\n\tJames Gunn, there\u2019s a Johnny Depp impersonator who would like to have a word about DC.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cI think the new \u2018Supergirl<\/a>\u2019 sucks,\u201d 39-year-old Oklahoma City native and devoted DC fan John (go figure) says from San Diego Comic-Con\u2019s main floor. He looks exactly like \u201cPirates\u201d era Depp, with chunky silver rings, a goatee, and a wide-brimmed fedora. Strangely enough, when asked if he\u2019s cosplaying as the Hollywood bad boy, he tells me, as if offended, \u201cNot really.\u201d Returning to what ails DC, he adds, \u201cI think they tried too hard. They\u2019re trying to be like Marvel<\/a>, and they need to really just be their own thing.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tSan Diego Comic-Con is the sweltering core of the sights, sounds and sometimes smells of zealous fandom. It was intense, to say the least, for an SDCC rookie like me. The foot traffic could power a small city for a month, and navigating the convention hall in a sea of sweaty cosplayers felt like front row seats to \u201cThe Odyssey\u201d in 4DX<\/a>. But even for a first-timer, battling overstimulation and dehydration, it was obvious the annual gathering of geeks is ruled by three kings: Marvel, DC and \u201cStar Wars<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tOnce immortal titans of nerdom, the big three have recently lost their grip on the zeitgeist, especially in movie theaters. Marvel, which once set box office records with a snap of an Infinity Gauntlet, is struggling in a post \u201cEndgame\u201d era with relative duds like \u201cThunderbolts*,\u201d \u201cFantastic Four\u201d and \u201cCaptain America: Brave New World.\u201d DC Studios<\/a>, under the watch of co-CEOs Gunn and Peter Safran, launched to immediate success with last year\u2019s \u201cSuperman,\u201d but saw \u201cSupergirl\u201d flop in June. \u201cStar Wars,\u201d the original blockbuster muscle, returned to theaters after a six-year hiatus with \u201cThe Mandalorian and Grogu,\u201d only to be met with a lukewarm reception and lackluster revenues. There have been enough think pieces about why this is happening to fill Stark Tower, but for the real scoop, SDCC superfans told Variety about why their favorite franchises are stumbling and what they can do to reclaim their former glory.<\/p>\n \n\tBack on the topic of DC, not everyone was as blunt as John about the studio\u2019s future. Nathan, a 28-year-old Angeleno in a Lobo costume, was \u201cskeptical\u201d when Gunn took control, and feared he\u2019d turn \u201cSuperman\u201d into a \u201cGuardians of the Galaxy\u201d sidegrade. However, he \u201cloved\u201d the movie after seeing it for himself, and feels confident Gunn\u2019s vision for DC \u201cis really well intentioned.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI like James Gunn\u2019s mission statement of every movie is going to be a reflection of the character and the writer and director that\u2019s working on it,\u201d Nathan says. \u201cI love that they\u2019re throwing \u2018Clayface\u2019 in there. \u2018Clayface,\u2019 they\u2019re saying, is gonna be a straight-up horror movie.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tNathan suspects the reason \u201cSupergirl\u201d failed was because of a divergence from Gunn\u2019s promised blueprint. THR reported<\/a> in early July that, due to disappointing audience scores, DC held a bake-off between two versions of \u201cSupergirl\u201d before release. One was from director Craig Gillespie and the other was from the studio. The DC cut won out after earning slightly better results. Nathan, referencing the story, believes giving focus groups the final say is a mistake, since \u201cgeneral audiences don\u2019t know what they want.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThey just need something different shown to them. And they are going to like it because it\u2019s different,\u201d he adds. \u201cIf it underperforms, at least it was left intact. At least it was the vision.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tNathan never mentioned seeing the early \u201cSupergirl\u201d drafts, and it\u2019s impossible to predict what the outcome would\u2019ve been if Gillespie\u2019s cut was chosen. This comment is still significant because it points to the industry-wide disconnect between studios and audiences. Questions about what movies get butts in seats have dominated the business since it emerged from COVID and the dual labor strikes. The problem is not only in the superhero world, but it could feel more significant to superfans like Nathan, considering Marvel, DC and \u201cStar Wars\u201d movies once towered over all others.<\/p>\n \n\tWhen looking for a dedicated \u201cStar Wars\u201d fan, Jermaine stood out from the rest. Instead of dressing like Obi-Wan, the 36-year-old L.A. native constructed a 14-foot-tall lightsaber cosplay. From the inside of a giant metal hilt, Jermaine told me he\u2019s \u201chopeful\u201d about the future of \u201cStar Wars,\u201d despite critical and commercial woes. He admits that the recent films are a \u201cmixed bag,\u201d but he considers the Disney+ series \u201cAndor\u201d a \u201cmasterpiece.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tKyle, a 29-year-old San Diego local dressed as a Rebel Commando, isn\u2019t as hot on the \u201cStar Wars\u201d streaming titles. He says having so much content on Disney+ has \u201coversaturated\u201d the IP, and thinks \u201cStar Wars\u201d would fare better with a methodical, theatrical-minded approach.