Following Marvel’s incredible and unprecedented success with
the launching of the Marvel universe (through individual characters and the team
up—The Avengers), DC comics has been quite busy creating a strategic plan to kick
start its own lucrative franchise. The foundation to this plan starts with Man
of Steel—a reboot
The 2006 attempt—Superman Returns—at bringing back
the Son of Krypton was a moderate success and in the eyes of Warner was a disappointment.
In comparison to its high budget, the film was indeed a failure: only grossing $391
million worldwide with a $270 million budget. Several factors were the cause of
its failure. One possible factor is the excessively long hiatus from the
previous Superman film, which to be exact was more than 19 years. A lot of
things can happen in 19 years—one of which is memory loss! The sequel to
Christopher Reeve’s praised Superman would have surely lost audiences.
Moreover, the idea of a 19 year later sequel is clearly not appealing; it may
seem confusing to a few movie goers. So, any new fans were unlikely.
A modern reboot was the best option. News surrounding Man
of Steel’s new approach to modern audiences has often been repeated. This
same modernizing approach was used in Christopher Nolan’s Batman. The results
were staggeringly well with both The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight
Rises. With Nolan’s addition to production, the same should be expected
with Man of Steel. Several things have changed with the new reboot
including the “S” and the Superman costume (similar to The Amazing Spider-Man).
Although there have been changes to the superman symbol, it is still easily recognizable.
All posters and trailers emphasize this symbol in order to attract hard-core
superman fans and other “Superman knowers” (It is rather hard to find someone
who hasn’t heard of Superman). The renovated symbol is a great way to set it
apart from previous films but also establish itself as a Superman film.
The strong and aggressive marketing campaign that Warner Bros. has pulled
off should pay off. For 2013 summer’s movies, Man of Steel’s trailers counts
are only second to those of Iron Man 3. And recent reception of all trailers has
been overwhelming positive with excellent action sequences and dramatic scenes.
The ongoing theme of isolation (and the superman dream) is present in most of the
trailers possibly to interest people of all ages. Charged by well-known stars, Man
of Steel should easily do well in North America.
The most successful reboot to date is The Amazing Spider-Man
which grossed globally $752 million. Considering it as a stand-alone movie that
is impressive. However, it was a considerable decrease from Spider-Man 3’s $890
million. (Note that the Spider-Man reboot had the advantage of extra priced 3D
tickets). Other reboots barely broke the 400 million barrier. For example, Batman
Begins grossed $374 million with 55.7% of the total from North America. X-men:
First Class also grossed noticeably lower than X-Men 3. Moreover, Zack Snyder’s
recent failures with movies like The Legend of Guardians and Sucker
Punch don’t add to well to the situation.
Superman Returns’ performance in the box office
lowers any high expectations for Snyders’ Superman reboot. However, Man of
Steel’s restored style and impressive action sequences clearly call for
high blockbuster levels. The question of the billion dollar gross is rather
difficult to answer. The numbers just point towards “NO.” In fact the percentage
probability is at a low 20%. Although the numbers do present a difficulty films
do have a way of surprising many analysts—one recent example is Skyfall. Expect,
North American Forecast: $315 million
Non-North American Forecast: $440 million
Worldwide: $755 million
Non-North American Forecast: $440 million
Worldwide: $755 million
