This week, Disney announced three (possibly four?) high-profile sequels and everyone goes..."ooooh.....aaaaaah". Well, there is obviously some excitement here. But, it just goes to show how overly-saturated the marketplace is getting with these franchises.
First, Disney is capitalizing on the opportunity with their acquisition of Lucasfilm from a couple years ago by releasing three Star Wars movies within 18 months of each other (umm, can we get time to breathe, please?). Yes, I saw and was very impressed with the Episode VII trailer. And, like everyone else, will buy a ticket to see it. J.J Abrams (Star Trek) is directing. Then, they announced a spin-off, now officially-named Rogue One, to be released in December 2016, and directed by Gareth Edwards (Godzilla). And just yesterday, they added that Episode VIII will follow over Memorial Day Weekend in 2017. That's just too soon guys. Just when we're getting the DVD for the spin-off, we get the next movie. And we thought the wait between The Hunger Games movies was kinda short.
So, I'm guessing Episode IX will follow in 2019, and a second spin-off movie to precede that? Its just a lot to get down and a lot of filming and money to spend. But for more die-hard Star Wars fans, how lucky can anyone get? I am good with a large number of movies for any franchise, but over-saturating the marketplace is never a good idea. (just ask Marvel and DC)
Next, there's Pixar, who hasn't quite figured out whether to go with original movies or sequels. Generally, their sequels have been a mixed bag critically (Toy Story 2 and 3 were major successes, Monsters University increased from the first movie box office-wise, but missed out on an Oscar nomination, and Cars 2 was a critical disappointment). Now, my excitement can't be contained for Finding Dory, as the first movie is one of the best Pixar has ever done. But, Toy Story 4 in 2017? Really?? They ended the franchise right with the third movie. Why continue? But, Pixar is known for making great movies, so I'm confident they will make a good one here. But still, even with Inside Out and The Good Dinosaur out this year, you have to wonder if they are running out of original ideas.
Then finally, Disney Animation is breaking their streak of making original animated movies (since The Rescuers Down Under in 1990, and this does not count DisneyToon Studios' direct-to-DVD sequels) to pursue, Frozen 2. This was confirmed yesterday. Yes, Frozen was a terrific movie. But, like Toy Story, ending the story right doesn't matter. Just building off of that gargantuan $1.3 billion worldwide gross. The first movie ended at a point which sort-of eliminated the possibility of a sequel (Frozen Fever, the new short airing with Cinderella, stands all by itself, and isn't really a sequel, just a birthday party for a main character). I'm not all furious about this news, I'll still go see a sequel to this (and I am excited about the short), but it's a head-scratcher of a move for Disney.
So, with all these sequels and fairy tales (not to mention superheroes, Jedis and maybe even some animals [hinting at Zootopia next Spring]), will this possibly lead to over-cannibalizing the marketplace in general? Time will tell.
