Is Too Much Information Ruining Sci-fi & Superhero Movies?

The "Nerd/Geek" community (my community) is one of the more committed fan bases out there when it comes to their content. It doesn't matter whether it is a rumor of a new TV show coming out or if Superman is going to have a mullet on the new Justice League movie, the community needs to know. This could be either be considered simple curiosity or excitement over something that fans hold dear to their hearts. The problem rises when this mere curiosity or excitement changes into fanatic search and obsessive nitpicking over every single detail of possible information. This brings up the question. Is there such a thing as too much information? Yes, there is. The trailers, the rumors, the pics and of course the never-ending leaks. Too much information (in my personal opinion) can somehow dilute what the movie experiences should be.

Movie trailers have to be the main tool for movie producers to get the audience excited about their product. The "Nerd/Geek" community is always delighted to see any footage of an upcoming movie. More than half of the top 20 "Most watched trailers in the first 24 hours" includes projects that are considered to be sci-fiction or superhero movies. Millions of fans watched those trailers over and over again breaking down every single detail. Fans seem to rarely be satisfied with the length of those trailers. If the trailer is short, fans feel cheated and tricked. If the trailers are considered long, then fans feel like the studios are revealing too much.

The length of the trailer is just one of the problems. Another problem is that the footage on those trailers could be an unfinished product. The footage used in those trailers could be material that could change by the time the movie is released. Fans sometimes seem to believe that they are witnessing the final product. This can lead to the fans making an ill-informed judgement on what the movie could really look like. The Geek community can be harsh when judging something they care about. This quick judgement can lead to a dismissal of the product before getting the final cut.

The Rumors

We are all guilty of the rumors that surround movies or TV shows. A small rumor can sometimes become an avalanche of "what ifs" and this can be a double-edge sword. On a positive note, a rumor can lead fans to speculate who could be an actor that they want to see on a specific role. Production companies can see these rumors and maybe audition someone they might not think of before. On the other side, if a rumor turns out to be just a speculation then the fans feel robbed of something that was never truly there.

An example of this could be the "Planet Hulk" rumors. After the end of Avengers: Age of Ultron, people started speculations that the next time we would see Hulk could on his own single movie. There were a lot of rumors and even pictures of what appeared to be Hulk's armor from Planet Hulk. Instead, we have find out that Hulk's next appearance will be on Thor: Ragnarok. Not only that but recently Mark Ruffalo who plays the Jade giant, has shut down any rumor that a Hulk single movie for the future.

Rumors can be exciting speculations but the problem is when they don't deliver. Fans can get angry over something that was never there. This disappointed can lead the fans to feel like that movie is "not as good as it could have been."

The Leaks

"Leaks" are a new way to promote a movie, months even years in advance. These "leaks" are usually released through social media. It could be an actor, director or someone from the production staff that releases the leak to the public. Similar to the rumors, these "leaks" can lead to something positive. An example of this is the Deadpool leak. After some footage from the movie was released to the public it created a huge demand for the whole movie to be released. The Deadpool movie was thought to be dead or at least at standstill before the "leak" of the footage. This "leak" also helped Deadpool reached the the rated "R" rating that they hoped for the movie.

The problem with these "leaks" is that they can lead to major spoilers. Most of the people releasing these "leaks" are usually pretty careful to avoid revealing anything major. But the internet is undefeated when it comes to digging out any information. An example could be the picture of Jason Momoa and Zack Snyder on set. Just a nice picture until the public was able to examine everything in the background. The fans were able to get a first glimpse at what the Flash costume could look like for the Justice League movie. This was a small bit of information but a small amount is all the public needs to start creating rumors and theories. Another "leak" occurred a few weeks after the end of Game of Thrones season 6. I'll avoid any spoilers but is safe to say that a small "leak" was able to reveal a lot of information.

Too much information can be a dangerous thing. Being excited about a certain project is a natural feeling. Everyone wants to get a little bit more of inside information with a favorite upcoming movie or TV show. Just like all good things in life, moderation is something necessary. Nitpicking every detail and trying to extract a single bit of news will steal some of the magic from the project. The best example that I could use is getting a present over the holidays. You want to know what's inside that present. You asked everyone, you see the wrapping paper, maybe pick it up and shake it just to get a clue of what you are getting. The day arrives you come up all this excitement and you received a great present. But the present is not exactly what you wanted. Let's say you wanted a laptop but instead of getting the brand you wanted you received a different brand. You are happy that you received you wanted but since it was a bit different you are not fully satisfied. Next time there is a movie or show that you want to see maybe just wait until you see the full product. Even if the project is not exactly what you wanted at least you'll be surprised. Let yourself be surprised; it might be something that you enjoy.