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\n\tEven as Ryan Gosling launched his \u201cHail Mary\u201d and Super Mario re-discovered his \u201cGalaxy,\u201d the bets were piling up on Kalshi: Which movie would win the summer?<\/p>\n
\n\tOr would there be a winner at all? The mega-hits of seasons past reflected a comfy consensus in our pop culture, but today\u2019s audience is splintered by genre and mood. The various Gens, whether in their teens or dotage, seem huddled in their Minecraft or chilling alone at Freddy\u2019s.<\/p>\n
\n\tDisney will be opening a new Star Wars and Toy Story this summer, but its headline \u201cadventure\u201d resides in its billion-dollar cruise ship of that name. Adventure sailed out of Singapore last week amid a massive publicity blitz depicting coasters, castles and \u201cglockenspiel moments\u201d for 6,600 passengers, but no actual sightseeing stops (they\u2019re yesterday\u2019s news).<\/p>\n
\n\tTo be sure, myriad \u201csignature experiences\u201d are also being unfurled by rival companies offering immersive attractions geared to Harry Potter or Stranger Things. The corporate impresarios seem to be asking, why buy movie tickets when live experience is in greater demand?<\/p>\n
\n\tAnd there\u2019s also a nostalgia camp out there that\u2019s probing audience reception to past genres that reinforce pop culture rather than fragment it.<\/p>\n
\n\tThe trusty Wall Street Journal this week compiled a list of landmark shows that defined the tastes of its affluent, older readers. The list included I Love Lucy, Star Trek and All in the Family, even dusting off the old Ed Sullivan Show. \u201cStarting in 1948 everyone gathered to see something novel without elaborate sets, digitization or AI\u201d \u2014 hence \u201cthe shows that changed America.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tBut the Journal then followed with another list in which readers predicted the sort of entertainment they would favor in the future \u2013 and were already sampling. Their answers: AI video games, interactive immersive fiction, VR-enhanced sports attractions and experiential board games like a techno-Monopoly.<\/p>\n
\n\tPredicted one skeptic: \u201dThe AI-generated content will be fed to a zombie audience that\u2019s looking simply for explosions.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tIn a more optimistic vein, Variety a decade ago ran a study of \u201cboffo hits\u201d that, in their moment, seemed to permanently re-align pop culture. They ranged from Modern Times to Hair to Casablanca to The Best Years of Our Lives.<\/p>\n
\n\tFurther, the hits had some important traits in common \u2014 a singularity of vision and a strong emotional tug. They also offered a secret ingredient: a sort of innate theatricality that galvanized audiences.<\/p>\n