EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE 1
Transcription
EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE 1
EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE Expanding X-Men to Capture the Female Audience Christine Weitbrecht Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism University of Southern California Paper submitted as partial fulfillment of requirements for CMGT 599: Communicating Entertainment Media Identities Summer 2011 1 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE The Brand History The X-Men franchise originated as a Marvel comic book series in 1963 and is still running until this day (Marvel Entertainment, 2010, para. ‘Information’). Written by Stan Lee and designed by Jack Kirby, the comics have featured a total of 105 X-Men team members over the years, but have usually focused on six to eight protagonists as the core team (Marvel Entertainment, 2010, paras. ‘Current Members,’ ‘Former Members,’ ‘Other Members;’ Jack Kirby Museum & Research Center, 2010, para. ‘Jack Kirby’). Right from their beginnings in the 1960s, the X-Men characters have been adapted to television screens at least ten times, in series such as The Marvel Super Heroes (1962), X-Men (1992), and X-Men: Evolution (2000; IGN Entertainment, 2011a, para. 2; IGN Entertainment, 2011b, para. 1, 11). Since 1989, the comic heroes were also featured in 38 video games, such as The Uncanny X-Men (1989) and X-Men: The Official Game (2006; GameFAQs 2011, para. 1; Gamespot, 2011, para. 1). However, it is the franchise’s film adaptations that will be the main focus of this paper, as they not only gave the X-Men franchise renewed momentum as a whole, but also catapulted it from the ‘geek’ outskirts into mainstream pop culture (IGN Comics, 2006, para. 1, 2). Film Adaptations The first installment of the X-Men movie franchise was the film X-Men, released in 2000 by 20th Century Fox (Marvel Entertainment, 2011b, para. ‘Cast and Crew’). The commercial success of the first film (over $290 million worldwide gross) soon led to the release of four more X-Men adaptations, two of which were sequels to the first film (X2, released in 2003, and X-Men: The Last Stand, released in 2006), and the other two prequels (X-Men Origins: Wolverine, 2009, and X-Men: First Class, 2011; Marvel Entertainment, 2011a, para. ‘Movie Index’). 2 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE So far, all five films combined have earned $931 million in combined box office revenues worldwide, and according to 20th Century Fox, there are plans for several new X-Men films in the near future (Box Office Mojo, 2011a, para. ‘X-Men’; De Semlyen, 2009, para. 1). These films are meant to be continuations of the story lines found in the original X-Men trilogy (X-Men, X2, and X-Men: The Last Stand), the X-Men Origins: Wolverine movie, and also the recent X-Men: First Class film (De Semlyen, 2009a, para. 1; De Semlyen, 2009b, para. 1, 2). The protagonists of these films are projected to be the usual cast members from the existing films (e.g. Wolverine, Professor X, Magneto, Mystique, Storm, Beast, etc.) but it has not been decided who the principal lead characters will be, except in the case of the The Wolverine movie currently under production (De Semlyen, 2009a, para. 1; De Semlyen, 2009b, para. 1, 2). Regardless of which characters the producers will choose, however, the crucial ingredient for the success of these coming movies will remain the same: the branding of the X-Men franchise. Branding Elements of the X-Men Franchise It must be noted that there is no official information regarding the X-Men branding efforts, such as mission, position, or target audience, for example. All branding elements discussed below are therefore derived solely from observing and studying the branding strategy of the X-Men movies so far, guided by Keller’s (2009) studies on “building strong brands.” Brand mission. For men and for comic fans of any age, the X-Men franchise provides action entertainment and an escape into an immersive fantasy world. Like most other comic and super hero adaptations, the X-Men franchise focuses on action as a key element in their narration, and allows its audience to use the narrative and visuals to escape to a different world. Brand promise. High quality storytelling featuring ALL the mutants you love most. So far, all X-Men movies have exhibited immense production values in their conception, plots, and 3 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE special effects. While the narrative does not always stay perfectly true to the story arcs within the original comics, the tone and character portrayal in the movies seem to remain precise enough to not alienate existing X-Men comic fans, whilst simplifying