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ARE PRE-PLANNED FRANCHISES A GOOD GAMBLE?
Industry experts weigh in on the emerging trend of announcing films as part of a pre-determined series
It is common practice in showbiz for films to receive sequels and eventually become franchises. However, it was dependent on a number of factors, including how well the film did with the audience, to determine whether or not a sequel would be demanded. But now, producers are announcing movies while introducing them as the first instalment of a predetermined series.
Intended as a trilogy, the upcoming movie Brahmastra, starring Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt, is one such example. The reason, according to director Ayan Mukerji, is “confidence, hard work, and nervousness”. “We really believe in the content. We had set out to make a trilogy and we are confident,” he asserts.
But what about waiting to see how the first one is received? Mukerji says, “I
Mexican actor Eiza González, who has appeared in Hollywood films such as Baby Driver (2017), Hobbs & Shaw (2019), Godzilla vs. Kong (2021), and filmmaker Michael Bay’s newest action film, Ambulance, among others, reflects on her 15-year long career. And she says she has long witnessed women being oppressed in the entertainment industry.
“[I feel] women have been oppressed in [this] business and have been put in boxes for a long time. Sometimes, I approach it (the status of women in showbiz) as… We are sort of beaten dogs, and we sort of flinch,” González says. But, the 32-year-old is glad that now women, including herself, are “unwinding slowly” to “a point where we can be directors, screenplays, and DPs (director of photography)”.
“I’m evolving towards this. I can be a multi-hyphenated [personality]. I don’t have to just oblige to the rules that the industry has set for me. I’m learning as I go and I’m slowly nudging myself to be who I want to be, and being like, ‘You can also do this!’ It’s a process,” she adds, hoping that “every woman out there feels incredibly empowered” know how the movie business is. I hope the youth gets attached to the movie, so it can give us wings.”
Aside from Mukerji’s movie, actor Allu Arjun’s blockbuster Pushpa (2021), too, was released as Part 1: The Rise . So was John Abraham’s Attack, which has been released as Part 1. Its director, Lakshya Raj Anand, says more than confidence, it’s the art of storytelling: “It’s not just about how well a project should do so that we could make another one using the same name. For
It’s not just about how well a project should do so that we could make another one using the same name. For me, it’s passion-driven.
in coming years.
Talking about her latest, wherein she stars alongside Jake Gyllenhaal and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, the actor says, “I took Ambulance when I was coming off of a really vulnerable year because of the pandemic. I had a lot of time to sit by myself in silence, which I hadn’t had since I started my career. I never stopped for that amount of me, it’s passion-driven. We created these characters whose journey doesn’t end in part one; it only begins.” Ask him about the risk involved in terms of box-office and he says, “The industry has always been risky.”
Industry experts credit Baahubali for propelling this trend. “People saw that it had come out in two parts. And the success of the movies made the makers think and come up time in my life as a working woman. It was a very transitional moment for me.”
She further elaborates, “By the time the role came into my life, I had already evolved into so much of who I was before I started. It allowed me to really think about who I wanted to be as an actor. It was cathartic and powerful, a perfect new beginning of my career after Covid-19.” with something (ideas for films) that could have two parts or be a trilogy,” says trade expert Atul Mohan. He adds that in case the first instalment was a flop, the public won’t recall if a franchise was ever launched: “The public memory is too short. Two-three years will pass after the release [of the first movie]. Makers will claim story nahin mil rahi, and the actors will say they are [too] busy (for sequels).”