As superhero movies continue to grow in popularity, so too does the number of detractors the genre has. That includes some of Hollywood's greatest filmmakers, with Martin Scorsese previously coming under fire for comparing comic book adaptations to "theme parks," arguing that the likes of The Avengers and Black Panther aren't "cinema."
During a recent appearance on the Wakanda Forever: The Official Black Panther Podcast, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige once again took a moment to respond to the continued complaints.
He started by talking about how the genre draws unwarranted criticism, with many diminishing it solely because they're comic book movies. For Feige, though, it's no different than the backlash even the earliest Hollywood movies received.
"There were some people, who couldn’t get past a four-color, printed, two-dimensional story. You know, they just couldn’t do that," the Marvel Studios boss said. "Just like today, dare I say it. The people who can’t get past a genre story or something that’s in space, or people who can breathe underwater. ’No, not for me.’"
Moore added to that, specifically referencing Scorsese's past comments. "'That's a theme park,' but really, we're just standing on the shoulders of the creators who came before us, who laid the groundwork for all this stuff."
While every genre eventually fizzles out, it feels like we're still a very long way from that being the case with superhero movies. Marvel Studios has countless projects on the way, while DC is about to embark on a new era of storytelling courtesy of James Gunn and Peter Safran's DC Studios.
There is still room for other movies to find success (look no further than Top Gun: Maverick for proof of that), but if comic book adaptations are what people want, then filmmakers need to find a way to dream up other stories that can find a similar level of success.
What do you guys think?