Like every year, 2017 had a deluge of trailers with most blockbusters requiring at least three major trailers to rope in audiences in addition to countless TV spots and clips. However, when you consider the amount of movies coming out every week, studios need to fight to break through, and a catchy trailer is the best way to do that. Some trailers will hook people due to the profile of the property (a Star Wars trailer is going to rack up millions upon millions views no matter what), but there’s still an art to crafting a solid trailer.
* Deadpool 2
I don’t even care that it barely shows any footage; Deadpool as Bob Ross is about as on-brand as it gets.
* IT
I really liked that this trailer played up the kids’ fears rather than going all in on Pennywise. It shows IT as a character-driven film rather than a standard monster movie.
* Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
I love how the animation looks, and the trailer immediately signals to the casual moviegoer that this film is different from both Spider-Man: Homecoming and all the Spider-Man movies that came before.
* Thor: Ragnarok
I usually don’t go nuts for Comic-Con trailers, but I absolutely adored this Thor: Ragnarok trailer that premiered at Comic-Con earlier this year.
* Kong: Skull Island
The reason this trailer lands at the top of the list is that I love the way it utilizes music and sound design to create something immediate. It’s a much heavier lift than just playing a sad cover song and hoping people show up. If there’s a trailer style I want to see studios emulate, it’s this one.