Movie theaters are starting to reopen their doors across the world, meaning the blockbuster franchises fans have missed will be making their way back onto big screens soon.
Streaming services have held down the fort for the past few months with releases of movies like Wonder Woman 1984 and Zack Snyder's Justice League bringing new films to the world after multiple delays. This will continue on HBO Max for the rest of the year with streaming launches for movies like The Suicide Squad in August; Disney+ will also host the debut for the Scarlett Johansson-led Black Widow in July with both movies coming to theaters simultaneously.
For all the help that the streaming world has provided through the world's health crisis, fans are clearly itching to get their behinds back into theater seats to get the full movie-going experience once again. This has been proven once again by a recently released survey about major upcoming releases.
PEOPLE WANT COMIC BOOK MOVIES IN THEATERS
A recent survey conducted by Whip Media attempted to anticipate how audience members will watch this summer's blockbusters, including Marvel's Black Widow and Shang-Chi: The Legend of the Ten Rings as well as DC's The Suicide Squad. Specifically, poll takers were asked, "For each of the following movies scheduled to release this summer, would you prefer to see it in a theater or in your home (on a streaming platform or premium video on demand option)?"
The results indicated that there is a wide disparity in watch preference from film to film. Only 31% of responders would prefer to watch Space Jam: A New Legacy in theaters (the lowest percentage of the bunch) compared to 68% who want to see Black Widow on the big screen.
The Scarlett Johansson Marvel solo flick had the highest theater-watching preference percentage, followed by Marvel Studios' Shang-Chi (64%), then the ninth Fast and Furious movie, F9 (63%), and then the James Gunn-directed The Suicide Squad (58%).
While these numbers suggest that more people will view the aforementioned superhero movies in theaters versus at home, they still indicate that there is a fairly significant portion of people (30%, at the very least) who will choose to stay on their couches to watch the MCU and DCEU's next installments.
Black Widow also took the honor of the most anticipated Summer 2021 release with 81% of those polled interested in seeing the MCU's 24th film. The Suicide Squad came in second at 72% while Shang-Chi finished in sixth at 55%.
SUPERHERO FILMS STILL REIGN SUPREME
Even after a year in which superhero movies were largely subject to release delays, the fans made it clear that these adventures are still in high demand on the big screen.
Director James Gunn has built considerable hype for the debut of The Suicide Squad, leading to top-five placements in both lists. With returning stars like Margot Robbie (Harley Quinn) joining major newcomers like John Cena as Peacemaker and Idris Elba as Bloodsport, the R-rated adventure has a chance to become a special movie in relation to its predecessors.
As for Black Widow and Shang-Chi, Marvel Studios is simply holding its place at the top of pop culture as it's done for most of the last decade.
The MCU has a knack for not only bringing great movies to theaters but making their projects a full-blown theatrical experience. Both of these solo films are filled with thrilling action and massive set pieces, and it seems only right that fans want to see them the way they were originally meant to be seen.
Black Widow releases in theaters and on Disney+ Premier Access on July 9 with The Suicide Squad coming to the big screen and HBO Max on August 6. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will have a 45-day run exclusively in theaters starting on September 3.
