I just finally saw the Space Jam trailer and frankly I’m kind of stunned by how much it just... depressed me. Just utterly taken aback by the sheer corporate-synergy-per-square-foot of it all, and that’s even factoring in that it’s SPACE JAM.
Like, even by “well every movie is just a brand vehicle now” standards, it’s sad to be in this era where four companies own all of our media and their response to that is to just go “every movie is now Referencing Our Brand: The Movie”
This makes Ralph Breaks the Internet look subtle. Christ, this makes Mac and Me and The Wizard look subtle. Why are characters from A Clockwork Orange watching Bugs Bunny play basketball? “Because Time Warner owns it” is literally the sole reason and that’s heartbreaking.
Imagine being a studio executive and watching Ready Player One, easily one of the most immediately forgettable movies in a generation, and deciding that is the new template for content synergy: to be constantly reminded of this better thing inside a thing.
The saddest thing here is that these brands would argue that this is audience wish fulfillment—that they WANT to see the idea of this giant toybox where all of a brand’s properties can interact with each other.
Except they tried that in the real world with real audiences, and even a real toybox! It was called Lego Dimensions and Disney Infinities, and both of the brands that ran them canceled them after a few years because, get this, it didn’t actually make them shit tons of money.
Anyway, I look forward to the year 2027 or so when Warner Bros. has decided that every single movie they make must now include a shot of The Iron Giant to continuously remind all viewers over 40 of the last time they were ever happy.
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