C'mon Hollywood #187 | Movie News

... show fangirls some respect!
by Sturdy

A strange thing has happened over the past six months or so. A new, untapped market has begun to emerge as a force to be reckoned with at the box office; fangirls. Now, many of us were never even aware such a demographic existed because we’ve spent many years trying to have sex with them. But make no mistake about it, fangirls have officially planted themselves as a new market for Hollywood to tap into and it’s time we all give them the respect they deserve.

Twilight fangirls…wait…is that a dude on the far right?

Movies targeted towards women are nothing new, of course, but with the recent release of TWILIGHT, we’ve seen something we’ve never seen before. That’s a film targeted towards a specific, niche, female market. I’m not going to lie to you, I don’t like TWILIGHT or the fact it has anally raped the vampire lore that I’ve come to respect and love. However, I have to respect the fact that it has such a passionate following comprised mainly of women. Well, maybe not women, but at least girls. When I saw the film, I finally understood why every girl bitched incessantly when I dragged them to the midnight showings of the STAR WARS movies. It’s not that they hated STAR WARS, it’s that they couldn’t understand why I liked it so much. Face it guys, TWILIGHT is to women what STAR WARS is to men.

Oh, like you don't know someone that dressed up for Star Wars!

But it’s not just TWILIGHT, this summer has seen two films targeted predominantly towards women soar into the top ten highest grossing films of the year. SEX AND THE CITY already had a huge following and prompted every bored housewife in America to escape to the theater on opening night. I’m making fun of it, but the fact remains that the film did extremely well despite only appealing to a certain demographic.

4 episodes slapped together

MAMMA MIA was the other film to jump into the top ten of the year and I don’t think anyone saw that coming. Why? Because most of us weren’t aware how many women love ABBA. Hell, I like ABBA and I didn’t even realize it until I saw the movie. Next thing you know, I’m singin’ and dancin’ my way out of the theater. All three of the films are a sign that the female audience is out there, they’re just waiting for someone to make a movie for them.

The music was catchy

Another scary thought is that both SEX AND THE CITY and TWILIGHT have greenlit sequels. So Hollywood has caught on that women and fangirls are a market they can milk for all they’re worth. But Hollywood really needs to show them some respect and put some effort (and money) into the sequels. This is especially true for Twilight. The first one looked like it was a made for TV movie. It’s okay to put a little effort into the special effects, it won’t kill anyone.

Previous C'MON HOLLYWOOD Columns

• Do something different with Bourne!
• No Beyonce in Wonder Woman!
• Guy Ritchie needs new material!
• It’s time for another South Park movie!
• Keep the Avengers simple!
• Stop with the political advice!

Click here for our C'MON HOLLYWOOD archives...

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25 discussions Expand all

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robkix
4:20PM on 06/27/2009 Add as a friend | MFC profile

that rocks

Fan girls are the best its about time they came out of the closet heres a cold budlite and cheers to you girls

Fan girls are the best its about time they came out of the closet heres a cold budlite and cheers to you girls

 

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critic_h8er
5:41AM on 12/04/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

Good job addressing this!



That said, I take pride in being one of the very few straight, single males out there who LOVED 'Mamma Mia!' and 'Twilight.'



What can I say? A good movie is a good movie, screw its demographics.

Good job addressing this!



That said, I take pride in being one of the very few straight, single males out there who LOVED 'Mamma Mia!' and 'Twilight.'



What can I say? A good movie is a good movie, screw its demographics.

 

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HoyleHaw
11:52PM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

This is the sort of thing that definitely needed addressing

After some weak C'mon Hollywoods, it's nice to see Sturdy back talking about something that actually could matter.



But like some others, I'm no fanboy. I just love movies. And a lot of the movies fanboys like tend to be not-too-bad. So, yeah, make Hollywood respect the fangirl and maybe I'll like those movies, too.

After some weak C'mon Hollywoods, it's nice to see Sturdy back talking about something that actually could matter.



But like some others, I'm no fanboy. I just love movies. And a lot of the movies fanboys like tend to be not-too-bad. So, yeah, make Hollywood respect the fangirl and maybe I'll like those movies, too.

 

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A-1
6:08PM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

F#@% 'em all !

star wars is awsome we all know that, but fan boys suck and just because fan girls have va jay jays doesn't me there any less annoying.

star wars is awsome we all know that, but fan boys suck and just because fan girls have va jay jays doesn't me there any less annoying.

 

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anomaly7
5:53PM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

The thing about all the movies you mention is that they already had a huge female following before the movies, SATC on tv, twilight books, and the musical momma mia. Therefore, if something is already popular, than it'll be a popular movie. I want to see if an original idea will attract a large "fangirl" audience. Take Avatar for example. It's an original idea and because we fanboys find the...

