The dominance of comic book movies in the last 15 years has changed the theatrical landscape for better or worse. While those films have made the business more vibrant, we also saw the decline of non-spectacle movies that get released in cinemas as studios prefer to prioritize tentpole projects.
One of the genres that have suffered in the decline is comedy. While there are still a couple of films in that genre that get released as evidenced by recent releases such as No Hard Feelings and the billion-dollar hit Barbie, most of them are usually delegated now to streaming.
Some of the tentpole films have also infused a lot of funny elements in their storytelling which is now viewed as a substitute for the lack of pure comedy movies in theaters.
There are a lot of factors that we can consider regarding why comedy films no longer have strong viability in theaters and a notable actor from that genre has theorized that perhaps it has something to do with the capes.
Adam DeVine Believes Marvel 'Ruined' Comedy Movies Today
During an interview in This Past Weekend with Theo Von (via Deadline), actor-comedian Adam DeVine, known for starring in the Pitch Perfect films and HBO's The Righteous Gemstones, shared his thoughts regarding the current state of comedy movies in Hollywood.
He believed that Marvel movies "ruined" the genre today as people are no longer tuning in to the theaters to watch a comedy and they are more inclined to show up in big-budget tentpole movies.
"My theory is I think, I think like Marvel ruined it. I feel like superhero movies kind of ruined comedies. Because people go to the theater and you expect to watch something that costs $200 million to make and comedy movies aren’t that," he said.
"So you’re like, ‘Well, why would I spend the same amount of money to go watch a little comedy in a theater, if I could spend the same amount of money and go see something that is, is worth $200 million?"
There is some truth to what DeVine said about the preference of the audience today regarding the theatrical experience as most of them would rather see spectacle movies on the big screen.
After all, even if it's a billion-dollar grossing comedy, Barbie is still a spectacle movie with visually-striking images and set pieces that are worth watching on the big screen as well as A-list movie stars who are leading it.
However, while superhero movies may have led to the decline of comedy films in theaters, it should also be pointed out that the output from the studios has also lessened and today they usually only do comedy films if there's an A-list star involved or a unique concept.
Also Read: The Mandalorian Actor Addresses Losing Major MCU Role
The studios also need to mount a major marketing campaign if they want the general audience to see their comedy movies which are not usually successful lately which is why we don't see a lot of impressive box office performances in that genre.
Who knows, perhaps the comedy genre will eventually make a comeback in theaters in the future depending on the output from the studio and the quality that they are releasing which also matters to the audience.
Explore new topics and discover content that's right for you!