the X-Men universe for mainstream audiences (IGN Comics, 2006, para. 1, 2, 3). Moreover, the X-Men movie franchise also distinguishes itself from other comic adaptations by continuously featuring the many different characters within the X-Men protagonist and antagonist teams - unlike focusing on merely one super hero as the main character. This offers audiences many different super heroes to identify with and does not force them to approach a storyline through one single protagonist’s point of view. This made spin-offs involving the background stories of individual X-Men characters, such as Wolverine (X-Men Origins: Wolverine, 2009), Professor X, Magneto, or Mystique (X-Men: First Class, 2009), highly successful as well (Box Office Mojo, 2011, para. X-Men). Brand positioning. For men between 13 and 30 years of age, and for fans of all ages, the X-Men series is the comic hero franchise that stands out from other comic adaptations because it offers a variety of lead characters paired with very relatable storytelling. In addition to its trademark character diversity, the X-Men movies have had a very strong focus on everyday political and social issues, such as discrimination, social ostracism, the definition of ‘being normal,’ and questions of identity (Gerde & Foster, 2008). In an age where audiences continue to face these issues on a daily basis, be it as victims, witnesses, or active citizens, the X-Men characters quickly become highly relatable for audience members (Gerde & Foster, 2008). Brand vision. The film series’ producer, Lauren Schuler Donner, envisions the X-Men movies as a “darker” and long-running “Harry-Potter”-type franchise for adults (De Semlyen, 2009, para. 1). Thus, it can be said that if the X-Men brand achieved all of its goals, both men 4 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE and women between 13 and 30, and all X-Men comic fans, would watch and own all movies within the X-Men series, and would also buy into the franchise via its merchandise, video games, online specials, and comic books. Brand attributes. The X-Men franchise is an immersive fantasy world and a form of escapism from everyday life. Its overall tone is very unlike other super-hero franchises, however, as the line between right and wrong, and good and evil, is never perfectly clear. Audiences also appreciate the franchise’s thematic depth where each of the X-Men continually evaluates which side they want to be on, and whether the path they have chosen will truly lead them to individual freedom. Strategic Challenges Facing the X-Men Brand Increasing Competition Despite the constant success of the X-Men franchise, the brand still faces tough competition from other movie franchises, specifically those that fit into the action, adventure, science fiction, and fantasy genres. Like many other trades, the entertainment industry has become a zero sum market, meaning that the number of consumers remains relatively constant even though new media technologies have reduced barriers of entry for new brands aiming to enter the market. As a result, entertainment businesses must “take customers away from competing brands” (McDowell, 2006, p. 232) in order to remain profitable, and more than anything, must avoid becoming “equivalent substitutes” (McDowell, 2006, p. 235). According to McDowell (2006), “equivalent substitutes” (p.232) are brands that, in the consumers’ opinion, deliver the exact same service, experience, or performance as other brands in the same market, and therefore lose their distinctive brand equity and, consequently, consumer loyalty and preference. 5 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE In the film franchise market, X-Men is therefore facing strong competition from highly successful brands such as Harry Potter, Pirates of the Caribbean, Transformers, The Twilight Saga, and, most recently, DC Comic’s release of The Green Lantern. As a result, the X-Men brand must continually convince audiences to spend their attention and money on the next installment of its franchise, and must always give spectators reasons as to why X-Men is worth seeing over a competitor’s sequel that may look equally as enticing. The ‘Harry Potter’ franchise. Although the final Harry Potter film has now been released, its creators are ensuring that the franchise will remain profitable and competitive for decades. Including the last film, the Harry Potter films have grossed more than $7.2 billion worldwide (Box Office Mojo, 2011a, para. Harry Potter). An additional $1 billion has been earned from the video games (Clarkson, 2010, para. 15), and nearly six million people have already visited Universal Orlando’s Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park in its first year (Amos, 2011, para. 6). On