Editing movie trailers is always a challenge – enough fascinating details must be revealed to potential viewers without giving away the film's plot or revealing spoilers. The best trailers inspires intrigue but essentially doesn't divulge important plot points. Expected action sequences, witty phrases, minimal exposition introducing the premise, shots that establish the atmosphere of the setting and, of course, some scenes that demonstrate chemistry between the actors, are elements commonly used in good movie trailers.
Unfortunately, the temptation to surprise audiences often leads to movie trailers that spoil incredible moments. Even worse is the case where shocking plot twists are included, causing entire films to be spoiled by their trailers. While the motivation behind such a decision is not difficult to understand, it almost always backfires, leaving the audience without any intrigue when it appears that the film's entire plot has been revealed by a trailer. There are only a few exceptions such as Alien: Romuluswhose spoiler-filled trailers led to speculation about a surprise and added to the hype rather than capitalizing on it.
10
Gandalf's return
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
One of the most exciting moments of the first The Lord of the Rings film was the death of Gandalf the Grey. He protected his friends from the Balrog, a fearsome monster, and fought valiantly to stop him, only to be dragged into a bottomless pit by the demon in his path. Although the phrase “You shall not pass” has since become a meme, viewers have been left heartbroken and anxious about Gandalf's fate.
Those who read The Lord of the Rings knew that Gandalf would return after his apparent death. However, for those who didn't know, Gandalf's return is an epic scene in The Two Towers. He is he became Gandalf the White and evolved into an even more powerful wizard. Unfortunately, the trailer clearly shows him appearing in his white dress in a blinding flash of light, revealing his survival.
9
Marcus' true identity
Terminator: Salvation (2009)
Skynet, the antagonistic organization in Terminator franchise, is known for creating the evil cyborgs that unleash death upon humanity. With the exception of a few sympathetic exceptions, almost all Terminators are coded as evil, although in some extremist views they are not so villainous. Justified or not, the Terminators are eternally at war with humans and their differences seem irreconcilable most of the time.
So when a human-cyborg hybrid character is presented as a well-intentioned character who even sacrifices himself at the end of Terminator: Salvationto save John Connor's lifethis completely changes the concept of Terminator. The shocking reveal is a surprising turn in the franchise and the film, but unfortunately viewers knew beforehand because the character's identity is revealed in the trailer.
8
Chuck's Rescue
Expelled (2000)
Survival dramas aim to inspire anxiety in viewers regarding the fate of the protagonists. The spur-of-the-moment survival tactics that lead to intense sequences of action and suspense play as important a role as the overall sense of dread surrounding the characters' ultimate survival. The thrill of watching a film like this comes from not knowing how it ends and wondering about the possibility of success every time a character tries to save themselves.
Tom Hanks gave the best performance of his career in his survival drama Castawayproviding a chilling insight into the mind of a desperate man trapped alone and searching for ways to save himself and return to humanity. His performance makes the character's desperation contagious enough to cross the screen and manifest itself in the minds of viewers. However, the anxiety regarding his survival was killed by the trailer itself because it shows scenes of his character Chuck talking to people after being rescued from the island.
7
Hostages watching the bus explosion
Speed ​​(1994)
Although it gave viewers one of the worst sequences in cinema history, Speed is a fantastic action thriller with the perfect premise for anxiety-inducing tension. A bomb on a bus will blow up the bus with the people inside if it slows down below a certain speed limit. The hero, played by Keanu Reeves, must get on the bus and somehow discover a way to save people before the bus suffers a fatal accident.
[It] shows a scene of the bus exploding at an airport as people watch.
Understandably, the film's trailer tries to ramp up the action and tension by featuring memorable dialogue and unbelievable stunts. However, it becomes a bit exaggerated and shows a scene of the bus exploding in an airport as people watch. This essentially reveals that the crisis was successfully averted at an airportspoiling the climax of the film. Furthermore, it features a confrontation between Reeves' character and the villain, also revealing the location of the final scene.
6
Deckard's appearance
Blade Runner 2049 (2017)
The best legacy film sequels take a unique and fresh perspective on the established lore and world, perhaps even changing some of the mechanics, but delivering the right payoffs and respecting the fundamental principles to move a franchise into the future. Villeneuve's sequel to Blade runner was released 35 years later, and the director uses the generic conventions of modern apocalyptic science fiction to create a vast, visually stunning atmosphere that expands the lore of the Blade runner universe.