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI think that if [the franchise] returned to the big screen, and had more time to develop and prosper, then it would probably have more of that \u2018Star Wars\u2019 root in it,\u201d he says. \u201cIt feels like they\u2019re trying to push things out onto a streaming service rather than actually make something grand and adventurous.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tIt\u2019s important to note that neither Kyle nor Jermaine had seen \u201cThe Mandalorian and Grogu.\u201d If a man who built a lightsaber suit taller than an NBA basketball hoop didn\u2019t rush to see a \u201cStar Wars\u201d movie after a six-year drought, there could be some truth to concerns that Disney+ has conditioned fans to follow the franchise from home.<\/p>\n \n\tFinally, on to Marvel, which still remains the belle of the ball. The entire weekend is essentially a lead-in to the company\u2019s Saturday Hall H presentation, during which Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige routinely drops news about what to expect from the MCU in the coming years.<\/p>\n \n\tMarvel fans said \u201csoft reboot\u201d and \u201crebuilding phase\u201d many times while discussing the state of the MCU, but most seemed energized about where it\u2019s heading. Cameron, a 34-year-old from San Diego who dressed as Cyclops for SDCC, finds it \u201cexciting\u201d that Marvel is in a \u201ctransitional\u201d period and feels confident it will find a new path forward. Nate, a 23-year-old Spider-Man cosplayer, is likewise optimistic. He\u2019s glad Marvel is past its \u201cfiller\u201d era, and is \u201csuper excited\u201d to see the worlds of \u201cX-Men\u201d and \u201cThe Avengers\u201d collide in December\u2019s \u201cAvengers: Doomsday<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cDoomsday\u201d is consequential for Marvel buffs and Disney execs alike. It promises a super team-up of Marvel heroes past and present, obvious hype fuel for fans. Through a more critical lens, many in Hollywood will treat its box office result as a litmus test for Marvel\u2019s health for 2026 and beyond. If \u201cDoomsday\u201d is a big hit, it\u2019s full steam ahead for Feige and friends. If it underperforms, it\u2019s easy to imagine Marvel asking itself, \u201cNow what?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t33-year-old Jordan isn\u2019t so certain about the direction of the MCU. She thinks the Marvel brand, with the success of its animated series \u201cX-Men \u201897\u201d and its popular video game \u201cMarvel Rivals,\u201d is in a \u201cpretty healthy place,\u201d but insists the studio is not. One big reason she is \u201cnot that excited for \u2018Doomsday\u2019\u201d or much else on the slate is because of \u201cthe lack of women.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIf you look at the [\u2019Doomsday\u2019] posters, it\u2019s 25 men and five women, and there are a lot of powerhouses, like She-Hulk, for example, that are just totally left out of the cast,\u201d she says. \u201cI feel like the MCU is at a strange point where only some of the shows on Disney+ are good, and nothing else is really exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tFerlie, a 56-year-old ex-cop dressed as Sue Storm, hesitates to say Marvel is \u201ctrending upward,\u201d since \u201cnothing is going to be like \u2018Endgame.\u2019\u201d She also feels \u201ciffy\u201d about Robert Downey Jr. going from Iron Man to Doctor Doom. However, Ferlie, like many Marvel fans, loves Tom Holland\u2019s \u201cSpider-Man\u201d series, which she says is \u201cin a league of its own.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tInside Marvel\u2019s Hall H panel, you\u2019d never think Feige had something to worry about. Fans, most of whom secured a seat at noon to wait for the 6 p.m. show, went berserk when Ryan Gosling was announced as the new \u201cGhost Rider\u201d<\/a> and David Jonsson was named the new Black Panther<\/a>. In the minutes before go time, Journey\u2019s \u201cDon\u2019t Stop Believin\u2019\u201d blasted into the stuffy auditorium, which felt like a not-so-subtle message to any doubters in the room.<\/p>\n \n\tIn a post-panel chat, Sophia, a 34-year-old dental receptionist, said she\u2019s gone to SDCC for years, and Marvel\u2019s 2026 Hall H showcase was the \u201cbest experience\u201d she\u2019s ever had at the con. Joshua, a 33-year-old school psychologist, thought the panel was \u201camazing\u201d and mused about how Marvel is masterfully uniting \u201csome of the greatest heroes from the last 20 years\u201d for an ultimate \u201cDoomsday\u201d crossover.<\/p>\n \n\tOn the other side of the aisle was Marissa, 28, and Froylan, 57, a father-daughter duo from Murrieta, Calif. They waited since Thursday for their Hall H pass and were left unimpressed by the roughly 40-minute exhibition. Marissa worries that Marvel, instead of executing a meticulous plan, like in the \u201cInfinity Wars\u201d days, is cobbling together a new MCU by \u201cfalling back\u201d on IP and stars they \u201cknow are successful.\u201d On the \u201cGhost Rider\u201d reveal, she points out, \u201cObviously everyone\u2019s gonna love Ryan Gosling.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tOne of the only people who skipped IP opinions and identified broader issues was Cyrstal. \u201cStreaming really destroyed a lot,\u201d says the 44-year-old from L.A. She used to be a TV editor and now works as a paralegal. Crystal hates that shows drop an entire season on release day, and thinks streaming has eroded the monoculture that used to propel powerful franchises to billion-dollar heights.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI think that art is meant to be consumed together as a culture. It\u2019s more valuable that way,\u201d she says. \u201cToo many streaming platforms, too many series, all at once.\u201d <\/p>\n