The thing about all the movies you mention is that they already had a huge female following before the movies, SATC on tv, twilight books, and the musical momma mia. Therefore, if something is already popular, than it'll be a popular movie. I want to see if an original idea will attract a large "fangirl" audience. Take Avatar for example. It's an original idea and because we fanboys find the plot interesting, and know Cameron to be a great director, I'm sure the movie will be a decent sucess.



The only two film series I've seen girls and guys get equally excited for were the pirates of the caribbean movies and the harry potter movies, for whatever that is worth.

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PuffCity
4:06PM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

Finally

Finally, the first decent C'mon Hollywood in a while

Finally, the first decent C'mon Hollywood in a while

 

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top5records78
2:59PM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

Wow, shameless attack on Hanna Montana

I don't think Mylie Cyrus is returning cricker's phone calls. I'll grant you that N'Sync and Hanna Montana ain't the Rolling Stones, but it hits on something the Fangirl demographic likes, and that's why they have more money than God (no offense, God). And when it comes to something we as Fanboys like, we say "Critics be damned" and no matter what they say, we stand in line and buy our tickets....

I don't think Mylie Cyrus is returning cricker's phone calls. I'll grant you that N'Sync and Hanna Montana ain't the Rolling Stones, but it hits on something the Fangirl demographic likes, and that's why they have more money than God (no offense, God). And when it comes to something we as Fanboys like, we say "Critics be damned" and no matter what they say, we stand in line and buy our tickets. Not for everything, mind you, but for most of our Fanboy movies, we only care for the basic story as well, and if it manages to be extraordinary entertainment we lucked out. The no scrupels bit leans more toward hyperbole. Also for the "Hey, that sucked" line, SATC and Devil Wears Prada were actually pretty good, Mamma Mia as well, and got the reviews to match, so maybe on some of these we can give them the benefit of the doubt. But not Twilight, what are they thinking on that one?

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terraphim86
2:55PM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

"Fangirl" has had such a negative connotation because of all the idiotic teenage girls. Although I'm a girl, I'd much rather be called a "fanboy" sometimes because I actually CARE about the content and quality of my fandoms, and not just the hormone crap.



That said, I'm the biggest "Underworld" fangirl you will ever meet. And I think "Twilight" (the books and movie) sucks and...

"Fangirl" has had such a negative connotation because of all the idiotic teenage girls. Although I'm a girl, I'd much rather be called a "fanboy" sometimes because I actually CARE about the content and quality of my fandoms, and not just the hormone crap.



That said, I'm the biggest "Underworld" fangirl you will ever meet. And I think "Twilight" (the books and movie) sucks and "Mamma Mia" was just okay. Don't be so judgmental.

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cricker
2:23PM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

Its a shame

bc fangirls have no standards they will support anything they like before it is ever released and then when it gets killed by critics (twilight, SATC, N'Sync)male and female alike, they still support it. They dont go hey that sucked, that wasnt nearly like the book or as good, but hey when does the sequel come out? Now movie studios are realizing that if you just have a very basic story that...

bc fangirls have no standards they will support anything they like before it is ever released and then when it gets killed by critics (twilight, SATC, N'Sync)male and female alike, they still support it. They dont go hey that sucked, that wasnt nearly like the book or as good, but hey when does the sequel come out? Now movie studios are realizing that if you just have a very basic story that covers some ascpects of there life (clothing, music, popularity) and put cute looking people in it they will support it. I mean have yo ever heard of one good thing about Hanna Montana from anyone not a teenage and under girl, or her mother? No bc it sucks but they will support it forever. They have no scrupels, basically

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JohnLocke2342
2:12PM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

agreed

I don't think he's trying to tell girls like you awesomezara... or even trying to compare u to these girls. I think he's just talking about the new population of fan girl that exploded. These are the type of women that would make Ghost the highest grossing movie of all-time if it came out now... and these are the girls that pushed Titanic to the top of the standings and put it so far out of...

I don't think he's trying to tell girls like you awesomezara... or even trying to compare u to these girls. I think he's just talking about the new population of fan girl that exploded. These are the type of women that would make Ghost the highest grossing movie of all-time if it came out now... and these are the girls that pushed Titanic to the top of the standings and put it so far out of place that I don't think anything will ever beat it.



Women like awesomezara and a good amount of women on this website are fangirls. Period. They love what we love.. go to events, midnight screenings, know every director and actor's library of films... dissect every plot detail, dig deeper then most, crave for new news... etc. etc.

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top5records78
1:37PM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

What's in a name?

Fangirl is an appropriate name for a female movie fan who undergoes the typical Fanboy behavior for a ovary-centric movie, like Twilight or SATC. The proper name for a female fan who goes to ComicCon and quotes Tarantino, Smith and Favs (though I must admit I've never met Mr. Favreau and just learned this hip nickname) is called Awesome. The point I think Sturdy was trying to make, and it is a...