But the most iconic character from the first film, protagonist Deckard, played by Harrison Ford, also returns to the film, appearing out of nowhere an hour into the film. It's a shocking revelation because Deckard is presumed dead in-universe. Viewers who watched the trailer knew he would appear. Not only is it the big twist and surprise reveal ruined for thembut the accumulation of knowledge around Deckard must have seemed irrelevant to them, knowing that he is alive thanks to the marketing campaign.
5
George's cancer goes into remission
Funny People (2009)
Judd Apatow's dramedy about a failed actor who returns to his stand-up comedy roots has a promising emotional core in the character's experience with leukemia. The apparent expiration date on his life gives him the freedom to make choices he was afraid of, leading him to become a mean-spirited and unwelcome actor. He forms an unexpected mentor bond with a young stand-up comedian, and this friendship is the dramatic core of the film.
The other source of drama is between the character and his ex-wife, with whom he decides to try to get back together after his leukemia goes into remission and makes him reconsider his life choices. He decides to live his life to the fullest and not hold back anymore. However, his illness only goes into remission at the end of the second act, revealing that in the trailer it spoils the surprise of him surviving and changing as a person. The trailer is ridiculously long, over 3 and a half minutes and he could have omitted this detail without harming his chances.
4
Carrie's Revenge
Carrie (1976)
Although it is based on a book, there is no reason to assume that everyone knows the plot of Carriethe first film adaptation of Stephen King. So the fact that the trailer basically reveals everything makes it feel less like an accident and more like a choice. Perhaps the studio decided it was necessary to appeal to those who read the book and show them what the film's most iconic scenes look like.
The trailer only reveals how she avenges her mistreatment.
Unfortunately, for anyone checking out the trailer today to determine if the film is for them, there are no more surprises. Carrie's powers are revealed, as is the fact that she takes revenge on all of her bullies. The entire emotional weight of the film depends not knowing how Carrie will be able to free herself from the influence of abusive people around you. But the trailer reveals how she avenges her mistreatment.
3
The return of Hiccup's mother in How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014)
THE How to train your dragon The franchise is premised on the idea that humans misunderstand and therefore inflict unnecessary violence on dragons. Therefore, the appearance of a character who apparently harms dragons or controls them is naturally a source of anxiety for characters and fans alike. This new character is introduced as an antagonist, and it's a big surprise revealed when Hiccup discovers that she is his motherand she is not controlling the dragons, but creating a safe haven for them.
However, the film's trailer reveals the identity of the masked character. It seems to suggest that identity is not as important as the film makes it seem. It's especially confusing because Hiccup's mother reveals herself halfway through the film, which is one of the best animated sequences of all time. Revealing the conclusion of the arc that takes half a film to resolve feels like a lapse in judgment during the trailer editing process.
2
Harry's return
Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017)
Harry Hart's emotional death in Kingsman: The Secret Service set up one of the best character development arcs in the series. Still, Colin Firth and his character Harry were so beloved that fans kept making theories about how he could still be alive for the next film. But then, the first poster was released and revealed that Harry had somehow escaped death.
“I begged the studio not to reveal this. Because it's the entire driving force of the first act and if you didn't know that scene, the entire audience would be left slack-jawed. So you have to ask the lovely marketing guys why I think that their job is to open the film and they don't care about the experience of the film.”
Matthew Vaughn (via IGN) spoke about his dissatisfaction with the marketing campaign because he wanted Harry's return to be a surprise. It would have been difficult to keep it hidden because they would have had to find out a way to keep Colin Firth away from the press tourbut if they had kept the detail hidden, the scene where it is revealed that he is alive would have hit the spot, especially considering that Eggsy, who has changed after his death, can greet him.
1
Truman's escape
The Truman Show (1998)
The psychological drama The Truman Showwhich presented Jim Carrey with a stage to showcase the variety of his acting skills, is premised on the horrific captivity of a man who forced to live a life manipulated by producers who create a show out of your life. The titular Truman goes through several stages of discovering the truth about his existence throughout the film, but just like the film's social activists, viewers can only root for him, not knowing if he will ever be able to escape.
That is unless someone has seen the film's trailer. The film's iconic climactic scene, which shows him exiting a ladder into the sky, is included in the trailer, revealing the ending of The Truman Show. It's not a spoiler without context, but if one has the scene in mind when watching the film, they'll know exactly how Truman escapes, and it ruins the whole experience of wondering if he makes it. The mark of a good film, however, is how enjoyable it is, despite the spoilers, and The Truman Show passes with flying colors.