Fans wondering over Wonder Woman
THERE is a section of superhero-loving social media that is convinced that Wonder Woman has been getting the short end of the Warner Bros. stick when it comes to promotion.
Whether true, director Patty Jenkins and star Gal Gadot took to Twitter separately on April 27 to release two new 30-second teasers for the film.
And during Monday night’s episode of Gotham on Fox, WB/DC debuted a new, minute-long sneak peak of Wonder Woman.
Then there’s Vanity Fair, which pointed out in a recent article that, Warner Bros. has spent about $400 000 (R5.4 million) more in television advertising on Wonder Woman than they did on Suicide Squad in the same timeline.
So why do some fans think that DC Comics’ most iconic female superhero isn’t getting the same commercial treatment as Squad and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice?
Is it a lack of action figures?With under a month to go before Wonder Woman’s June 2 release, War ner Bros. and DC Entertainment should be keenly aware of how important this franchise is to the future of DC’s solo superhero films; that should be apparent in future advertising on television and online.
The film is another chance for WB/DC to show their DC Comics-inspired movie universe through the eyes of someone besides Zack Snyder.
Snyder, the polarising fan favourite/villain, directed the first two connected, liveaction superhero DC movies, Man of Steel and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, which both received middling reviews.
The first non- Snyder attempt at a WB/DC movie was David Ayer’s Suicide Squad, which produced another money-making – but critically panned – DC movie.
After Wonder Woman, Snyder is back in the driver’s seat with November’s Justice League. WB/DC will be counting on Patty Jenkins’s female-led film to deliver a commercial and critic-approved hit; it may help boost positive buzz for League, a film that could have its sceptics because of Snyder’s involvement.
The last Wonder Woman trailer was released in March and, with under a month still to go, it’s possible that Jenkins and WB/DC could have one more trailer up their sleeve to stoke fan excitement. Or the producers could decide they’ve revealed all they wanted to already.
Think about that last Batman v Superman trailer that revealed Superman villain Doomsday would make an appearance: For many fans, it felt like the entire “B v S” plot had been revealed through trailers at that point. You can’t say that with Wonder Woman, a movie that has gone out of its way to hide the main villain (presumably Ares, the God of War) and has only briefly hinted that Princess Diana/Wonder Woman’s true biological origins must remain a secret forever. (This is perhaps a hint that Wonder Woman will follow her most recent comic-book origins and be the secret daughter of Greek god Zeus.)
But WB/DC’s selectivity of what they’ve revealed means we don’t know if any of this is true. Perhaps they feel they have a sleeping giant on their hands, are very happy with the product, and are hoping for positive word of mouth from dedicated fans once the movie finally arrives.
Giving fans a film they feel like they haven’t already seen through trailers could be a part of WB/DC’s Wonder Woman strategy.
With only weeks remaining until release, more Wonder Woman ads should be coming soon regardless. Whether you believe the advertising has been plentiful or lacking, one thing hasn’t changed: many are counting on this movie to bring new life to the future of DC Comics on film. – The Washington Post
Perhaps they feel they have a sleeping giant on their hands