Unfortunately, there will be a bigger push for more films adapted from videogames.

Vaughn is right on target with this one. Between Heroes on TV and all the superheroes in the movies, pretty much every way of telling a superhero story has been exhausted. You just kind of feel it when you watch one now. The feeling of bored deja vu, even as everything is exploding on-screen, desperately trying to be whiz-bang and exciting.
However, I think next year's Captain America will infuse a little life into the genre, since I hear it's going to be set in WWII. Seeing a superhero ply his trade amid an epic world war using old weapons and other technology will actually be novel and cool, as opposed to foiling yet another bank robbery or high-tech plan for world domination in our time.
Scott, your comment about deconstructionism being a death knell is also very astute. Once you've explored the limits of a genre, you can only play with it as you wink at the audience ironically.

I feel the new trend will revert back to constructing unique stories around normal type characters. TV has been successful so far in this feat... Breaking Bad, Dexter, Sons of Anarchy just to name a few of my favorite shows that stick out. You never know as a writer... I will personally be happy when the "vampire" craze stops...

Cjevy

writesomehorror.blogspot.com

Unlike its undead counterpart, there apparently is no way to kill the vampire trend.

I actually have a deconstructionist superhero film and the feedback I got on it was that in deconstructing it, I errored in melding it with another genre to accomplish the deconstruction. Thus, it was useless as a submission for either genre.

So here's the lesson - if you're going to deconstruct superhero films, don't stray too far outside the sandbox. (Exhibit A: My Super Ex-Girlfriend aka "Hey! Let's mix superhero films with romantic comedies!")

The next huge trend will be intellectually compelling dramas which reveal troubling truths about all of us and will ultimately move humanity forward in such a way as to make a real impact on some of the more destructive tendencies in our society.






Heh heh...April Fools comes early this year!

I love Vaughn as a director but I will have to disagree with him. There are so many different ways to do a superhero movie. Look at X Men First Class. Vaughn is doing it with with retro sixties James Bond vibe. Green Lantern is more Sci Fi/space opera. The Batman movies are more crime thrillers. Especially the Dark Knight.

I agree with Jason. It's barely been mined at all.

Matthew Vaughn said:

"quality control is not what it’s supposed to be”

Is that really any surprise? He is talking about Hollywood.

The problem lies that Hollywood really only makes 2 types of comicbook movies.

1) The Superman story -- ie the archetypal singular superhero fighting a bad guy. Even movies that are a parody of this are derivatives and ultimately don't stray too far from the formula. IE Hancock.

2) The Fantastic Four IE The Incredibles. Ironically, it is The Incredibles that is being aped in Hollywood, even though they drew heavily from the Fantastic Four paradigm.

That's it.

KICK ASS probably had some of the more superhero genre shattering moments in it. And Matt Vaughn directed that.

I get the hunch his comments are more or less his own fears, rather than what the genre can do.

I'd be afraid too after getting numerous Exec notes on a huge franchise like X-Men. Especially seeing what they did to X3.

Tell them to go to hell Matt and make your own damn movie. Please do that.

My fear is that the 'Suits' in Hollywood will continue to exchange BANG for the buck, sacrificing story.

What I hope is that good storytelling will merge back into the blockbuster form again, that is why I am paying close attention to Spielberg's "Cowboys and Aliens." Though more pulpish, like a few being offered astride the many superhero flicks now in production, still notable in retrospect as Dreamworks, to my knowledge, rarely offers a sub-par story.

A good superhero movie will always do well. And I see antihero fun where Vaughn sees deconstruction.

Our notion of superhero is narrow, product of a time when comics were for kids and heroes displayed some nationalistic fervor, and our shared set of iconic superheroes is small. I say bypass those iconic folk and take secondary characters out for a spin. Use brilliant writers that know the characters well, and for god's sake treat continuity in the superhero home turf with prime directive respect.

I'd start with Gail Simone and Power Girl (wry wit and cleavage, something to entertain everyone), in an exciting solo side adventure (from the comic book perspective, an off screen scene), maybe in a setting we don't expect with folks who aren't familiar with her (so they get to know Power Girl along with the movie audience).

I saw an animated Superman/Batman movie recently, was hooked the moment I realized it was a buddy story (as the two limped off together to escape into a sewer). Funny banter, fun action, fabulous writing, art and voice talent, great job by DC Comics. As Jason mentioned, playing with genre definitely a good way to go.