D&D Movie/TV Could D&D/MtG tv/movies replace Superhero movies?

[Henadic Theologian]

I mean in the sense of being the next big thing. I increasingly think Superhero movies and TV shows are slowly edging towards going the way of the Western. The MCU revenue has dropped 50%. DCU movies are in chaos, in part thanks to the antics of Ezra Miller.

Plus we've had a ton of these movies just dominating TV & Movies like decades now with piles more coming out in the next couple of years and honestly few of them look good or exciting.

D&D & MtG on hand are making money hand over fist. All it would take is for Honor Among Thieves & the MtG cartoons to be a moderate success, while Superhero movies and films continue to circle the drain, to begin the shift.

It was pretty clear Honor Among Thieves was taking shots as Superhero movies with "Who Needs Heroes When You Have Thieves" and "Exclusively in Threatres" which the WB and Disney don't really do anymore, at least for any real lengths of time.

 

[overgeeked]

I mean in the sense of being the next big thing.

Incredibly unlikely.

I increasingly think Superhero movies and TV shows are slowly edging towards going the way of the Western. The MCU revenue has dropped 50%. DCU movies are in chaos, in part thanks to the antics of Ezra Miller.

You're right about that. That kind of pattern occurs in most formulaic genres that stick too closely to their tropes and don't innovate.

Plus we've had a ton of these movies just dominating TV & Movies like decades now...

Iron Man came out in 2008. It's 2022. It's been...14 years. They didn't really start "dominating" until...what, the first Avengers film in 2012...so 10 years ago. The TV shows really started in 2013...so less than a decade.

with piles more coming out in the next couple of years and honestly few of them look good or exciting.

I'm usually lukewarm on the Marvel shows, but I'm incredibly excited by the She-Hulk series. It looks great. Very reminiscent of the comics. The What If? cartoon is also fantastic. But then it was also one of my favorite comics.

D&D & MtG on hand are making money hand over fist. All it would take is for Honor Among Thieves & the MtG cartoons to be a moderate success, while Superhero movies and films continue to circle the drain, to begin the shift.

LOL.

It was pretty clear Honor Among Thieves was taking shots as Superhero movies with "Who Needs Heroes When You Have Thieves" and "Exclusively in Threatres" which the WB and Disney don't really do anymore, at least for any real lengths of time.

Um...might be the whole global pandemic thing you're apparently forgetting about.

 

[payn]

It's possible, but I wouldn't bet on it.

 

[Tonguez]

Well Fantasy movies had a popular run in the 1980s with Conan, Legend, Willow, Dragonheart, Ladyhawke, Krull, Beastmaster, Neverending Story, Gor etc etc

so if the DnD movie is good and with Rings of Power and the Willow sequel on its way, we could indeed be looking at a Fantasy revival that WotC would be wise to cash in on. Maybe not a DnDCU but they should certainly ramp up for some licencing deals

 

[Azzy]

I'm fairly optimistic about the movie being enjoyable, but I think that it's unlikely to be such a grand slam that it spawns an MCU-like franchise. That's a little too pie in the sky.

 

[Oofta]

I think superhero genre does feel a bit played out in a way. Every movie has to be bigger and flashier than the last. Heck, Batgirl just got canceled even though it was done filming reportedly because it wasn't big enough.

Does that give fantasy an opening? Maybe? More likely, the MCU was just a lucky phenomena that can't be replicated.

I'm looking forward to the movie, it looks fun. I think it looks like it will be successful. Just not sure it (or any foreseeable movie franchise) will be that big a deal.

 

[Scribe]

I mean in the sense of being the next big thing.

Even my parents (and I'm in my 40s) know comic characters, D&D? Nope, and MTG Planeswalkers? 0% chance.

 

[grimslade]

Well, are we talking DC superhero movies or Marvel? I think we are in a bit of a fantasy media glut right now. We have Wheel of Time, The Witcher, GoT House of the Dragon, LotR The Rings of Power, Willow, and a D&D movie. I would call the quality of this era of fantasy shows to be mixed, but better than Xena and Hercules days. Every fantasy production will be compared to the Lord of the Rings trilogy (not you filthy Hobbitses movies!) or early Game of Thrones. Maybe Rings of Power will be really good. Maybe House of the Dragon will. WoT was meh. GoT went down in flaming dung. I enjoy Witcher but can see its flaws. Plus the fun thing about fantasy is the differences in world-building, so continuity for an overarching series is difficult. Dumbledore, Gandalf, and Mordenkainen form the League of Pretentious Bearded Magic to take down Voldemort riding Tiamat above an army of Trollocs does not sound terribly appealing. So we are left with a bunch of individual projects that may get another season or a sequel if they are entertaining.

 

[bedir than]

The MCU revenue has dropped 50%

As long as you ignore D+ signups and the pandemic, sure, maybe

 

[EzekielRaiden]

Replace? Unlikely.

I could see them effectively becoming part of the overall "superhero" genre though, since player-character-type people are essentially superheroes in a fantasy setting. The big issue will be making sure there's enough cultural cachet to launch the product. Superman and Batman draw the crowds in part because everyone knows who Superman and Batman are.