A few weeks ago, I found myself traveling by train into New York City to see Harry Potter and the Cursed Child on Broadway. (If you’d like my quick review: I was disappointed.) This trip would kick off my annual rewatching of all eight Harry Potter films, which I have been doing at the start of every fall season for at least the last five to six years.
Sitting on my lap for my in-transit entertainment was my well-worn, movie cover copy of Twilight by Stephanie Meyer. The next weekend, I would be gearing up to binge-listen to another new Taylor Swift album, The Life of a Showgirl, which I’m enjoying, in case you’re wondering.
All of these pieces combined made me yearn for the glory days of Tumblr, where all of my favorite fixations came to play on one endless social media scroll full of fans just as obsessed as I was.
Suddenly, the thought occurred to me. Why couldn’t I, or many of my friends, move on to new things?
Why can’t millennials let go of their fandoms?
What even is a fandom?
If you did not spend your developmental years glued to Tumblr, the term fandom might already sound a bit ridiculous. Though there is one reference to the word in the Oxford English Dictionary, which is inconveniently behind a paywall, there are plenty of variations on Urban Dictionary.
One submission for the word describes it as “A group of people willingly have their souls devoured by an obsession.”
Another version writes:
“A fandom is a group, or community, of people who like a game, book, or specific topic. Usually on social media, a fandom is not a uncommon sight.”
If the group of fans goes by a particular name: “Swiftie,” “Potterhead,” “Beyhive,” “Twihard,” “Trekkie,” etc., it’s safe to say it can be called a fandom.
Regardless of your exact definition of the word, a fandom is essentially the umbrella term for groups of passionate fans. More often than not, the obsession is tied to media of some sort that frequently finds itself in the pop culture lexicon.
And it’s kept many of these production companies, writers, and executives in business.
Reboots & sequels & re-releases – oh my!
It can be argued that 2025 is the year of the reboot. Or the sequel. Or the re-release. It was anything but a year marked by high-quality, original content.
With a few months left in the year to go, we saw Superman (2025) soar back into theaters along with a live-action Lilo & Stitch (2025), A Minecraft Movie (2025), and Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning (2025), which is the eighth film in the franchise.
As I’m writing this, Tron: Ares (2025) recently celebrated its opening weekend, and the internet is full of leaks from the set of HBO’s forthcoming Harry Potter series.
Even Lionsgate attempted to create its own cinematic universe with the release of Ballerina (2025), intended to expand upon its beloved John Wick series, which has also been beaten to a pulp beyond recognition as writers try to squeeze more and more out of a story that no longer needs to be told, all in the name of making a few bucks.
It’s not only Lionsgate to blame. In fact, every single film that was included on our list of most anticipated summer blockbusters was either a remake, a sequel, or a reboot. Even nearly all of the honorable mentions were as well.
It’s not an issue specific to the film and television industry either; it’s impacting media across the board.
This year, Bethesda released The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, and fans are anxiously awaiting to see whether this year’s Fallout Day Broadcast, happening on October 23, 2025, will announce the much-anticipated remasters of Fallout 3 or Fallout: New Vegas. We’re also waiting to see what will come from Season 2 of Prime Video’s Fallout (2024 – ) series, which we made a few early predictions for here.
This month, Nintendo released Pokémon Legends: Z-A. According to TheGamer, there are around 137 titles in existence, if you count all spin-offs and defunct titles. The series originally launched in 1996, and we’re still playing classic titles.
Even Twilight and The Hunger Games are being resold with fresh, newly designed covers. Oh, and bands like My Chemical Romance were back on tour again. Welcome back, 2008!
Though we had a few major successes, such as Sinners (2025) or Schedule I, these unique pieces of media were drowning amidst a sea of reproduced content. But it’s no secret as to why.
Go where the money is
Sinners (2025), directed by Ryan Coogler, reached $366,678,513 at the worldwide box office and received a 97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It is one of the few, if not the only, films to achieve both financial and critical acclaim this year, when not attached to an already established intellectual property (IP).
Another original story, for instance, was Mickey 17 (2025), starring Robert Pattinson and directed by Bong Joon Ho. Pattinson himself is no stranger to being a franchise star, having performed as Edward Cullen in The Twilight Saga, Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), and as Bruce Wayne/Batman in The Batman (2022).
Despite Pattinson’s star power, the film only achieved $133,347,147 at the worldwide box office despite a positive 77% Rotten Tomatoes score, which is higher than Tron (1982), which has a 60% score and has sparked both a franchise and an amusement park ride.
Meanwhile, Lilo & Stitch (2025) made $1,037,450,363 worldwide, despite mixed reviews.
So, why the disparity? According to many, both in the industry and outside of it, it comes down to IP.
In August of 2024, Vince Vaughn was interviewed by Sean Evans on the internet series Hot Ones. When asked why certain films do not receive the same enthusiasm to be made by Hollywood like the films Vaughn is so famous for, he said: “You get these rules…They would say something like ‘You have to have an IP.’ So for some reason, Battleship, which is a game we used to play like a graph, became a vehicle for storytelling.”
Vaughn continued on to say:
“The people in charge don’t want to get fired, more so than they’re looking to do something great.”
Fandoms are marked by the passion possessed by their members. An IP often brings with it a well-established fanbase. It also brings with it that fanbase’s money. That’s why it’s no surprise that so many of this year’s greatest financial successes, Lilo & Stitch (2025), A Minecraft Movie (2025), Jurassic World: Rebirth (2025), and more, were all tied to an already well-established, well-funded franchise.
It’s a safe bet, and many production companies and developers are tired of taking risks.
Is it really only millennials?
Harry Potter, The Twilight Saga, The Hunger Games Series. Each of these pieces of media has remained in public consumption for at least a decade and doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon.
Harry Potter has been given a Broadway show, is being made into a TV series, and has sparked multiple theme park locations. Meanwhile, Netflix will be releasing a Twilight Saga animated series as The Hunger Games author Suzanne Collins prepares to release another film in the franchise based on her newest book, Sunrise on the Reaping. The book, which we included in our 2025 summer reading list, was announced in conjunction with the film.
It feels like it’s all targeting the pockets of millennials, but in truth, every generation has experienced the same.
Generation X, those who grew up in the 70s, have witnessed the Star Wars Saga get revamped not once, but twice!
Even Scooby Doo, the iconic, snack-loving talking dog, has been restyled and rebooted across film and TV for decades since first being introduced in 1969.
To go back even further, Walt Disney’s famous Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs first came out in 1937. For better or worse, it was remade into live action this year.
Though it seems like millennials are getting the brunt of it, no one’s favorite piece of media is safe from a reboot if it’s worth a bit of money.
As fellow Off the Shelf Media writer Nash Moorer writes, it’s less about nostalgia and more about an industry currently experiencing “growing pains.”
A new hope
It’s not that millennials or others are unable to let their fandoms go; production companies refuse to let you. If any piece of entertainment dug a hook into you as a child, I hope it is worth it because you’ll likely be spending money on content, merchandise, or experiences based on it for the rest of your life.
It’s not a trend embraced by the entire industry, either. Actress Miriam Margolyes, known for playing Professor Sprout in the Harry Potter franchise, has said publicly, “I worry about Harry Potter fans because they should be over that by now.”
As a fan who rewatches the films every year, it feels like a harsh statement, but there are certainly fans who have done more than take it too far.
All that said, reboots, sequels, or re-releases aren’t necessarily a bad thing by any means. In many instances, it opens the door for new fans to join in on the fun.
However, I wish it weren’t the only thing available to watch, play, or enjoy.
Off the Shelf Media 
Leave a reply to ryann Cancel reply