Why is no one talking about Marvel's real 'monster'? (opinion)

A while back, I went to see a movie with some other journalists. When the movie ended, obviously a lot of people got up and left. I, however, stayed seated for a few more moments while the credits rolled on the screen.

After a while, I started to ask myself, “Okay, what exactly am I waiting for?” and, somewhat reluctantly, I started to leave the theater, but not before asking a colleague sitting next to me if the movie in question would have a post-credits scene. The short and sweet answer: “It's not a Marvel movie.”

Well, the answer hurt a little, but it also made me reflect on this resource that, despite having started out as just a 'cool' detail in films, has gained a lot of notoriety in recent years.

After all, will it be that Does anyone still get surprised when they come across an additional scene after the credits? Or rather, have post-credits scenes (which were a differentiator) become the “new normal” in cinema?

Is post-credits the new normal?

To begin with, it is worth noting that post-credits scenes have obviously been around for a long time. The film Secret Agent Matt Helmfrom 1966, was the first to invest in the resource, with several others following suit after that.

However, it's no surprise to anyone that the format became more popular with the MCU. With the debut of Iron Manin 2008, the company started a movement that would change the way franchises were built in cinemas. And also the way they were consumed.

In addition to making superheroes popular again, Marvel popularized what we know today as a shared universe, in which all films and series take place in a large, complex and unique plot.

To connect all of this, MCU films have increasingly used post-credits scenes. In Iron Manfor example, the company uses the resource to show that the Avengers are coming.

What started as a detail, became two or even three additional moments in the credits of each film. The point is that, with more and more clues being shared in these moments, the feeling of obligation to stay in the movie theater became greater.

While in the 'pre-MCU' era, people rarely waited for the credits to roll, nowadays the most common thing is to wait a few minutes – even if it's not a Marvel film – after all, “you never know, right”.

Credits to the team and… advertising

In July of this year, Marvel's creative boss, Kevin Feige, received a star on the Walk of Fame and took the opportunity to comment on the success of the post-credits scenes.

“I’m obviously not here because of something I did on my own. No one makes that many films on their own. I’ve had all this help along the way and I really think that’s why filmmaking is the greatest art form, because it’s a collaboration, every single day,” he said in his acceptance speech.

“That's why we put extra scenes at the end of our movies. I like them because they encourage the audience to sit back and see all the names of the people who made the movie and learn what their roles are.”

While Kevin Feige's explanation of collective thinking is noble and makes a lot of sense, it is undeniable that these Additional scenes function mainly as a kind of advertisement for upcoming films.

The Avengers (2012) movie was practically confirmed in the post-credit scene of Iron Man (2008)

And here, Ryan Reynolds himself joked about it in the promotion of Deadpool. “Case If you haven't noticed yet, (Marvel's obligatory post-credits sequence) is always just a commercial for another movie that invariably ends with a commercial for another movie,” he joked in a video posted on his profile.

Time to rethink?

The truth is that the end credits scenes have become Marvel's signature and for a long time were responsible for much of the fans' enjoyment at the movies. Several of these scenes, however, provide information that has never been brought to light in other productions.

Well, while the MCU has practically specialized in this aspect, it is clear that the trend would begin to spread throughout Hollywood beyond superhero movies. To get a better idea, I decided to research the highest-grossing films in ten-year intervals, starting at the beginning of the century.

In 2004, we only had one production that contained a post-credit scene (the iconic Shrek 2); in 2014, the number rose to four (Guardians of the Galaxy, X-Men: Days of Future Past, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, The Amazing Spider-Man 2: The Power of Electro and Operation Big Hero); and in 2023, we had six productions in the ranking (Super Mario Bros. Movie, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Fast & Furious 10, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, John Wick 4: Baba Yaga and Transformers: Dawn of the Beasts).

In addition to the big difference between 2004 and 2023, it is also noteworthy that last year we had some films from outside the MCU adopting post-credits scenes – of the six on the list, only two are from Marvel. (Remembering that I only used the 15 biggest of each year for analysis, huh).

Apparently, post-credits scenes have become a way for big franchises to hint that there's more story to come.

Choosing to use this resource at any time, however, can end up devaluing the experience – since often the post-credit scene does not benefit or expand the film's universe. In addition, much of that speculation about a possible sequel to the film has also diminished, since the film itself ends up 'confirming' a hook for a continuation in the additional scenes.

Well, while we are still figuring out whether the dose Hollywood is using is medicine or poison, they must be taking advantage of the wave to make jokes.

The franchise Panicfor example, which had never had a single post-credit scene, joined the movement, but in a different way (and which may have frustrated those who stayed until the end to see it).

After the credits of Scream 6the film adds a literally two-second scene with the character Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown) saying that “not every movie needs to have a post-credits scene.” Simple, ironic and metalinguistic.

If a resource that was previously used to be a positive surprise for the public has now become a source of irony within the industry itself, isn't that a sign to rethink?