Cater To Teenage Girls As Much As Teenage Boys
It is no secret that Hollywood’s target audience for close to all of their big-budget franchise films is boys between the ages of 12 and 20. The thinking goes that teenage boys love explosions, special effects and beautiful girls – a formula that explains why Michael Bay’s insipid Transformers films have made a pretty penny – and so studios pack the summer with these noisy, visually frenetic extravaganzas. However, it is harder to pack teen boys into the multiplex, with video games taking up a bigger place in the market than ever before. Young men can see all of that digital mayhem at home on their consoles, so why bother trekking to the movies every weekend?
Instead of packing the theaters with testosterone every Friday night, Hollywood is getting around to noticing the benefit that teenage girls have as moviegoers. The Fault in Our Stars, a decent adaptation of a formidable best-seller, was the year’s most anticipated book-to-screen affair, and did very strong business. Its $124 million take is outstanding when you consider the film’s $12 million production budget. (Paper Towns, the next adaptation of a John Green novel, already has a July 31, 2015 release date.) Meanwhile, Disney’s Maleficent, a Wicked-like tale of fantasy revisionism, made more money than any of the male-oriented action spectacles (Spider-Man, X-Men et al.) that came out in May.
But, there is a new Angelina in town, as well, and her name is Scarlett Johansson. Although word-of-mouth was shaky, Lucy was a strong late-season hit, should outgross Salt (among comparable titles) and make more than three times its $40 million budget. Yes, that was an R-rated title and could not be seen by a lot of young girls, but seeing a woman kick butt for a prolonged running time is something that appeals to both genders. As the Cyndi Lauper hit affirmed to summer movie crowds, girls do just wanna have fun.
