Star Wars Succumbs to Hollywood's Courage Deficit

Hollywood executives had themselves convinced that audiences only want familiar intellectual properties.

“Original stories are too risky,” they said. “Moviegoers crave brands they already recognize.”

That assumption justified every studio decision from endless superhero sequels to the resurrection of franchises old enough to collect Social Security.

Studios poured hundreds of millions into Brand X because conventional wisdom held that recognizable IP was the only reliable way to fill seats. Every hit reinforced the belief that audiences would only support what they already knew. Yet every disappointing first weekend prompted calls for even greater caution.

Then a 20-year-old YouTuber walked into theaters and embarrassed the entire industry.

Against all expectations, Backrooms and Obsession, two comparatively modest horror films, recently overtook the latest Star Wars movie at the box office.

Read the full post on Substack.

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