First, a HUGE thank you to the early Patreon Grue-Believers and the Grue-Crew for participating in the very first Gruesome Magazine premium survey. The results were a revealing and surprising. The magic is just beginning too. Below I will go into the numbers from the survey as provided by Grue-crew member Jeff Mohr, but I also want to thank you for inspiring the resurrection of the podcast MONSTER MOVIE PODCAST (now brought to you by Gruesome Magazine). The episode has been recorded and should be coming out in the coming week. The show features Doc Rotten, Thomas Mariani, Christopher G. Moore and Joey Fittos.
A few things we discovered as we were recording the Monster Movie Podcast episode:
- DEADPOOL came out number 1! Who knew that the disaster that was Deadpool from X-Men Origins: Wolverine (also played by Ryan Reynolds) could get a second chance at cinematic glory? It is a testament to the creators, the character and the marketing that the film is so highly anticipated.
- 10 CLOVERFIELD LANE would have made the list…if only we knew about the damn thing at the time. D’oh. Good news though, we talk about it anyways.
- We still know very little about MIDNIGHT SPECIAL, but it makes the list. Everyone is intrigued and curious, but a bit clueless. This can turn out to be a good thing.
- No one, NO…ONE… is anticipating GODS OF EGYPT. LOL
Some take-aways from the survey:
- Marvel is still king. Between the Marvel Cinematic Universe films and the two Fox X-Men entries, Marvel takes up four of the top 5 spots. Movie fans are not experiencing Superhero fatigue just yet. Likely, Deadpool’s more comedic tone is going to be a welcome relief to the often series tone these films can take.
- DC is trying. Really, really trying. But…still…Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice squeaked out a number 8 spot on the list. You would think having their two most recognizable character in the same film would have it top the list — or, at least, rank in the top 5. But, no, something is not connecting with audiences, just yet.
- Suicide Squad is ranking higher due to a strong, well-crafted trailer, love for Harley Quinn and the curiosity surrounding Jared Leto’s take on The Joker. It also is trying to catch that Guardians of the Galaxy vibe.
- Star Trek, Star Wars and Harry Potter prove they are still strong properties. Rogue One is a side-story to the main Star Wars films. It ranks high due to that association, the excitement of the premise and the promise of Darth Vader. Could its toppling – compared to The Force Awakens – be due to the direction of Garth Edwards (Godzilla)? Curious.
- Four films come in at “golden” rating: Deadpool, Captain America: Civil War, Doctor Strange and Rogue One.
- Six films come in at “potential” rating: X-Men: Apocalypse, Suicide Squad, Midnight Special, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Star Trek Beyond and Fantastic Beast and Where to Find Them.
- The remaining films found in Curious, Boring and Dead did not make this final top 10.
Doc Rotten is the founder of Gruesome Magazine. He is also a film critic for Gruesome Magazine and the podcast host & producer for Horror News Radio, Monster Movie Podcast, Decades of Horror: 1970s, The American Horror Story Fan Podcast and Hannibal Fan Podcast. He is also co-host of the Dracula podcast on TV TALK and is a contributing reviewer for HorrorNews.Net and Widescreen Warrior.
Doc a lifelong fan of horror films, sci-fi flicks and monster movies first discovering Universal Monsters and Planet of the Apes as a young child in the 1970's searching out every issue of Famous Monster of Filmland (and, later, Fangoria). Favorite films include Jaws, The Car, The Birds, The Tingler, Vampire Circus and The Exorcist. Still a huge fan of horror films from the 70s, Doc continues consuming horror films to this day for the site, for the podcasts and for the fun of it all.
Doc a lifelong fan of horror films, sci-fi flicks and monster movies first discovering Universal Monsters and Planet of the Apes as a young child in the 1970's searching out every issue of Famous Monster of Filmland (and, later, Fangoria). Favorite films include Jaws, The Car, The Birds, The Tingler, Vampire Circus and The Exorcist. Still a huge fan of horror films from the 70s, Doc continues consuming horror films to this day for the site, for the podcasts and for the fun of it all.
