nearly 2 decades. Could the cinematic tides be shifting?.

A look at the top 10 box office hits of 2023 does in fact show a 50/50 split between franchise films and singular entries.

While on the surface the argument can still be made that the franchise culture is still very much alive. An important thing to note is that no franchise film makes the top 3, as the closest being GOTG Vol. 3 comes in at number 4. With that movie in particular currently being the only bright spot for a now bleak MCU.

Because of this, autuer filmmaker, Martin Scorsese whose disdain for franchise culture particularly towards the MCU is no secret. Has hopped on this trend, clearly touting this as the way forward and a way to save cinemas. As if to say, cinemas were ever in danger simply because superheroes and CGI plagued our screens for the better part of the last 2 decades.

Whether or not, the franchise culture is a danger to cinemas is wholly based on subjective taste.

However, with the current disinterest in both most of the Marvel and Star Wars endeavours, the reformation of the DC brand as a whole and the struggle for relevance by both the Mission Impossible and Transformers franchises. The franchise culture is seemingly becoming a losing game for Hollywood.

However, some bright spots remain as the Fast and Furious films shows that loyalty exist. And the auteuristic executions of Avatar and Spider-verse films also shows that the importance of fresh & credible ideas can’t be overstated.

In finality, is the franchise culture dead?. Absolutely not. However, the waning prospects does show that it’s becoming harder for audiences to stay invested in long form stories. Especially if the execution is sorely lacking.

Because in an era [of cinema] that is constantly being plagued with franchise projects every other day of the week. Consumers are getting overstuffed and as unpleasant as it might be, studios might have to begin reworking their strategy.
In other to sustain the interest of a dynamic audience.