Constant MCU Streams Fatigue Third of Marvel Fans

Fandom’s fourth annual report found that over one third of Marvel fans claim they are fatigued from the constant output of Marvel Cinematic Universe content.

Though Marvel has developed several television shows in the past two years, Fandom’s wiki traffic indicates that box office releases still draw a healthy amount of viewers. In other words, these fans may complain about fatigue, but they’re still watching the movies and shows.

This year’s “Inside Fandom”Report will be discussed during a live webinar hosted at 1 p.m. by Colton Dunn, actor, writer, and producer. ET Thursday also used first party data to identify four fan identities: The Advocate. The Intentionalist. The Culturalist. And The Flirt.

Fandom utilizes first-party data gathered from its popular platform (with over 300,000,000 users) as well as a global study of 5,000 supporters in the US and UK for these results.

“Reaching consumers in an impactful way is not a one-size-fits-all formula. Understanding the spectrum of fan identity and how it affects fan behavior has never been more critical across the ever-expanding entertainment landscape,”Perkins Miller, CEO Fandom. “Our FanDNA data platform provides invaluable insights to help our partners develop sophisticated, effective campaigns that will resonate with the exact fan segment to drive viewership and play.”

Advocates invest in IP that is the foundation of a project. They want to be in it for long term. They incorporate their franchises into a lifestyle, buy merch, write fanfiction, etc. Franchises that attract “Advocates”Include the Marvel Cinematic Universe “Harry Potter,” “Stranger Things,” “Rick and Morty,” DC, “Zelda,” “Star Wars,” “Mario,” “The Boys”And “The Simpsons.”This represents 24% of the average fanbase.

Intentionalists don’t try to multitask while consuming their favorite shows or movies. Intentionalists pay full attention to the content they are viewing and can make intelligent decisions. Intentionalist franchises include “Sex Lives of College Girls,” “Zelda,” “Breaking Bad,” “HandMaid’s Tale,” “Diablo, “Game of Thrones,” “True Blood,” “Dragon Ball Z,” “Rick & Morty”And “Only Murders in the Building.”This is 31% of the average fanbase.

These insights feed into other data points that Fandom’s study reports, such as Fandom’s prediction that the “Sex Lives of College Girls”Season 2 will have a higher overall viewership than Season 1.

Fandom decided that Marvel and “Sex Lives”Fanbases with higher concentrations Of Advocates and Intentionalists are more likely to be considered as such. “a more leaned in and always on fanbase,”Based on the data and the wiki website.

More than 60% “Sex Lives of College Girls”Audience was identified as Advocates or Intentionalists.

According to Fandom’s report, 81% of the “Sex Lives of College Girls”Existing fans plan to view the second season.

As for the other two types of fans detailed in the report — which used three case studies to demonstrate the breakdown — Culturalists (24% of the average fanbase) gravitate to works of pop culture based on buzz and cultural relevance, particularly around a release, including meme culture. Culturalists are driven by FOMO (fear of missing out) to keep up with current trends so that they can participate in the conversation. Culturalists keep an eye on “Scrubs,” “Chicago Fire,” “Ted Lasso,” “The Sopranos,” “Handmaid’s Tale,” “Boardwalk Empire,” “True Detective,” “The Challenge,” “Parks & Rec”And “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.”

Flirts (21%) are the most engaged fan base because they watch based upon their mood and whim. Flirts is a top franchise. “Frozen,” “The Office,” “TMNT,” “SpongeBob,” “Sonic,” “SouthPark,” “Friends,” “The Bachelor,”And “Real Housewives.”

“The words ‘fan’ and ‘super fan’ are used constantly to describe consumers of entertainment, but those terms are too generic for today’s entertainment world – fandoms are complex,”Stephanie Fried, CMO Fandom. “Understanding the layers of fan identity and authentically connecting with them at the right time and right place will be key for marketers looking to maximize success across streaming, theatrical and video game releases.”

Other fascinating takeaways from Fandom’s study include the following:

• Advertising is the number 2 way Intentionalists learn content. They are 15% more inclined to be influenced than any other fan group.
• Advocates are 125% more likely watch/play on the date of release, while Intentionalists will watch/play 41% faster within the first two week of a release
• Culturists will tune in within the first  month of the release followed by the Flirts who watch whenever they have the time
• Viewership is not guaranteed and a pre-existing connection with the IP doesn’t mean that a fan is automatically going to watch/play an upcoming release:
• 52% of the fanbase aren’t sure if they will watch or play a new release.
• 36% of Marvel fans are fatigued with Marvel content while 20% of DC fans say they are fatigued with DC content
• Looking at these two percentages, Marvel fans are 84% more likely to be fatigued with Marvel content compared to DC fans with DC content
• The difference in these stats is that 36% and 20% represent percentages of the fanbase. The index 184 (or 84%) is a propensity indicator metric that shows the relative fatigue of Marvel fans and DC fans.