With the advent of the internet and social media, the relationship between audiences and filmmakers has somewhat changed. Those in the film industry can now find it easier to receive feedback from audiences. This can sometimes lead to filmmakers making big changes.

In 2019, the trailer for “Sonic The Hedgehog” was released and the response from audiences was so overwhelmingly negative, the studio was forced to change things. People had been so critical of the design of Sonic that the movie’s release was pushed back by several months. The filmmakers used this time to go back and change how the blue hedgehog looked. When the film was finally released, people were appreciative of how the studio had listened. It’s amazing to think that a film was changed so drastically before it was even released because of the audience’s demands.

Things were taken to a new level when a viral campaign to get Zack Snyder’s version of “Justice League” released finally succeeded. This was particularly impressive as a Snyder version did not exactly exist before fans started to demand it. Snyder has worked on “Justice League” but had to leave due to a family tragedy. Joss Whedon (“Serenity”) was brought in to finish the film. Significant changes were made to the plot with new scenes shot and a lot of Snyder’s material ditched. The movie was released in 2017 and got a mixed reception.

Fans were determined to see Zack Snyder’s original work brought to the screen. However, a lot of what Snyder did was unfinished. Many of his scenes were missing special effects. The studio eventually decided to give him the millions he needed to finish what he started and now “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” will finally be released in 2021.

This will change things going forward because now audiences know that if they ask enough, it is possible to force the hands of a studio and get them to release an original version of a film. Imagine if the next big blockbuster goes through a troubled production and lots of the original material fails to make the final cut, we could see fans bombarding message boards and social media sites. Audiences have a new power.