Comic Books Movies

Hollywood movies have found a veritable goldmine of new movie content in the form of old comic books. While borrowing from other genres is nothing new, for any form of media, a surprising number of recent Hollywood thrillers have been recycled and refurbished from the archives of past comic stories. This isn’t the first time Hollywood and comics have merged together. Some of the best well known Hollywood superhero franchises in the past have come originally from comics. For example, the Batman and Superman franchises came originally from DC comics. And both have driven huge Hollywood blockbusters. This is not to say that the material is unoriginal, though some might go so far. But it is important to keep track of where these ideas come from, to pay proper homage to those who first dreamt them.

A surprising percentage of new and recent Hollywood blockbusters read like a comic book lineup: X-men, Spiderman, Ironman, Thor, The Hulk, Watchmen, Green Lantern, Green Arrow, Daredevil, Captain America, etc. At even a quick glance, it is plain to see just how much money Hollywood has reaped from the recycling of ideas. It is a rather shockingly large list. As a matter of fact, anyone not keeping abreast of the Hollywood’s plunder into Marvel and DC Comics would likely be flabbergasted at the extent to which it is happening. Hollywood’s merger with comics, in the form of action movies, have become so popular that Hollywood has slowly been producing the individual story of each of the Avengers. This is a huge undertaking, as they have to first create a movie for each of the Avengers, with possible sequels for each (Iron Man, for one), and then slowly bring them together in a final epic movie of a plethora of super heroes. Even now, they’re on the threshold of releasing the movie, with little doubt of at least moderate success. And if they’re able to capture enough of an audience, there’s little doubt to a sequel. It is a staggeringly large pool from which to draw, considering the potential for sequels, spin offs, and repeats.

Comic books and Hollywood both reap benefits from this recycling of material. The comic books get greater recognition. Hollywood makes tons of money and has a huge new world of movies to produce. Comics reap in hefty sums of money in the form of royalties, along with coproducing the movie. Hollywood and comics both get a potentially new and more diverse audience. Both Hollywood and comics share wealth, recognition, and happiness. And it’s not only Hollywood that is reaping the rewards. The movie theater would be a much poorer place without all these new and exciting movies recently released. So everyone wins. Even the old fans of the originals, who usually tend toward bitterness at the rehashing of their favorite stories, have had a largely positive response. It is exciting to see their heroes up on the big screen, and in teasers and trailers . Even if they know some of the key plot details, it is still satisfying to see their character brought to life in Hollywood movies .

Zach Ball is a freelance writer for Movie Room Reviews.