In 2000, four of the year’s 15 highest-grossing movies were comedies, including Meet the Parents, Scary Movie, and that stone-cold classic Nutty Professor II: The Klumps. Last year, it was zero. As Hollywood has shifted towards franchises, in particular franchises revolving around superheroes, it’s become increasingly difficult for comedies to make a dent at the box office. Assuming they’re released into theaters at all.
One of the few exceptions is comedies starring and/or produced by Seth Rogen, like Sausage Party and Neighbors, which, as he told GamesRadar, “have managed to do really, really well, even though they’re the exact type of thing that people say doesn’t do that well.” But he also recognizes that the mid-budget comedy is becoming extinct, having been replaced by the $200 million comedy. “Something that me and [producing partner] Evan [Goldberg] talk about a lot is how Marvel movies are comedies. Thor: Ragnarok is a comedy. Ant-Man is a comedy at its core,” he said. “There are $200 million comedies out there… That’s something, as a comedic filmmaker, to be aware of”:
“That is the benchmark that people expect! If you’re going to make a big huge comedy, just know that your competition is like Marvel. Not to say you should not make those types of films, but know that’s what audiences are seeing, and that, when you see those movies in theaters, they are playing like comedies. They are legitimately funny and star comedy stars… That’s why something like Good Boys does well, because we’re not offering scope. What we’re offering is pure comedy and emotion and relatability and nostalgia. That’s the trade-off. You don’t get to see the God of Thunder being hilarious, but you get to see something that maybe represents your actual life, and that’s very gratifying in another way.
Rogen’s new comedy, An American Pickle, was originally scheduled to be released in theaters, but then the pandemic happened, and HBO Max bought the rights. That could be the new normal, even when movie theaters are open again.
(Via GamesRadar)