When was the last time you saw a completely original idea on screen? I mean a completely original idea, not a remake, a sequel, a prequel, a spin-off, or a reboot. It’s hard, isn’t it? What was once a medium used to express one’s unique and individual ideas has turned into, quite simply, a business. It’s no wonder that when faced with the choice of profit versus letting someone show off their idea, the business prioritizes the money, and in turn, hurts themselves.
Recently, I had the pleasure of going to the movie theater and watching Beetlejuice. As I sat in my seat, watching the previews for all of the upcoming movies, I realized that I didn’t really care about any of the movies being advertised. I then realized that most, if not all of them, were either a sequel or a remake. Even the very movie I was there to see was a sequel to a movie released in 1988 that already has its own cartoon and musical. It was then that I realized that we are truly living in the age of the remake.
And I know this isn’t just me. Disney has announced many new movies and series coming in the near future and yet a large majority are sequels and remakes. For sequels, we’ve got Zootopia 2, Frozen 3, The Incredibles 3, and Toy Story 5. That’s not all, as there’s also the live action remakes including Mufasa, Lilo and Stitch, and Snow White. And that’s just Disney! Dreamworks has The Bad Guys 2 and Shrek 5. Aren’t you tired from reading through all of those names? I mean, out of all the movies mentioned, how many are you actually interested in seeing?
No shame if you are actually interested in any of these. I for one think that Zootopia 2 has some great potential and am looking forward to the animated adaptations of Dog Man and The Wild Robot. It isn’t necessarily a bad thing for a movie to be based off of something else; many movies, while still being based off of another source material, still manage to be inspired. For example, Barbie and Inside Out 2 still managed to be unique and creative even though they aren’t necessarily original. However, I do think that there’s a point to be made that, over time, less and less unique ideas are being told on screen.
And why is that? Why, in the age where it seems that everyone has a unique idea, style, and voice, and in the age where we have the technical capability to do practically anything we want, are we seeing all of these unoriginal movies? The answer is money.
Unfortunately, movie studios are a business and businesses need money. When one movie does well financially it isn’t surprising when these studios will milk it dry. The companies have found a formula to make the most profitable movie so it’s no wonder why the movies and shows we see seem formulaic.
And the sad thing is that it works. Looking at the highest grossing animated films of all time, most of them are sequels and remakes. It’s the reason why Hallmark releases fifty of the same Christmas movie each year. It’s why Disney seems to have already greenlit a Frozen 4 when Frozen 3 isn’t out yet and when the second one was a production disaster. (Seriously, Disney made a documentary about Frozen 2 and it gave insane insight into how little effort they put into it.)
And while these businesses might be making profit, it’s ultimately hurting their companies. People no longer view Disney as the place where imagination comes to life. They view them as a corporation thirsty to put a few more bills in their pocket whenever possible. In general it seems that people are less interested in going to the movie theater. A place where people used to cry, laugh, and scream now just feels empty.
It’s especially sad because I know that there’s people out there that can create the next big movie, the new classic show, but are turned down because a large corporation didn’t think it had the recipe for success. It’s why it’s so important to support these independent creators however possible, especially with the looming threat of AI taking these jobs and the constant writer’s strikes. In our current times, we simply can’t turn to these large corporations to produce what we want.