Fangirl is an appropriate name for a female movie fan who undergoes the typical Fanboy behavior for a ovary-centric movie, like Twilight or SATC. The proper name for a female fan who goes to ComicCon and quotes Tarantino, Smith and Favs (though I must admit I've never met Mr. Favreau and just learned this hip nickname) is called Awesome. The point I think Sturdy was trying to make, and it is a valid one, is that studios see their big money makers as Fanboy films, and market and spend on them as such. But women have their likes as well, and gearing a few more movies a year toward them may prove lucrative, as proven through SATC (152 mil), Mamma Mia (147 mil) and Devil Wears Prada (124 mil). And it's a valid point as well, as proven through Mark Harris' article "Hollywood 'Shocker': Women go to the Movies." But this CH takes it a step further to give these female fans their own designation, which makes sense, because if there's one thing the studios love to do it's give a demographic a name. But it's a fickle audience to target, to be sure. The Women can attest to that (26 mil). But then, we Fanboys can throw a monkey in the wrench every once in a while, too. Ask Speed Racer.

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Call me Indiana
12:40PM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

Does anyone remember when there used to be a lot of thought put into these C'mon Hollywood's? It seems like there's one every other day now that's just utter hogwash.



I never knew there was such a problem showing fangirls respect because, like AwesomeZara and snoopmish already said, they like the same things fanboys do. I think, by trying to show respect to fangirls (and there...

Does anyone remember when there used to be a lot of thought put into these C'mon Hollywood's? It seems like there's one every other day now that's just utter hogwash.



I never knew there was such a problem showing fangirls respect because, like AwesomeZara and snoopmish already said, they like the same things fanboys do. I think, by trying to show respect to fangirls (and there are comments below to prove this point) sturdy has actually insulted the fangirls with this article.



But then, you can't really expect much from a C'mon Hollywood article these days.

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sd71
12:11PM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

get um awesome zara



your right fangirls are the same as us



i also liked the diatribe about tits in your profile

get um awesome zara



your right fangirls are the same as us



i also liked the diatribe about tits in your profile

 

+0

AwesomeZara
11:49AM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

I have a major problem with the term "fangirl" being applied to women who watch romantic drivel. I've always proudly referred to myself as a fangirl because I was into the same shit that the "fanboys" were into: I've drooled for Tarantino, Smith, and Favs. Hell, the fact that I refer to him as Favs and not John Favreau is proof enough to be a legitimately deemed fangirl.



In...

I have a major problem with the term "fangirl" being applied to women who watch romantic drivel. I've always proudly referred to myself as a fangirl because I was into the same shit that the "fanboys" were into: I've drooled for Tarantino, Smith, and Favs. Hell, the fact that I refer to him as Favs and not John Favreau is proof enough to be a legitimately deemed fangirl.



In addition, the very fact that I'm arguing over the proper definition of the term is a trait of being a proper fan-um-person. I'm a nit-picking, holier-than-thou, entire script from CLERKS quoting, proud to be obnoxious about my movie watching trends fangirl.



These women who are going to see these films directed at the female market are NOT fangirls. They are the demographic that the real fanboys and girls mock and hate because of their matching expendable income factor. They are the thorn in the sides of the true movie geeks, if you will, the ones that throw off our Summer Movie Box Office picks and cause us to lose the pool.



Show "chick-flick-pickers" some respect, perhaps. But "fangirls"? No, we already give ourselves enough patting on the back.

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sd71
11:14AM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

i was gonna start by making a coment

about the young girl on the right's rack but when i realized she prolly no older than 16 i decided to just say i was gonna comment



i've been saying it for years like someone else said about smallville superman for girls



my sisters are 23 and 21 and they both loved twilight and were like you gonna go see it and i said fuck no



but i suppose that its...

about the young girl on the right's rack but when i realized she prolly no older than 16 i decided to just say i was gonna comment



i've been saying it for years like someone else said about smallville superman for girls



my sisters are 23 and 21 and they both loved twilight and were like you gonna go see it and i said fuck no



but i suppose that its for them



my wife went and saw sex and the city and i watched iron man she went to mamma mia i saw tropic thunder



also i thought i was the only guy who liked trueblood

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drc5145
11:12AM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

Hurm. Probably didn't think throughly enough. 3 Hours of sleep doesn't help. But whatever.



My bad on the lumping people together. It's true of course we have men and women that like all sorts of things, similar or not. Re-reading Sturdy's article...I guess he's simply tired of the hype surrounding Twilight and SATC.He likely made the same mistake as moi and didn't think a touch...

Hurm. Probably didn't think throughly enough. 3 Hours of sleep doesn't help. But whatever.



My bad on the lumping people together. It's true of course we have men and women that like all sorts of things, similar or not. Re-reading Sturdy's article...I guess he's simply tired of the hype surrounding Twilight and SATC.He likely made the same mistake as moi and didn't think a touch more openly.

