According to a recent report from Variety, studios are expanding their use of focus groups. They are now including superfans to review potential marketing strategies for major projects. This allows them to spot and adjust content that might not be well received by fans before it goes public.
A studio executive says about the new approach, “They’re very vocal. They will just tell us, ‘If you do that, fans are going to retaliate.’” These groups have even led studios to alter the projects: “If it’s early enough and the movie isn’t finished yet, we can make those kinds of changes”.
While the article does not name specific studios or projects, it does reference past backlash against big names like MCU, ‘Star Wars,’ ‘Star Trek,’ and ‘Lord of the Rings.’
The push to actively manage fan reactions comes after the cancellation of ‘Star Wars: The Acolyte.’ The show faced severe sexist and racist comments on social media since its premiere earlier this year, as well as a review bombing.
Other productions, including Amazon’s ‘Rings of Power’ and Marvel’s ‘The Marvels,’ have also received similar response from the audience, particularly for the diversity of their casts and changes to the established lore.
“It comes with the territory, but it’s gotten incredibly loud in the last couple years,” a marketing executive for a major studio noted about the increase in negative feedback. “People are just out for blood, regardless. They think the purity of the first version will never be replaced, or you’ve done something to upset the canon of a beloved franchise, and they’re going to take you down for doing so.”
Studios reportedly put their stars through ‘a social media boot camp’ ahead of these projects’ releases to protect them against the backlash. Time will tell whether their new strategy will help improve the situation.
