The Art Of The Perfect Crossover Movie
1. Balance And Timing Are Key
Knowing when to pull the trigger on a crossover is key to making the movie feel like a big deal.
While Warner Bros. rushed to a Superman/Batman/Wonder Woman film after just two entries in their shared DCEU realm, the polar opposite of this was the approach taken by Marvel Studios and Disney with the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
In the MCU, it gave solo movies to Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, Captain America, and then a second Iron Man picture which introduced Black Widow, before we got to see all of these heroes come together in the sixth film in the MCU.
Since that first Avengers movie, the MCU has gone on to deliver a further 17 films, with several of those being crossover affairs. And when those crossovers have arrived, the emotional investment in these characters and their ever-expanding world means that the films strike a chord in a way never before seen from any sort of crossover.
The decisions on when to have these heroes reunite to fight a common foe (or each other!) is hugely important to the appeal of such pictures, but another key element to the success of these crossovers is managing to balance such a large roster of characters in a way that gives each of them purpose and makes them feel like a big deal within this shared world - and if someone takes a bit of a backseat in one crossover movie, they'll always be given a larger role to play in another team-up offering.
Balance, timing, and the care to construct engaging characters are all such important factors in a successful crossover - and Marvel Studios/Disney have those elements absolutely nailed!