June 23, 2011, author J.K. Rowling announced the franchise’s newest brand extension, Pottermore.com (Rowling, 2011). According to Rowling’s announcement on YouTube, Pottermore will be a unique, online reading experience where the user participates as the story unfolds (Rowling, 2011). Rowling envisions that “Pottermore will be the place where fans of any age can share, participate in, and rediscover the stories” and where will disclose information about the Harry Potter world that she has never shared before (Rowling, 2011). Taking Harry Potter into this new medium will further change the competitive landscape for film and (comic) book franchises, as it offers consumers multiple entry points into the world of Harry Potter, and increases their loyalty to the brand. Given that the X-Men franchise aims to be a new Harry Potter –like film and media series, X-Men needs to innovate with strategic brand extensions that keep current fans active in the X-Men universe. 6 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE The ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ franchise. The Pirates of the Caribbean (Pirates) is one of Disney’s most valuable franchises. The total domestic gross of the first four film installments (approx. $1.3 billion) surpasses the combined first four X-Men films ($786 million) by almost half a billion dollars (Box Office Mojo, 2011b, 2011c, 2011d, 2011e, 2011f, para. ‘Total Domestic Gross’). An interesting point to consider, however, is that audience reviews of Pirates of the Caribbean over time have been significantly lower than reviews of X-Men. One reason why Pirates grossed higher than X-Men may be that X-Men does not attract as diverse of an audience as Pirates. According to the SuperHeroHype blog, X-Men 3: The Last Stand garnered a 63% male audience (LittleMissVixen, 2006, para. 3). While the audience demographics for Pirates are not available, it can be hypothesized that it attracts a significant female audience largely because of its highly attractive male leads (Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom) and strong female characters (Keira Knightley and Penelope Cruz). The ‘Twilight’ franchise. Focusing solely on romance, The Twilight Saga sells itself very differently from all other franchises. With a total gross of $790 million to date, its profitability is close to X-Men’s (Box Office Mojo, 2011a, para. ‘Twilight’), but Twilight a twopart finale left to capitalize on (November 2011 and November 2012) (Breaking Dawn – The Movie, 2011). The main competitive advantage that Twilight has over X-Men is its appeal to the female viewers of a variety of ages (Marks, 2008, para. 8). In a market that is dominated by comic-hero-adaptations and action-franchises aimed at a predominantly male audience, Twilight has found its niche market through its unique audience appeal. DC Comics’ ‘The Green Lantern.’ DC Comics has run neck on neck with Marvel Comics for decades. Founded in 1934, five years earlier than Marvel Comics, it now operates as a subsidiary of Warner Bros (DC Comics, 2011). DC Comics grew particularly successful 7 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE through characters like Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, and, most recently, The Green Lantern. However, despite these successes, Marvel has maintained greater brand equity over the years because of a key competitive advantage: A shared universe for all of its brands, so that characters appear in one another’s comic books, which in turn adds depth and consistency to Marvel’s storylines (Kit, 2008, para. 3). As a result, fans feel more connected to the characters and immersed in the Marvel Universe (Kit, 2008, para. 3). Much to Marvel’s relief, The Green Lantern was a severe disappointment at the box office. Since its release on June 17, 2011, it has only grossed $147 million worldwide, compared to X-Men: First Class’s $347 million (Box Office Mojo, 2011g, 2011h, para. Total Lifetime Grosses Worldwide). While there have been many opinions on why and how The Green Lantern failed to appeal to mainstream audiences, most of them have focused on the extreme importance placed on special effects leading to a loss in plot quality, and the and the inconsistent brand positioning of The Green Lantern (DC’s iconic hero characters with stand-alone films, instead of Marvel’s character universe) (Kit, 2011). Marvel’s competitive advantage over DC is therefore its brand consistency and equity, and as long as Marvel stays true to its brand promise, subbrands, like X-Men, will continue to be strong contenders at the box office. Production Costs Another key challenge for the X-Men film franchise and for most film franchises are rising production costs. Since the 1970s, studios