Universal's 'Wicked: For Good' creates a unique marketing challenge
Universal is hoping the excitement around “Wicked” can hang around — for good.
Universal is hoping the excitement around “Wicked” can hang around — for good.
The movie studio faces a unique challenge: promote and release two build-on films just one year apart. Part one of the “Wicked” cinematic project dazzled at the box office, collecting more than $700 million in global ticket sales through Sunday. Not only did it have the highest opening of any theatrical Broadway adaptation, but it is also now the highest-grossing film based on a Broadway musical, according to data from Comscore.
The question for Universal ahead of the release of part two — “Wicked: For Good,” due out in November — is how to keep its biggest fans engaged without alienating its more casual audiences.
Marketing experts told CNBC that pent-up demand for the movie, combined with the first film’s success, makes promoting its follow-up much easier.
″[Generating] close to $500 million is an amazing feat for that film,” said Mike Polydoros, CEO at cinematic marketing agency PaperAirplane Media. “They have all these fans who have seen the movie over and over again and came to the sing-alongs. They’ve marked their calendars for the second part of the movie.
Rating: 5