It was announced yesterday that various studios, including Disney, will begin to assemble ‘superfan focus groups’ who will assess new films, TV shows, and sequels.
This is an attempt to avoid social media backlash and it will give fans an opportunity to comment on whether decisions work, or whether fans will retaliate.
Have you been watching The Bad Batch on Disney+ and enjoying the new stories?
This sounds like one of the worst ideas Hollywood has come up with yet, and the Star Wars fans of Reddit seem to agree.
As Bertie637 says, “In this context the word "superfan" worries me greatly.”
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Surely it’s those ‘superfans’ who are the most vitriolic when it comes to new projects in well-loved IPs?
Redditor Badgerpunk sums up this problem well, “That's not art, that's marketing. It might sell, at first, but it's completely without value beyond that. It will never ever be as meaningful to anyone as stories that are expressions of a creative vision.”
Putting anything under a fan-focused lens is only going to create more problems as fans all have a subjective view on how they view their passions.
This focus group would only cause more carnage in online fandoms as in-fighting becomes more rampant in the age of social media and witch hunts.
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“If this went through so many great things wouldn't exist,” said another user, who seems to be on the right track.
Letting fans guide a creative process will only churn out the same product with no cultural nuance brought on by the creative teams.
It’s the personalities, upbringings, and differing worldviews, that create great art.
One Star Wars fan comments, “If you pitched to me "Cassian Andor origin story" I'd immediately be opposed, but look how amazing that turned out. It's not about the subject matter, it's in the execution.”
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And I have to agree. When I first saw the promotional material for Andor it sounded terrible to me, and yet became one of my favourite Star Wars stories in recent memory.
It’s about execution, not giving in to fan feedback.
Topics: Star Wars, TV And Film, Disney