have been engaged in a continuous production value-race, fueled by the emergence of blockbusters and so-called tent-pole movies that were supposed to balance studios’ overall annual movie investments (Campbell, Martin, & Fabos, 2011). However, this production-value race has ultimately led to exploding movie budgets, particularly for franchises that aim to provide unparalleled spectacle to mainstream audiences 8 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE (Campbell, Martin, & Fabos, 2011). For example, production budgets for the five X-Men films have ranged from $75 to $210 million, which is comparable to the third Transformers’ $195 million budget or Green Lantern’s $200 million expenditure (Box Office Mojo, 2011c, 2011d, 2011e, 2011f, 2011g, 2011h, 2011i, para. ‘Production Budget’). Given the fact that the movie industry is highly competitive, however, and particularly the fact that there is no real formula to ensure a movie will be a success (Campbell, Martin, & Fabos, 2011), such rising production budgets have become very risky investments, even to the extent that a failure at the box office can render a studio bankrupt (CNBC, 2010). For example, The Green Lantern’s budget created huge losses for Warner Bros. when the film fell extremely short of expectations and did not break even (Kit, 2011, para. 5). Marvel’s brands, specifically X-Men, have always been character and story driven, but in order for the brand to remain competitive, the films also have to be visually impressive. X-Men’s challenge will be to pair the depth of its stories with innovative and appealing visual effects that will not be costly enough to endanger the liquidity of its producers. Audience Appeal Finally, due to new media technologies, the entertainment market has become increasingly fragmented (Anderson, 2009). Not only can audiences currently watch anything at any time anywhere, but they are also offered an almost infinite choice of entertainment content (Anderson, 2009). As a result, the competition for individual audience members (i.e. consumers) has become extremely fierce in this over-saturated market (Anderson, 2009), and brands such as X-Men must carefully position themselves in order to reach and appeal to their target audience (Keller & Lehmann, 2006). At the same time, however, entertainment businesses may also have to lure these consumers away from competitors’ media content (McDowell, 2006), and must recover their immense production costs, particularly in the case of franchises (Campbell, Martin, 9 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE & Fabos, 2011). A key challenge for X-Men and other franchises is therefore to successfully integrate these conflicting objectives: Appeal to a mainstream audience to recover costs, but target a particular type of audience as a brand; find a niche to make the best out of a fragmented market (Anderson, 2009), but be appealing enough to steal audiences from competitors in a zerosum market (McDowell, 2006). So far, many franchises have built on expanding international markets to augment their audience numbers, but once these also become saturated, the challenge of appealing to the right audience will become even more crucial. Recommendations Market Opportunities It becomes clear, then, that the X-Men franchise operates in a highly complex market with many different contestations. The most crucial insight of all, however, is that except for Twilight, there is no franchise or even installment that is aimed directly at a female audience. Nevertheless, female viewers could prove immensely valuable in entertainment’s zero-sum market; not only do women possess an enormous purchasing power, but as past successes have proven, they also respond extremely well to media content featuring female protagonists. Surveying women’s interests. In order to assess women’s attitudes towards super hero franchises and towards the female X-Men characters in particular, the authors conducted a survey amongst 61 women between the ages of 18 and 40. According to this survey, female audiences are in fact very interested in the superhero genre, with over 80% of respondents having watched at least one Harry Potter, Spiderman or Batman movie, and 67% having watched at least one of the X-Men films. Moreover, a combined 64% of participants stated that they would be somewhat to very likely to watch a science-fiction/fantasy movie involving a super hero. 10 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE Strong indications of preference. While one cannot prove a causal relationship, the authors have observed parallels between strong, independent female protagonists and higher female audience approval. For example, in the recent Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 