Thesuper villainsare winning! And there’s nothing the incomingred capearmy can do about it! That’s right, even with a two day head start,Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justiceisn’t quite as popular as it’s companion movieSuicide Squad. At least in trailer views. It turns out the later movie has exceeded all expectations. And it has clearly overtaken DC’s two mosticonic superheroesof all time on Youtube.
WithBox Officewatchdogs eager to see how well DC Comics new Cinematic Universe fares in a world were Marvel reigns king, some are even pitting the Warner Bros. movies against each other. And if we’re to gauge box office dollars by trending topics and the ever-evolving popularity of any franchise, it seems clear that Suicide Squad would come out on top. But just barely. Task Force X has over taken The Man of Steel andThe Dark Knightwith a current total of 36.1 million trailer views. It’s counterpart, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, is currently sitting at 34.9 million views. This is just one full week after both were released. And moving into the future, the numbers could change.
It should be taken into account that these figures only reflect the views on Warner Bros.' official Youtube channel. TheSuicide Squad trailerwas leaked just hours after it made its debut in Hall H atComic-Con. A lot of fans watched that version of the trailer before the studio’s hand was forced in releasing an official copy. On the other hand, they released the official Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice trailer the moment it screened at SDCC. It’s possible, had the bootleg not arrived, that we wouldn’t even be seeing these two trailers going head-to-head. It’s also possible that if we added in all the illegal viewing that Suicide Squad garnered, it may far exceeded Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Instead, they are both trailing pretty close beside each other.
This arrives as great news for Warner Bros. They had feared that early leaks of Suicide Squad would hurt the movie, as it is only midway through production. And negative feedback from fans on a global scale could have certainly altered the mood on set as directorDavid Ayercontinues to shoot with his cast in Toronto. But the film has garnered strong word of mouth, with most viewers liking what they see. The Joker is said to be the trailer’s biggest draw, withJared Letoquite literally embodying the iconic bad guy to the point where he was not involved in any of the recent press. But the teaming of these super villains on the big screen for the first time is also proving to be an appealing aspect of the story line. And it’sMargot Robbieas Harley Quinn who has clearly stolen the show.
Both Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad will arrive in 2016. The superheroes will have a first go at winning audiences in March, with the villains to follow in August. Suicide Squad is taking theGuardians of the Galaxyslot on the calendar, which is occupied this year by theFantastic Four. This late summer date is proving to be successful for untested superhero movies, and everything at the moment indicates that Suicide Squad will be a blockbuster hit. Though, be warned, some box office pundits can get ahead of themselves, and we’re nearly a year away from either movie having its proper debut.
While the two trailers are doing quite well, neither has come close to matching the numbersStar Wars: The Force AwakensandAvengers: Age of Ultronpulled in, in their first week of release. The trailer for the first Star Wars movie in over ten years garnered 58.2 million in its first seven days, whileMarvel’s The Avengerssequel earned a healthy 50.6 million views when it’s trailer hit last year. The DCU is fairly new, so it might not be until theJustice League Part 1trailer that Warner Bros. and DC see those kinds of view numbers. Which trailer did you like the best? Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice? Or Suicide Squad? Let us know your thoughts, and why one might have won you over more than the other! You can watch both trailers here, again, if you missed them.
