Odds are you looked at that headline and did a double take, but I stand by what I said.
If you want to understand the entertainment world, you should understand professional wrestling. This idea does extend to the world outside of entertainment, such as politics, but we’ll leave that discussion for another day.
First, let’s define pro wrestling, which is a form of entertainment that blends athletics and entertainment into to fighting sport. Pro wrestling is pre-determined and, largely, the wrestlers are following a script, but what they do still takes a lot of athletic ability.
What sets wrestling apart is its pension for spectacle. If you ever watch anything wrestling-related, it’s almost always over the top. The entrances, the dialogue, and the characters all are larger than life.
One area that makes wrestling unique is its focus on popping the crowd. Since all of this happens in front of a live crowd, its reaction gauges success.
Wrestling will often use surprise returns, dramatic reveals, or characters turning to elicit a response from the crowd. Sound familiar?
Let’s take a trip back to this year’s San Diego Comic-Con.
On a stage filled with Dr. Doom lookalikes, one costumed person stepped forward. He dramatically whipped off his mask and revealed himself as Robert Downey Jr., sending the crowd in attendance into a frenzy.
While the crowd loved the reveal, those on the Internet were more split on the return. Furthermore, there are a lot of questions of how RDJ will fit into all of this and how much he’ll actually be used.
As of right now, those answers don’t matter because the buzz is around RDJ’s return thanks, in large part, to the crowd reaction.
I believe Marvel utilized the same tools professional wrestling does to elicit a response from the crowd. This is vital because it generated a viral clip that Marvel can share as proof of the excitement surrounding RDJ’s return.
That type of reaction would not have come if Marvel just announced the casting in a press release or other similar means so it seems the studio found an ideal method.
It’s all rather genius, especially when this unveiling mirrored two memorable moments in WWE history.
The first is when an army of people dressed as John Cena lined the entry way at WrestleMania 25 as the real Cena made his entrance. The second is when Vince McMahon revealed himself to be the cloaked “Higher Power” as part of a 1999 storyline by dramatically whipping off his hood in the ring.
The RDJ reveal isn’t the only example of pro wrestling leaking into the larger entertainment world. These types of conventions all present opportunities to borrow elements from wrestling.
D23 appeared to use some of these techniques in unveiling its announcements, particularly when Disney showcased the live-action Stitch for the first time.
Look, wrestling will likely always be the black sheep in entertainment. That said, its impact is undeniable. Wrestling has been doing this on a national stage for decades so it is perfected the method.
Seeing the same tactics creep up in other areas is cool, but it’s important to know what is going on.
If you only saw the SDCC clip, you’d think Marvel hit a homerun bring back RDJ. In reality, opinions are a lot more mixed but Marvel has figured out how to work the live crowd to create the look it needed.
Understanding pro wrestling can help you better process other entertainment entities’ approach and cut through the theatrics of it all. You may still enjoy the spectacle of it all but you’ll have a better idea of what you’re watching.
Be sure to head over to our Discord channel to join the conversation regarding this and many other topics.
Featured Image: Comics Online (via WDW News Today)
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