release, women comprised 54% of the total domestic audience (McClintock, 2011b, para. 7), unlike Transformers 3, whose audience was dominated by men (61%; McClintock, 2011b, para. 1,8). Moreover, Harry Potter featured a strong female heroine (Hermoine Granger) while Transformers’ leading lady was often called a “sexbot” (Child, 2011). Looking at these data, it may not be surprising that only Harry Potter made the survey respondents’ Top 3. Similarly, the third most liked franchise in the study, X-Men, can be said to have extremely strong female characters, such as Storm, Rogue, Mystique, and Jean Grey. Each one of the X-“Women” possesses a unique ability, and the male characters rely on the females’ contributions in fighting for their cause. Mystique, for example, is Magneto’s most trusted and skilled partner, while Storm’s intelligence and abilities have made her Professor X’s right hand. Finally, female action hero franchises have proven successful in the past. These include the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Xena: Warrior Princess, as well as films such as Kill Bill, Tomb Raider, and Charlie's Angels. For example, Buffy originally aired on The WB from 1997-2003, garnered between four and six million viewers each new episode, and has since been syndicated to networks around the world (WayBackMachine, 2011). Furthermore, Charlie’s Angels, a television series turned film franchise, was groundbreaking in its actiondriven depiction of the three female private investigators, roles that had previously been reserved for men. Its two films, released in 2000 and 2003, achieved worldwide grosses of $264 million and $259 million, respectively (Box Office Mojo, 2011j, 2011k). 11 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE Proposed Brand Extension: ‘X-Men Origins: The Divide’ Given the success of super hero movies featuring female protagonists, and to expand the existing audience for X-Men, we would like to propose an X-Men installment focusing on two female leads, Storm and Mystique, as an extension to the X-Men brand that is aimed at a female audience. Both Storm and Mystique were among the three female X-Men our survey participants recalled the most often, and given the franchise’s current focus on prequels, the X-Men universe would benefit from a narrative explaining the background of two characters the female audience values greatly. The branding elements of this X-Men extension can be defined as follows (Keller, 2009): Brand mission. For women and for comic fans of any age, the X-Men installment focusing on Storm and Mystique provides engaging female characters (expanding on the brand’s strong character variety) and plots, as well as an escape into an immersive fantasy world. Brand position. For women between 13 and 30 years of age, and for fans of all ages, the X-Men installment featuring Storm and Mystique as protagonists is the film franchise that stands out from other movie series because it offers female lead characters paired with complex storytelling and comic heroism rather than mere romance. Thus, unlike the ‘general’ X-Men brand the Storm/Mystique installment is aimed at a predominantly female target audience between the ages of 13 to 30, which wants to see proactive and strong women on the silver screen. The goal would be to target the Twilight franchise audience and interest them in X-Men by advertising the female strength and heroism showcased in the next installment. While it maintains X-Men’s trademark story depth and focus on a variety of characters, it will be less action-based and more character-driven. It is a new form of female escapism that is not confined solely to romance or comedy, and reflects the increasingly 12 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE empowered women in today’s society through Storm and Mystique’s personal abilities and their mutations. By focusing on a female audience, X-Men will refine its brand and ideally enter a new niche market. Content. The most recent X-Men release, X-Men: First Class, has already begun to tell Mystique’s story, and as it happens, Storm and Mystique share many biographic parallels: Both are left without parents from an early age and fend for themselves through stealing. Each of the two encounters discrimination throughout their lives, based on both mutation and race, and both are asked by Professor X to join the X-Men. Looking at the X-Men’s characteristic themes of heroes struggling with their powers, identities, and allegiance to the ‘right’ cause, and given the fact that Mystique ultimately joins Magneto’s side and Storm becomes a key member of the XMen, the parallels in Storm and Mystique’s lives offer a great opportunity to delve further into the equally typical X-Men theme of making