2023 Recap: What Kind of Kenergy Are We Bringing to 2024?

Welcome to the last One Moore Hollywood Podcast episode of 2023! In this episode, our magnificent hosts and film industry experts, Chris Moore, Katie Marpe, and Dennis De Nobile, go over some of the most significant entertainment moments of the year, discuss what we might expect from 2024, and thank all the OMHP listeners a million times over for their steady support.

Barbenheimer: The Highlight of the Summer

Few would argue that there was a bigger entertainment moment of the year than the highly anticipated Barbenheimer opening weekend–at least in the movie industry (because if we were to count Taylor Swift, Marpe says, she would take the cake.)

While Barbeneheimer is, of course, referring to two separate movies, Barbie was the breakout hit of 2023. A movie continually underestimated, mainly by the men who initially didn't want to see it, Barbie's massive success as a blockbuster movie overtly made for a female demographic hopefully means more mainstream films of that nature get greenlit in 2024. 

With so many sequels and franchises falling short of their expected profits this year, a major 2023 lesson for the industry has been that not all sequels are moneymakers. More original stories (such as Barbie) and quality franchise films would be a welcome addition to 2024 and beyond.

How Do We Push For Quality Over Quantity In 2024?

How do we, as the audience, push the industry to focus on quality content over quantity?

"Right now, the industry is focused on themselves and forgetting all the people."

–Chris Moore

As Moore points out, it's hard to know how to effect change when you're so removed from those who make the executive business decisions. He wonders if movie communities like Letterboxd might start to have a more prominent voice in declaring which movies are resonating with audiences and which are not. "The thing that seems to have some effect [on the industry] is how culturally relevant and how fast the audience picks up on something," Moore says.

De Nobile notes that because people liked Godzilla Minus One so much, its theater run was extended. So spreading the word and encouraging others to see the movies you loved might well have a measurable effect on the industry.

"It's when those 'nobody-saw-that-coming' things happen that the industry learns…so the more the communities and fans can get people to do stuff that no one thought was possible, the better it is."

–Chris Moore

No one (except Marpe) expected Barbie to be the mega-hit it was, and we can only hope that 2024 brings some unexpected delights of the like to our screens. Until then, our hosts will be excitedly anticipating the releases of Furiosa: A Max Max Saga (Marpe), Deadpool 3 (De Nobile), and True Detective (Moore). 

Happy 2024, everyone. Thank you all for listening (and reading)!

Listen to the entire episode here: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or iHeartRadio.