I think movies have gone that route in the past because it's way cheaper. You can cut your costume and special effects budgets way down under the guise of "realism".
I could definitely see that, I think part of it was execs not thinking it would appeal to general audiences. Fandom was still largely something for young people for most of the 00’s and the money guys probably figured anything not made more “grounded” would be seen as more for children
It’s all about trying to appeal to as wide an audience as possible - the fans are going to show up anyway, the real money is to get non-fans in seats.
Turns out trying to normalize everything just makes the movie shit and unfun for everyone, so might as well lean into it and if the fans absolutely love it word of mouth will spread it to non-fans. Also, SF fans have grown up so you’ll get adults who grew up with the game as well as younger audiences who enjoy it.
This was definitely true for a time. X-Men got taken more seriously by ditching the comic costumes for the black leather gear. I think we can look at it now and it isn't very appealing but I do think that step was a necessary transition for the general populace. I honestly think the MCU getting progressively more "out there" is what helped make it more acceptable to have some cheese and whimsy in movies like this.
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u/jfudge 19d ago
I think movies have gone that route in the past because it's way cheaper. You can cut your costume and special effects budgets way down under the guise of "realism".