You'd have to living under a rock if you haven't noticed one of the biggest trends in movie theaters around the world, this current trend is generating tons of bucks each and every month, attracting pull from nerds to nostalgia feeds to just the general audiences, and most significantly of all, it's got all the kids raving around Christmas with toys to play with and shows to binge on. Needless to say, I'm referring to 'The Superhero Trend' coursing through Hollywood's veins, this trend involving 'The Superhero Movie' is dominating both the big screen and the silver screen as companies like both Netflix and Fox move forward in hopes to continue to meet their audiences demand for more of this specific form of media. With that being said, what is the origin of the 'Superhero Film?' When did it become a household term? Will it go the way of the 'Western?'

'Superhero Films' haven't been around for as-long as people realize, although their near omnipotence nowadays in being synonymous with every-day pop culture is quite remarkable they're truly only a product of modern film-making in every single way. In the 1990's to avoid bankruptcy Marvel the company responsible for creating 'Spider-Man,' 'X-Men,' 'Fantastic Four,' and 'The Avengers' was facing incredible lows in sales. Forced to sell the rights to many of their intellectual properties to stay afloat they weren't the only company forced to sell out their products to other parties. Regarding comic book films they're wasn't truly ever any comic book adaptions brought to the big screen that were honest to their source materiel, in the 70's Christopher Reeve successfully convinced the world a man could fly when Richard Donner directed him in the original now classic 'Superman' film though it subverted it's comic book lore in favor of more whimsical film-making. Tim Burton did an incredible job proving 'Batman' could be a money making machine in the box office, his original 1989 'Batman' featured Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson, and music from Prince. That film was certainly an excellent piece of cinema, it was moody, dark, atmospheric, and overall compelling to watch on the big screen. It was the polar opposite of Adam West's 'Batman' from the 1960's that provided about as much camp as Captain Kirk and his love of green women. Richard Donner and Tim Burton didn't provide fans with movies that did justice to the source material, however they did create movies that showed movie studios the ludicrous amounts of money they can make with these films. Film studios did just that and eventually milked both these character dry, essentially they made films for both franchises until both franchises collapsed from both critical failures and terrible box office returns. Though it should be noted some blame it on George Clooney and his Bat-nipples in 'Batman Forever' as well as Arnold Schwarzenegger as Mister Freeze with 'Ice Puns.'

'Superhero' films as we know them today really didn't come out till 'Blade' starring Wesley Snipes, and as much as people try to deny it's legitimacy, it definitely set the trend. This late 90's action film re-define the decaying 'Superhero' genre by incorporating horror, gore, violence, and of course foul language. 'Blade' is often forgotten and unappreciated but it was the first of it's kind in regards to the 'Superhero' film and it changed the way studios approached the projects. Now darker, edgier, post-modern style films were climbing into the forefront. Later Bryan Singer would make millions with his live action adaption of 'X-Men' and much later in the early 2000s Sam Raimi struck gold when he directed the now classic 'Spider-man.''Spider-man' really broke through to the public reaching such a level of mass appeal it called for a sequel as movie studios set in to cash in on the idea of 'franchises.' Significant to note that this film satisfied fans as it attempted to portray events from the source material, it warranted a great deal of admiration from the comic community. Soon 'Batman' was rebooted by studios with Christopher Nolan at the helm and his take was truly revolutionary, by bringing the 'Dark Knight' into the real-world not just his own he made a film franchise that truly garners respect as well as acclaim. Christopher Nolan and Sam Raimi though entirely different attempted to pay homage to the comics they grew up with and it thoroughly succeeded. They captured the eyes and hearts of millions of people with their films, but they were only the beginning much like 'Blade.'

After Christopher Nolan and Sam Raimi completed their franchises in the 2000s they left a vacuum open for other film-makers to step up, and Marvel certainly did that. Marvel having sold most of their intellectual properties to stay a float made one last ditch effort to save themselves, they hired Robert Downey Jr to portray Iron Man a relatively unknown character. 'Iron Man' as well as Mr Downey were considered risks, as Ironman was not a popular character at the time but thankfully they paid off and 'Ironman' was both a critical and financial success. Furthermore were learnt producers on the project inserted Easter eggs into the production that very thoughtfully would help the film later. Eventually Disney was so impressed by Marvel Studios that they bought them, and Marvel has been making billions of dollars ever since. In effect changing the movie industry and shaping it more to it's own needs, I imagine Marvel gets a lot of creative control while Disney finances. It must be easy to make something a household name especially when Disney is your wallet, and this is how 'Superhero Films' have come to dominate the world.

Regarding them disappearing like 'Westerns' it's unlikely as the internet age is here so things we embrace are cool, become uncool, get cool again in a never ending cycle. I do imagine the 'Superhero' trend will slow down in time but with reboots and remakes being a commonality as well as prequels and spin-off it wouldn't last. Honestly we should embrace all these films for being celebrations of nerd culture we know and love, even the horrible ones we wish we didn't see like 'Batman v. Superman' what a stinker.