individual choices to find the path that will lead one to freedom. As our survey shows, conflicting and complex storylines featuring significant character development are a feature many women look for in a movie, and one of the reasons why Mystique is liked by so many is her complex personal history. As one survey respondent reported: “She suffered a lot in her life, therefore I can understand why she fights the people that [sic] mistreated and humiliated her. She is one of the most interesting characters even if I don't approve her methods.” Another key appeal of both Storm and Mystique are their physical and mental capabilities, which our survey participants stressed repeatedly: [Mystique] is capable, and although she has in the past sided with people who may not be the most moral she does eventually do the right thing. She is unafraid to be who she is, and is able to fight and defeat male characters with ease. 13 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE All these women possess great powers and each has a different story line. ... Most sci-fi movies encompass [sic] men with super powers and with X-Men it's nice to see the women can hold their own! Budget. A brand extension featuring Storm and Mystique would also be financially feasible. The first installment, X-Men (2000) cost approximately $75 million to make (Box Office Mojo, 2011c). Given that the cost of special effects is quickly decreasing, and that female audiences are looking less for special effects than for story depth and personal development, according to our survey, a Storm/Mystique production could be budgeted at around $45 million (excluding marketing). Moreover, as an established global brand, X-Men could easily tap into its brand equity to promote its newest spin-off. Physical expression. As a sequel to X-Men: First Class, we recommend the title X-Men Origins: The Divide for a Storm/Mystique installment. On the one hand, this title would allude to the different choices Storm and Mystique make in their pursuit of freedom from discrimination, while on the hand, the title would also indicate how the ‘divide’ between the X-Men team and the Brotherhood of Mutants manifests after crystallizing in First Class. Moreover, using ‘origins’ as part of the film’s name would clearly communicate the focus on personal back-stories, and would remind audiences of the highly successful X-Men Origins: Wolverine movie. A poster of the installment could look as follows: 14 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE Possible Challenges Facing X-Men Origins: The Divide Failure to deliver on brand promise. As Adamson (2009) points out, delivering on what a brand promises is crucial for the survival of both the product and the brand. As its past successes have shown, the X-Men brand has consistently kept its brand promise of quality storytelling, character depth, and character variety. However, if The Divide falls short of these expectations, it could seriously endanger the economic success and the reputation of this X-Men brand extension. Lack of audience. Even though the participants in our survey indicated that they would be likely to watch a super hero movie, it is unsure whether they will act on this statement. According to McDowell (2006), this is a common problem in market research: Respondents will say one thing, to please the researcher or to abide by societal convention, but think and act 15 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE differently. Thus, it cannot be guaranteed that The Divide will appeal to a female audience; after all, romantic comedies and dramas are the favorite genres amongst women to this day, and some super heroine adaptations, such as Catwoman and Elektra, have failed in the past as well. Failure to stand alone. Brand extensions are often a great way to expand a brand’s appeal to a certain group of consumers. However, as Kapferer (2004) points out, not all extensions profit from their original’s brand equity. In order to be successful, Kapferer argues, a brand extension must be able to both stand alone and fit into the greater brand equity framework of the original. Thus, the appeal of The Divide will depend on its ability to be a brand of its own (i.e. the super heroine movie with strong women) whilst simultaneously fitting into the greater XMen brand (i.e. exceptional and ‘deep’ storytelling, great action, and engaging characters). Conclusion Looking at past successes of superhero media based on female protagonists, and given female audiences’ appreciation of action based science-fiction and fantasy movies, an X-Men movie centering on two female characters would be an ideal brand extension for the X-Men franchise. Garnering new consumers in today’s zero-sum media market is crucial, and