You know the story so far: the cinematic landscape has struggled through the pandemic, myriad streaming options left the home-bound movie viewer unenthused by new releases and major picture delays sent shudders of uncertainty through the movie market.  

But License Global has spotted a new trend emerging through each red band trailer to land on the social scene that could mark the return of global anticipation and excitement around new movies. 

Leave it to the big kids to bring the blockbuster back, as “Suicide Squad 2” – the story of DC villains fighting against impossible odds to gain freedom from Arkham Asylum and various other Gotham penitentiaries – has broken a new record for most viewed red band trailer of all time, reaching 151.1 million views in its first week.  

This is a record only recently set by fans of “Mortal Kombat” – another Warner Bros. production releasing in theatres and on HBO Max – after the trailer for the iconic video game reboot hit Twitter and YouTube in February. 

We won’t go into the gory details, but the return of movies making a big impact with fans through trailers is signaling a big difference in perception for cinema.  

Where viewers were once unenthusiastic about new releases and their subsequent delays through lockdown, the world is now invested once again as cinemas re-open across the U.S. (and in May across the U.K.), leaving fans excited for faithful adaptations of their favorite comics, games and books. 

This is also set to continue at pace as more fan-driven pictures like “Deadpool 3” are in development and confirmed to be R-rated by Director Kevin Feige, sending the internet into a frenzy of speculation and excitement once again. 

This trend not only marks the return of excitement for theatrical releases, but fan anticipation and engagement aid the global licensing business in highlighting opportunities at retail, consumer touch points and new on-ramps into the franchise moving forward.  

Put simply, the fans are once again making their voice heard, and the world can’t wait to hear more of it.