The fall movie season presents a unique marketing challenge for the industry: how do you sell a season without a clear centerpiece? This comes after a period where strong centerpieces, like the breakout hit Weapons ($148.8 million gross), have made the marketing message clear and compelling.
A year with a film like Jurassic World Rebirth ($828 million) is easy to market. The entire industry can rally around the massive event, using its gravity to pull audiences in for everything else.
Without such a centerpiece, the marketing message becomes more fragmented. Theaters and studios will have to promote a wider variety of films to different target audiences. The focus shifts from selling a single “must-see” movie to selling the overall experience of going to the cinema to see a collection of interesting, smaller films.
The challenge will be temporary. The marketing message will become crystal clear again in the fourth quarter when a series of massive centerpieces, from Tron: Ares to Zootopia 2, will give the industry a powerful and unified story to tell the public.