women can be a key market for a genre that has traditionally been aimed mostly at men. So far, the only franchise catering exclusively to women is The Twilight Saga, but their stories have frequently been criticized for being too dramatic and cheesy (Dargis, 2008); X-Men could use this criticism as an advantage and offer more action and story driven content to an eager female audience. Due to the franchise’s story driven nature, a Storm/Mystique spin-off would even be comparatively inexpensive to make. And as both Storm and Mystique are highly attractive women in a team whose standard team lineup features both male and female characters, it is likely that a film focused on them would even appeal to a male demographic as well. 16 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE Consequently, it is also very likely that The Divide will be able to meet any challenges it may face. For example, the usual and hitherto successful X-Men writers and producers could be employed once more to ensure that the film delivers on the X-Men brand promise of quality storytelling and character variety. And the proposed content for The Divide – Storm and Mystique’s individual struggles with discrimination and their choices leading to their personal freedom – already offers a great starting point for meaningful storytelling. Moreover, this existing staff could be paired with scriptwriters of female action hero successes, such as Buffy and Charlie’s Angels. This combination could then also ensure that The Divide develops its own personality and strong female focus, but within the realm of the existing X-Men franchise: A robust brand within the brand that benefits from the X-Men brand equity, but is unique enough to also stand alone as a movie. And finally, if it is still doubtful whether The Divide would truly appeal enough to female audiences so that they would watch it in theatres, additional market research could help predict the actual viability of such an X-Men brand extension. 17 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE References Adamson, A. P. (2009). Brand digital: Simple ways top brands succeed in the digital world. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan. Amos, J. (2011, June 20). Wizarding World of Harry Potter’s big bash! Retrieved from http://www.harrypotterfans.com/2011/06/wizarding-world-of-harry-potters-big-bash/ Anderson, Chris (2009). The long tail. In Duffy, B. E., & Turow, J. (Eds.), Key readings in media today: Mass communication in contexts (6th ed.) (pp. 317-326). Box Office Mojo. (2011a). Movie Franchises and Brands Index. Retrieved from http://www.boxofficemojo.com/franchises/?view=Franchise&p=.htm Box Office Mojo. (2011b). ‘Pirates’ Vs. ‘Pirates.’ Retrieved from http://boxofficemojo.com/showdowns/chart/?id=pirates.htm Box Office Mojo. (2011c). X-Men. Retrieved from http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=xmen.htm Box Office Mojo. (2011d). X2: X-Men United. Retrieved from http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=x2.htm Box Office Mojo. (2011e). X-Men: The Last Stand. Retrieved from http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=x3.htm Box Office Mojo. (2011f). X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Retrieved from http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=wolverine.htm Box Office Mojo. (2011g). X-Men: First Class. Retrieved from http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=xmenfirstclass.htm Box Office Mojo. (2011h). Green Lantern. Retrieved from http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=greenlantern.htm 18 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE Box Office Mojo. (2011i). Transformers: Dark of the Moon. Retrieved from http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=transformers3.htm Box Office Mojo. (2011j). Charlie’s Angels. Retrieved from http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=charliesangels.htm Box Office Mojo. (2011k). Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle. Retrieved from http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=charliesangels2.htm Breaking Dawn – The Movie. (2011). Breaking Dawn – the movie. Retrieved from http://www.breakingdawn-themovie.com/ Campbell, R., Martin, C. R., & Fabos, B. (2011). Media & culture: An introduction to mass communication (7th ed.). Boston, NY: Bedford/St. Martin’s. Child, B. (2011, June 29). Shia LaBeouf quits Transformers. The Guardian. Retrieved from http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2011/jun/29/shia-labeouf-transformers-rosie-huntingtonwhiteley. Clarkson, D. (2010, November 23). What the Harry Potter franchise is worth. MSN Money. Retrieved from http://money.uk.msn.com/credit-reports/articles.aspx?cp documentid=155332697 CNBC (2010). The 15 biggest box office bombs. Retrieved from http://www.cnbc.com/id/38815985?slide=9. Dargis, M. (2008, November 21). The love that dare not bare its fangs. