By: Scott Johnson on January 14, 2012
With the NFL playoffs in full swing, the 2012 Super Bowl is just right around the corner. At Comicbook.com, one of our favorite things about the Super Bowl is all the new movie trailers that get debuted during the big game. Especially exciting about this year’s Super Bowl is that 2012 is a year with a lot of potential for movie trailers of high interest to comic book fans.
Even though NBC has announced that all the commercial space for the 2012 Super Bowl is sold out, there has been no official announcement on what movie studios bought air time. In regards to movie studio dollars, Adweek did quote a SVP of sales and marketing at NBC as saying the spend was “consistent with prior years, although they may be a little lighter.” Adweek also noted that “trailers for superhero movies tend to play well in the context of the Super Bowl.”
However, this is in contrast to what The Los Angeles Times claims. According to The Los Angeles Times, they have talked to knowledgeable people to find out that Relativity Media, Paramount Pictures, Universal Pictures and Walt Disney Pictures are the only studios buying Super Bowl air time. This is surprising news, because that would mean 20th Century Fox, Sony/Columbia Pictures and Warner Bros. would not be airing movie trailers, and those three studios have some very big 2012 movies to promote. If the LA Times is right, then that would leave most of the major superhero movies other than The Avengers out of the Super Bowl.
Based on the LA Times’ knowledgeable people, then the following movies of interest to comic book fans will likely have commercials during the Super Bowl XLVI.
The Avengers – With The Avengers set to really kick off the summer movie season, we doubt there is any way that Disney/Marvel will miss out on airing an Avengers commercial during the big game. In fact, this might be a really good time for Marvel Studios to unveil a brand new movie trailer, as fans are overdue for a new trailer. Our prediction is that if they do unveil a new trailer it will still have plenty of Robert Downey Jr. with some choice scenes of the Hulk roaring, which will mix good with the football action.
John Carter – Disney has already been airing John Carter commercials like crazy, and the Super Bowl is a huge chance to get a lot of eyeballs on the trailer before the movie hits in March. With Taylor Kitsch as the star of John Carter, it also makes sense to advertise during the Super Bowl, because a lot of football fans would be familiar with him from the Friday Night Lights TV series.
G.I. Joe: Retaliation – The first G.I. Joe movie aired a commercial during the Super Bowl, so it makes sense that the sequel would get a commercial as well. With the Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson onboard for G.I. Joe: Retaliation, this movie is an especially good fit with the Super Bowl, as he has a large following among football fans.
Battleship – It’s got the military, battleships, big explosions, and alien warships. Pretty much perfect for the Super Bowl. It’s also got Taylor Kitsch, so see our notes on John Carter. With a reported $200 million budget, Universal really can’t afford not to advertise Battleship during the Super Bowl.
If the Los Angeles Times is right, then there are some big name movies that will not be airing Super Bowl ads. However, there is always the chance that the “knowledgeable people” are mistaken or that other studios could pick up last minute air time from another Super Bowl advertiser who cancels out. Here is a list of movies that should advertise during the Super Bowl, even though they may not be.
The Dark Knight Rises – With The Dark Knight Rises already as close to a guaranteed hit as there can be, Warner Bros. might not feel inclined to spend the big dollars it takes to buy a Super Bowl ad spot. However, the second Dark Knight Rises trailer seems like it was designed almost with the Super Bowl in mind. From the opening with the national anthem to the football field collapsing to Hines Ward running in for a touchdown, The Dark Knight Rises cries out for a Super Bowl out.
The Amazing Spider-Man – As Columbia Pictures is looking to relaunch their Spider-Man franchise during the summer of 2012, they need to keep pace with The Dark Knight Rises and The Avengers. If The Avengers is getting a Super Bowl commercial, then Spider-Man should also get one. An awesome new trailer for The Amazing Spider-Man would be a great way to start to build more buzz for this movie.
Prometheus – With a $200 million budget, 20th Century Fox is counting on Prometheus to rake in the box office dollars. With the first trailer for Prometheus generating positive buzz on the Internet, 20th Century Fox has a potential hit on their hands, but they need to get the word out to the general public. 20th Century Fox is missing a huge opportunity if they don’t promote what looks to be an awesome movie to all the Super Bowl eyeballs.
Wrath of the Titans – As a big budget movie with a March release date, one would think Wrath of the Titans would have Super Bowl written all over it. Just like war and superhero movies, gladiator type movies have always seemed to be a good fit for football games.
Men In Black III – Spider-Man isn’t the only franchise that Columbia Pictures is hoping to rejuvenate in the summer of 2012. With a rumored $215 million budget, Men In Black 3 offers humor and science fiction. Columbia Pictures needs more buzz on this high budget film, and the Super Bowl would be the perfect place to get things moving.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey – While The Hobbit is likely to be one of the biggest movies of 2012, it’s not as good a match-up with football as superhero and military war movies are. But the audience for the Super Bowl is so broad, there are surely plenty of Middle Earth fans among the viewers. We doubt The Hobbit will be advertised during the Super Bowl, but we sure wish it would be.
