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Message: <blockquote data-quote="pickin_grinnin" data-source="post: 6299695" data-attributes="member: 6697674">There are probably fewer people these days who are familiar with the Norse myths than are at least passingly familiar with the existence of the Marvel character.  Such is the power of marketing and the sad decline in knowledge about mythology and ancient cultures.There is a certain degree of general cultural knowledge about Iron Man, Thor, and many of the others you listed.  Even if there wasn't, the basis of the movies was on particular characters that are fairly unique (in movie terms) with an existing fan base.There is a general cultural knowledge of D&D as a game, but D&D itself isn't built around particular characters and stories.  It's a framework for people to create those things.  WotC could construct a set of characters with strong stories set in a well-defined world and sell that as a movie (if they didn't make it derivative and hokey), but right now those things don't exist with D&D.  If they did a "Dark Sun" movie with some strong characters (just to pick one setting), for example, they could use that as a brand that included an rpg setting, comics, movies, a TV show, etc.  The basis of the brand would be the specific world and characters, though, not the game from which they were derived.Specific stories, settings, and characters - like the ones you mentioned above - are far more marketable in movie terms than the D&D property itself.  WotC will need to zoom in on a particular setting and character set to market at first, though.  The big question is which will be marketable to the most people in the general public.  One that is very Tolkien-ish is less likely to work than one that is more original and unique.A huge number of people in the U.S. recognize Wolverine, Captain America, Superman, Batman, etc.  Wolverine has been around for decades, and the others have been around much longer, so anybody who read comics at any point in their youth will be familiar with the most common characters and the longest-running teams (particularly the Avengers, FF, Justice League, and X-Men).  Iron Man has been around for as long as Marvel comics has existed.  His comics may not have always been the most popular, but chances are high that most men who were born in the 60s or more recently could at least see a picture of the character and say "that's Iron Man," even before the movies came out.  They may not have ever read Iron Man comics, but the basic cultural knowledge is there, at least in the U.S.Most people in the general public couldn't tell you which particular comic company owns which character, though.  The majority of non-fanboy types that go to superhero movies go to see a specific character (probably from a limited list), or more commonly are attracted by an interesting trailer (like with "Guardians of the Galaxy.")  They aren't going because it is a "Marvel Superhero" or a "DC Superhero" movie.  At most, they're going because it's a "superhero" movie.I see the same thing in my library every day.  More people ask for book series by naming the main character, rather than the author.   They ask for the newest Sookie Stackhouse, Lincoln Rhyme, or Jack Reacher book.  A surprisingly large number don't really know anything about the author, beyond his or her name (if that).  Very, very few know (or care) if the series is put out by Dell, or Random House, etc.  Many absolutely love one particular series that an author puts out, but have absolutely NO interest in the author's other series, even if they are in the same genre and have the same writing style.  They are most interested in the character.  A tremendous number of people decide whether to check out or buy a book (or not) based on the cover art.  A frighteningly large number of people will only read a book - ANY book - if it is on a bestseller list or (mostly for women) if a friend recommends it.  All that surprised me at first, but after 3 years of working in a bookstore and 11 as a librarian I realized that it is more the norm than the exception.</blockquote>

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