indie wasn't so much the point as mainstream or at least what was considered it pre-MCU. that could be big studio or indie, but i was thinking middle to large (for the time) budgets and A-list stars. you look at these now and they see smaller theatrical releases, often timed to award season lest they be declared DOA, or debut on streaming or HBO. you could attribute this as much to the convenience and ubiquity of streaming and agony of a trip to the multiplex as simply preference for what i'm terming comic book movies.


>how are you defining "traditional mainstream releases"

just look at top grossers of the decade in the last century and first decade of this one. hit dramas, comedies, and sci-fi. (horror still does reasonably well, and action can be argued.) some of these coexisted peacefully with warner DC, spiderman, and x-men movies, but it's like MCU was too good. (who doesn't love a fun amusement park ride? i mean, really.)


>and how
>are comic book movies pushing them AND indie films out of
>theaters?

again, indie wasn't really *my* argument, but i think people generally take less chances with their expensive and often aggravating visit to the cinema. that's why every major studio wants a hit franchise.


>besides, "comic book movies" is a misnomer when that can be
>anything from Scott Pilgrim to Ghost World and you're clearly
>talking about movies based on mainstream superhero comics that
>are made by four- now three studios (Marvel Studios, Warner
>Bros, Sony and formally Fox)

yes. i just finished watching the final season of legion; it's hard to call that a "superhero" show, just like joker isn't a superhero movie. for want of a better term, i used comic book because i think a lot of the audience is aware of that being the basis for what they are seeing. it's more of an aesthetic, but it doesn't apply across the board. anyway, it's not meant as a putdown on my part.


>But Marvel Studios releasing three films a year isn't stopping
>a filmmaker like Jordan Peele from making very successful
>original films. The Avengers aren't pushing anyone else out of
>theaters. Everybody eats, b.

i didn't imply that no one else was eating. i'm merely saying that there is merit to the argument that the unprecedented success of superhero movies (and their ilk) and the resulting changes in the industry have sucked up a lot of the oxygen that a movie that used to be typical mainstream fare would have benefited from. that's largely because these movies are being so well made now and the audience is responding accordingly. it's understandable to see the old guard lash out and throw tantrums and not purely for selfish reasons. as i wrote before, streaming/VOD is so easy and affordable nowadays that some people are skipping these or these sorts of movies at the box office but eagerly viewing them at home. it's just a matter of those movies being transposed from what would have been a decent theatrical run, pre-MCU runaway success, to the home market, perhaps preceded by a few months of timed releases before oscar season for prestige pics. there are exceptions for great stuff, although sometimes these are slow burners that don't or wouldn't have caught on in time at the box office anyway.