12 Major Problems With Today's Blockbuster Movies
1. A Severe Lack Of Originality
Sequels and franchises are the lifeblood of the movie business. These are the projects that generate countless billions for the studios, and Hollywood's higher-ups are reluctant to give massive budgets to original features because they don't come with name recognition or merchandising potential, which has led to a severe lack of originality at the multiplex during the summer months.
At the time of writing, the five highest-grossing movies of 2017 so far are Disney's live action update of their own animated adaptation of an 18th Century fairy tale, the eighth installment of the Fast and Furious franchise, the fifteenth entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the tenth movie featuring X-Men characters and the eighth movie to feature King Kong, who first appeared on the big screen 84 years ago. Originality be damned.
It can hardly be said that the method doesn't yield results; out of the 100 highest-grossing movies in history, only sixteen are not sequels, reboots, spin-offs or adaptations. Why would studios want to create original stories when dipping back into the well has proven so consistently lucrative?
Modern blockbuster cinema is geared towards the franchise model and built-in audience appeal, which is the reason for the lack of originality from the industry's marquee efforts. If a project fails, then it will either get a reboot or a spin-off, such is the cyclical nature of Hollywood.
However, this model can only sustain itself for so long before audience apathy begins to set in, with the constant cycle of sequels, reboots and remakes dragging the studio system ever closer to creative bankruptcy.