Super Serious Study: Are Movie Trailers Giving Away The Best Parts Of The Films?

Yes.

Oh, sorry. I guess I should explain first. The fine folks at YouGov Omnibus recently conducted a survey to determine what specifically drives people to go see certain movies, and whether or not they are put off by trailers that reveal too much about a film. The results of the study were pretty obvious, for the most part.

According to a new study, half (49 percent) of Americans feel that movie trailers these days give away too many of a movie’s best scenes, with a full 16 percent agreeing strongly. (Via THR)

I would have expected that second number to be a lot higher, because with new movie trailers and exclusive scenes coming out for the summer blockbusters at a pace that feels like every five seconds, you’d think that John Q. Moviegoer would be a lot angrier. Especially in this era of unbridled Internet rage.

So are people put off by these extensive trailers? No, not at all. Probably because they’re one minute long and movies are two hours longer and sometimes feature boobies.

The findings from the YouGov Omnibus survey taken April 26 to 28 found that the reveal of plot in a trailer deterred only about 19 percent of respondents from wanting to see the movie. In contrast, 24 percent said that it made them want to see the film more.

Movie trailers remain extremely important to audiences, playing the biggest role (48 percent) in pushing people to see a movie, followed closely by personal recommendations (46 percent).

Basically, people admitted the obvious – that studios give way too much away – but short of showing us the ending and ruining the whole damn thing, nothing’s going to stop us from actually seeing the movie. What they should have asked was, “Are you sometimes pissed off by trailers that make movies look awesome, only to spend $10-15 on those movies and realize that they were flaming piles of smegma?” And the statistics would have been remarkably different.

I’ve always thought the best way to promote a movie would be to just have Kate Upton bouncing up and down while she says the movie’s title over and over.

I would have watched That’s My Boy twice just for that.

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