Marvel Cinematic Universe is one of the biggest and highest-grossing media franchises of all time with its stories centered on superheroes and characters, which are based on the comic books published by Marvel Comics. The franchise not only includes movies and comic books but also television series, short films, digital series, and literature. Marvel content is available on Disney+ for viewers.
MCU started with 2008’s Iron Man starring Robert Downey Jr. as the titular character, and since then, Marvel Studios has released movies in Phases. Currently, the franchise is in Phase Five, which will end with Captain America: Brave New World. One of the recent challenges that the franchise had to face was to sustain itself because of the movies not working as expected, and Disney CEO Bob Iger might just have a plan for it.
Disney CEO Bob Iger says Marvel Studios to focus on their stronger franchises
According to the reports from The Wrap, Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger shared his views about the current projects under Marvel Studios at the company’s Wednesday earnings call. He mentioned how the studio will be leaning on familiar faces and stronger franchises moving forward. Iger noted,
“I’d say we’re leaning a little bit more into sequels and franchises. I think given the environment and given what it takes to get people out of their homes to see a film…leaning on franchises that are familiar is actually a smart thing.”
The CEO mentioned that Disney will be taking the strategy they had followed when they launched Disney+ to produce a wave of streaming titles for Marvel Studios. He added,
“In our zeal to greatly increase volume partially tied to this warning to chase more global subs for our streaming platform, some of our studios lost a little focus. So the first step that we’ve taken is that we’ve reduced volume, we reduced output, particularly in Marvel.”
In August 2023, during Disney’s Q3 earnings call, Iger mentioned that they are focused on improving the quality of the movies and on better economics adding that not just reducing the number of titles but also the cost per title. Iger shared via CBR that they are going to maximize the full impact of the titles by embracing the multiple distribution windows at their disposal, enabling consumers to access their content in multiple ways.
“By focusing on big franchises and tentpole films, we’re able to generate interest in our existing library.”
Bob Iger believes that a large number of Marvel series debuting on Disney+ might have caused brand confusion and box office fatigue, which is why moving forward they’d focus on stronger franchises with probably familiar faces.
Fans react to Disney CEO Bog Iger’s comment on Marvel’s focus on the franchise with familiar faces
As Bog Iger’s comments about reducing the quantity of the content being made by Marvel studios to focus on the quality of the content being made was known, ardent fans of the franchise did not waste time in sharing their views on the same. Fans seemed excited by Disney CEO’s decision to focus on the stronger franchise in the existing Marvel Universe as the last couple of projects have tanked at the box office.
WE’RE FINALLY GONNA GET A HULK FILM OMFG!!!!! pic.twitter.com/9QAEJWZz4b
— Lu BBall 🕸️ (@luarlord2) February 7, 2024
Finally.. they can add characters, but wisely and not too many without follow ups for years (Shang Chi?) pic.twitter.com/0u50RaBvim
— Box Office Forecast 🎬 (@BoxOfficeFcst) February 7, 2024
One of the users seemed excited to have a fan-favorite character back by stating, “We’re finally gonna get a Hulk film OMFG!!”, while another noted ‘This is fantastic news. They’ve been releasing mid-content recently, they need to re-focus.’ A user also shared that it’s good to see that they are slowing down and focusing more on each movie.
Fans in the comment section along with being happy and excited with the recent update went ahead to explain why this move from Iger could work for the franchise which has been struggling to keep up. They wrote that it’s fascinating to witness Marvel Studios’ strategic shift towards their stronger franchise as by narrowing their focus, they can concentrate on delivering exceptional content within their most successful storylines.
Finally this is what Marvel fans want
— Talha Junaid (@TalhaJunaid786) February 7, 2024
This is FANTASTIC news 🔥🔥🔥
They’ve been releasing mid content recently, they need to re-focus! pic.twitter.com/gjZXpyfYPd
— DividendMiner (@DividendM1ner) February 8, 2024
It is fascinating to witness Marvel Studios strategic shift towards their stronger franchises, as Bob Iger suggests. By narrowing their focus, they can concentrate on delivering exceptional content within their most successful storylines. This deliberate reduction in volume…
— Muhmmad Azhar (@AzharTheGreat) February 7, 2024
The user continued that the reduction in volume offers an opportunity for the studios to enhance the quality and depth of storytelling, captivating audiences with even more intellectually stimulating narratives. A lot of fans commented that they are happy that the studio has picked quality over quantity. However an official announcement from Kevin Feige regarding the change in their strategy awaits.
