2012: the year the movie universe sparked, Universal struggled, and young adult adaptations really took off…
The big blockbusters of summer 2011 were the ones that followed fairly straightforward rules.
Yet it was 2012 that, in different ways, shook things up.
Ad content continues below
So heres what happened… For, lets be clear, from the off,Twilightmovies were making enormous amounts of money.
But its never the first in a new trend that proves whether a new approach is here to stay.
It tends to be the second.
The massive success ofThe Hunger Gameshad a few knock-on ramifications.
Also, it transformed Lionsgate.
And with another studio in the market for tentpole movies, thats increased competitiveness in subsequent summers still further.
More than anything, though,The Hunger Gamesopened the young adult floodgates.
And many, many more are following in their path.
The biggest error surroundedBattleship.
Firstly, it didnt help that the film wasnt great.
It couldnt shake the biggest question surrounding making aBattleshipmovie why?
and nor did it ever feel as though Universal wasnt just trying to borrow another studios tactics.
Worst of all, though, the studio horrendously underestimated the competition.
Mind you, the negative alone was just over $200m.
However, it held back the release ofBattleshipin the US until after that ofThe Avengers.
But Universals tricky summer wasnt done.
More troublesome though was its other supposed franchise starter,Snow White And The Huntsman.
Here, it felt like Universal was boarding another bandwagon, in this case the live action fairytale.
Universal has since refocused.
Furthermore, Universal has also invested in low cost, high return comedies.
Last year it was Seth Rogen and Nicholas StollersNeighbors.
This year, its got Judd ApatowsTrainwreckscheduled for slap bang in the middle of summer.
Its learned some keen lessons about where to place its chips, and has proceeded accordingly.
Thats already brought it two Guillermo del Toro movies Crimson PeakandPacific Rim 2 whilst Duncan JonesWarcraftis due next year.
All the while, Universal has tightened its deal with Jason Blums micro-budget outfit, Blumhouse Productions.
As such,The Purge 3is a year away.
Oh, and Matt Damon has been signed back to the Bourne films.
Meanwhile, plans forBattleship 2have been quietly filed… Sure, stars are out there, but theyre not being sold as the sole attraction any more.
That, and George Clooney inTomorrowland, although in truth, its not really his film.
In specific reference toPixels, the providing of a safety net to go with Sandlers involvement isnt much surprise.
That was down on previous Sandler comedy vacuums certainly, but still profitable.
Yet summer 2012sThats My Boywas a surprise flop.
UK residents must have gone to the movies in search of a comedy that week.
Considering it was the reunion of Sandler with Drew Barrymore, box office gold was expected.
But it did not come.
Tom Cruise too came a cropper in summer 2012.
Its not like they cancelled his premiere invitation.
Even now, outside ofMission: Impossible, Cruises star name only works in certain parts of the world.
The excellentEdge Of Tomorrows marketability didnt seem aided much by Cruises mug on the poster.
This summer, look at the size of his name on theMission: Impossible Rogue Nationposter.
The titles the winner then.
Font sizes matter, friends.
2012 was the year that Jennifer Lawrence became a flat out movie star, after all.
But this is a new era of movie star, and summer 2015 reflects that.
But then 2012 was already pointing the way towards a return of the R-rating for seriously commercial fare.
Granted,Magic Mikes low budget under $10m made it less of a risk.
Especially for comedies, and we continue to see the ramifications of that now.
Interestingly, though, it wasnt just the cheaper films breaking through.
Quentin TarantinosDjango Unchainedwas a $100m production, a western running to two and a half hours.
It took $162m in America alone, and is Tarantinos biggest hit to date.
Edgier action fare such asSafe Housealso banked big money, whilePrometheus powered by theAlienfranchise scored $400m worldwide.
Expect a good three or four of those to comfortably bring in $100m in American money.
In a few years time, could we see a film such asPrometheussneak into PG-13 we wonder?
As it stands, in the US, the PG rating is barely seen outside of animation.
PG-13 almost seems to be the law.
A lesson firmly cemented in 2012, but not by the most obvious example.
Thatd beIce Age: Continental Drift.
Expect fewer blockbusters to actually be set in the US at this rate.
And expect moreIce Agefilms.
This, of course, is the big one.
ButThe Avengerswas the massive gamble.
Could a film work that brought multiple heroes together under one roof?
And would that translate to box office gold?
And if it hadnt already been shot, that fired the starting pistol for everyone elses cinematic universes.
Now, in 2015, you cant move for studios trying to put their own into place.
2012 saw the pinnacle of the new approach, and also the trouble with the standard reboot model.
Marc WebbsThe Amazing Spider-Manfelt like it existed as a result of a business decision.
It got worse for Spider-Man of course; in 2014, as Sony Spideyverse plans crumbled.
WithThe Avengers, that happened.
These were unthinkable numbers for comic book movies back at the start of 2012.
Warner Bros for one will be expecting something close to that level forBatman V Supermannext year.
If that lands at under $1bn, it may even staggeringly be considered a disappointment.
The big lesson of summer 2012 is that well planned movie universes can work.
If it all hits?
This is the new working manual through until the end of the decade at least…
