Hollywood banks on star appeal of superheroes

Movie studios are banking on a group of comic book heroes to boost box-office totals this summer.
"Thor," "Captain America" and "X-Men: First Class," all feature characters from the Marvel Comics universe, and "Green Lantern," from DC Comics, will hit the big screen between now and late July.
Executives hope these iconic superheroes have the power to turn around lagging ticket sales, which are running as much as 20% below last year's mark, according to industry analysts.
"There's no question about it. The 'Thor' movie and the 'Captain America' movie are the next big things for the company," says Joe Quesada, Marvel's Chief Creative Officer.
There's good reason to think comic book heroes can be a hit. "The Dark Knight" pulled in more than $1 billion worldwide in 2008, while the three "Spider-Man" movies are among the top 30 all-time top-grossing movies worldwide.
 MARVEL ENTERTAINMENT Thor is one of the comic book heroes who will appear on the big screen this summer.
It takes more than just putting an actor in a fancy suit to ensure success. For every hit like "Superman Returns," there's been a flop like "Daredevil." It's tricky to create a hit. It takes picking the right characters, finding the right script, casting the right actors and dealing with a built-in fan base that can make or break a movie.
Most of the box-office success stories are for characters already popular in general pop culture: "Batman," "Spider-Man," "Superman."
This summer, "Thor" is the least known of the characters.
Kevin Feige, Marvel Studios president of production, is certain Thor's out-of-this-world setting will make the movie a big draw. He wanted to expand the movie template after Earth-bound films featuring Spider-Man, the X-Men, Hulk and Iron Man.
"I like the idea of going to outer space. To going to more of a sci-fi sandbox," says Feige. "It's just much more of a sci-fi edge which I always wanted to be a part of.
"I'm very proud that we've pulled it off in a way that all audiences, whether they have read comics or haven't read comics, or like science fiction or don't like science fiction, can respond to and relate to."
There is payoff for comic book companies if the films do well. Movies -- like video games, animation and online products -- have become a major part of the comic book industry. A successful movie tends to spark new interest in comic book sales.
Comic book movies also come with product placements, which are added income sources. Store shelves are already lined with action figures, T-shirts, games and other merchandise featuring the films.
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