“King of the World”: The Economics and Culture of Hollywood Blockbusters
Film journalist Mark Harris wrote last year: “Franchises are not a big part of the movie business. They are not the biggest part of the movie business. They are the movie business. Period.”
The film industry is increasingly constricted by a blockbuster moviemaking mentality. Rather than being just an escapist summer novelty, blockbusters dominate the entire theatrical release calendar.
Using economic analysis and clips from blockbuster films, we’ll discuss how we arrived at this point and where the film industry is headed. We will examine the origins of the Hollywood blockbuster (starting with Steven Spielberg’s “Jaws” and George Lucas’ “Star Wars”), the phenomenon of “event films,” the economics that makes blockbusters an integral part of today’s Hollywood, and the creative wasteland that’s resulted.
Location
Washington Post
1150 15th St. NW
Washington,
DC
20071
Neighborhood: McPherson Square
Between L and M streets NW
Past event