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DeejayForte
10:33AM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

god bless true blood. thats all i have to say.

god bless true blood. thats all i have to say.

 

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vision_afar
10:31AM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

Throwing all the fangirls in the same basket is just lame. I'm a woman, but I couldn't care less about those films mentioned above. You guys need to find some real topics for this column, or at least have someone sensible enough proof read it for idiocy.

Throwing all the fangirls in the same basket is just lame. I'm a woman, but I couldn't care less about those films mentioned above. You guys need to find some real topics for this column, or at least have someone sensible enough proof read it for idiocy.

 

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Kill Billionair
10:25AM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

So basically Sturdy is saying that he wants to be able to like the movies that are made for girls too.

Because the shreek on the streets is that fan girls love Twilight, SATS and Mamma Mia.

This means that girls can say the same about fanboy movies. That Star Wars should've been more romantic and less sci-fi.

Ah fuck it. The last 10 or so C'mon Hollywoods have been more...

So basically Sturdy is saying that he wants to be able to like the movies that are made for girls too.

Because the shreek on the streets is that fan girls love Twilight, SATS and Mamma Mia.

This means that girls can say the same about fanboy movies. That Star Wars should've been more romantic and less sci-fi.

Ah fuck it. The last 10 or so C'mon Hollywoods have been more pointless than a dick placed on your armpit anyway.

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snoopmish
9:50AM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

Ok.....Speaking as a "fangirl"....how dare you dump us in this catagory of tweeny girl idiots! The only film out of all of those you mentioned I saw was SATC. Why? Because it's funny as hell. I loved the series and saw the film. As for the other films, every woman I know would rather have a red hot poker stuck up their twat then watch that crap. Seriously! Those films are for teen girls, ya...

Ok.....Speaking as a "fangirl"....how dare you dump us in this catagory of tweeny girl idiots! The only film out of all of those you mentioned I saw was SATC. Why? Because it's funny as hell. I loved the series and saw the film. As for the other films, every woman I know would rather have a red hot poker stuck up their twat then watch that crap. Seriously! Those films are for teen girls, ya know the type that like Mylie Cyrus and the Jonas Brothers.....just thinking of them makes me want to puke. The same with these films.

As a REAL fangirl....like a whole lot of other fangirls out there we have news for you......we like Sci-fi, Horror, and yes are comic book and Star Wars geeks.

Insulting us by labeling these ignorant tweeny/teen girls with our name is bullshit. Teenybopper stuff is teenybopper stuff....chic flicks are chic flicks....FANGIRLS like FANBOYS like the same shit. Or are you too "manly" to see that.....for your info most of the women/girls on this site fall into this catagory....we like the same shit as you guys.



Grow up!

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abcdehacademy
9:49AM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

BEST EXAMPLE OF FANBOY/FANGIRL Fusion...

SMALLVILLE on the CW



i've never seen an episode, and the only people I know who watch it are girls, but it's about Superman!

SMALLVILLE on the CW



i've never seen an episode, and the only people I know who watch it are girls, but it's about Superman!

 

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SeymourClearly
8:54AM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

Everyone is entitled to be fans of something, but unfortunately, the movies targeted towards fangirls have been kind of lame and without substance.

Everyone is entitled to be fans of something, but unfortunately, the movies targeted towards fangirls have been kind of lame and without substance.

 

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BarbaraWayne
8:43AM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

Ok, I kinda get your point, but...

Fanboys - Star Wars, sci-fi, superheroes, and other geektastic stuff;

Fangirls - SATC, Twilight and... whatever.



Now, that's unfair. There's the "good" kind of fangirl, so let's not start with the labels. They're just the dark side of our fair sex, boys.

Ok, I kinda get your point, but...

Fanboys - Star Wars, sci-fi, superheroes, and other geektastic stuff;

Fangirls - SATC, Twilight and... whatever.



Now, that's unfair. There's the "good" kind of fangirl, so let's not start with the labels. They're just the dark side of our fair sex, boys.

 

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drc5145
8:03AM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

Sturdy has a point though.



If the studios can acknowledge a little more respect in fangirls, maybe we won't get shittastic movies to have to look at while fangirls swoon over them. Since Twilight and SATC were so damn successful we're gonna have to deal with it. And hope they're a little better than their originals.

Sturdy has a point though.



If the studios can acknowledge a little more respect in fangirls, maybe we won't get shittastic movies to have to look at while fangirls swoon over them. Since Twilight and SATC were so damn successful we're gonna have to deal with it. And hope they're a little better than their originals.

 

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miguel_montes
7:50AM on 12/03/2008 Add as a friend | MFC profile

Great... Expect more shitty movies from now on.

Great... Expect more shitty movies from now on.

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