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://movies.nytimes.com/2008/11/21/movies/21twil.html DC Comics. (2011). About DC Comics. Retrieved from http://www.dccomics.com/dccomics/about/ 19 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE De Semlyen, N. (2009a, October 16). The future of the X-Men franchise. Empire. Retrieved from http://www.empireonline.com/features/future-of-x-men-franchise/default.asp De Semlyen, N. (2009b, October 16). The future of the X-Men franchise. Empire. Retrieved from http://www.empireonline.com/features/future-of-x-men-franchise/2.asp GameFAQs. (2011). X-Men: The Official Game. Retrieved from http://www.gamefaqs.com/ps2/931981-x-men-the-official-game/data Gamespot. (2011). Related Games: The Uncanny X-Men. Retrieved from http://www.gamespot.com/nes/action/xmen/similar.html?mode=versions Gerde, V. W., & Foster, R. S. (2008). X-Men ethics: Using comic books to teach business ethics. Journal of Business Ethics, 77, 245-258. doi: 10.1007/s10551-006-9347-3. IGN Comics. (2006, December 18). X-Men in Film. Retrieved from http://comics.ign.com/articles/751/751277p1.html. IGN Entertainment. (2011a). The X-Men’s TV History. Retrieved from http://tv.ign.com/articles/709/709943p1.html IGN Entertainment. (2011b). The X-Men’s TV History. Retrieved from http://tv.ign.com/articles/709/709943p2.html Jack Kirby Museum & Research Center. (2010). Welcome to the Jack Kirby Museum & Research Center. Retrieved from http://kirbymuseum.org/ Kapferer, J.- N. (2004). The new strategic brand management: Creating and sustaining brand equity long term. London, UK: Kogan Page. Keller, K. L. (2008). Building strong brands in a modern marketing communications environment. Journal of Marketing Communications, 15, 139-155. doi: 10.1080/13527260902757530. 20 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE Keller, K. L., & Lehmann, D. R. (2006). Brands and branding: Research findings and future priorities. Marketing Science, 25, 740-759. doi: 10.1287. Kit, B. (2008, May 12). Marvel’s universal approach makes it a world apart from DC. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved from http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/marvels universal-approach-makes-a-111516 Kemp, S. (2011, July 8). ‘Harry Potter:’ 25 surprising facts about the wizard’s wand, props. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved from http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/harrypotter-25-surprising-facts209338?utm_source=SilverpopMailing&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Compose %20-%20new_daily_headlines_500px_071011%20(3)%20(1)&utm_content= LittleMissVixen. (2006, May 30). X3 Audience demographics/exit polls. Retrieved from http://forums.superherohype.com/showthread.php?t=234649 Marks, Lisa. (2008, November 6). Twilight spawns a new film demographic. Guardian UK. Retrieved from http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/filmblog/2008/nov/06/twilight-filmdemographic Marvel Entertainment. (2010). Marvel Universe Wiki: X-Men. Retrieved from http://marvel.com/universe/X-Men. Marvel Entertainment (2011a). Movies. Retrieved from http://marvel.com/movies/ Marvel Entertainment (2011b). Movies: X-Men. Retrieved from http://marvel.com/movies/movie/8/x-men McClintock, P. (2011a, June 30). 'Transformers 3' earns $37.3 mil, best opening day gross of 2011. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved from http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/transformers-3-earns 372-mil-207282 21 EXPANDING X-MEN TO CAPTURE THE FEMALE AUDIENCE McClintock, P. (2011b, July 5). 'Transformers: Dark of the Moon' draws younger audience, bucking trend. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved from http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/transformers-dark-moon-draws-younger208116 McDowell, W. (2006). Issues in marketing and branding. In Albarran, A. B., Chan-Olmsted, S. M., & Wirth, M. O. (Eds.), Handbook of media management and economics (pp. 229 250). New York, NY: Routledge. Rowling, J.K. (2011, June 23). J.K. Rowling announces Pottermore (video). Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5DOKOt7ZF4 Stewart, A. (2011, January 15). Global power shift: Emerging economies, technology help rev record worldwide grosses. Variety. Retrieved from http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118030267?refcatid=1009 WayBackMachine. (2011). Nielsen Ratings for Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly. Retrieved from http://web.archive.org/web/20080216043137/http://home.insightbb.com/~wahoskem/buff y.html 22