2023 brought all kinds of surprises to the cinema, but one of the most unexpected was the phenomenon surrounding the romantic comedy. Anyone but you. Will Gluck’s film not only became a box office success that surprised the trade press, but also seems to have opened a second wind for the genre. This was at a time when he was going through a difficult situation and It seemed destined for a place in the big streaming catalogues.
Over the past five years, the traditional cinematic romance has seemed to have gone through a difficult road. From a series of feature films that seemed to appeal more to parody than to the delicate balance between love and humor, to cheesy dramas that convinced no one. The truth is that one of Hollywood’s traditional genres seems to be gradually losing interest from the public. Even proven formulas such as Journey to paradise which brought the duo of Julia Roberts and George Clooney to the big screen, failed. So the big question was that he needed romance in films to ignite the enthusiasm of his fans.
The answer, apparently, was TikTok.. Anyone But You premiered over Christmas weekend to a mediocre gross of just $8 million. But it seems to be one of the inexplicable phenomena of social networks: a feature film that unites Sydney Sweeney (Euphoria) and Glen Powell (Maverick), went uphill. And it’s all thanks to a viral challenge in which participants record themselves dancing to a song from 2004. Unwritten Natasha Bedingfield. This is to recreate the end credits of the film.
Dance and laugh in cinemas
But the enthusiasm went beyond social media, and a wave of viewers filled the halls, apparently in response to the popularity of the video series. By January, the film was still one of the top 10 most-watched in the US, and the challenge was still one of the most repeated on TikTok. This combination caused the film’s box office receipts to grow exponentially. until it reaches between $85 million and $100 million by the end of the month. And this is with a budget of only twenty-five.
Much more so, given the ton of terrible reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and a B+ CinemaScore. But this premise is immune to all of the above and has turned into a series of very rare consecutive successes. In its second weekend, and always thanks to TikTok, the film overcame a poor start and climbed to 45 in ticket sales. It later became the first Christmas premiere to gross more money in its third week than its debut. According to THR’s sources, the industry has responded enthusiastically to the film’s growing popularity and consistency over time. In particular, for making it clear that romantic comedies had a whole new audience, much younger than expected.
Modern history for a new audience
Social platforms, and especially TikTok, seem to be the perfect place to renew interest in films through the attention of their users. A good example is the success of the viral video of Miles Teller dancing at the Cannes Film Festival at the film premiere Maverick. Thanks to this, the film reached a very young audience that the producers did not expect to attract. Something similar happened with Bad girls and his campaign directed specifically for social network publics.
As for Twitter/X, the sensation of the summer, Barbenheimer demonstrated his ability to create his own spontaneous promotions. This is forcing Hollywood to place increased emphasis on users’ ability to turn their tastes into movie profits.
Source: Hiper Textual
