As A Minecraft Movie approaches its April 4 premiere date, distributor Warner Bros. has enacted a wide-reaching marketing strategy. Promotional tie-ins have included a limited-time McDonald’s menu and a partnership with cosmetics brand Nyx. But amidst that promotional flurry, a nagging question has lingered: Where are all the creators?
The Let’s Play stars, machinima artists, and immersive storytellers who feature Minecraft in YouTube videos deserve places in A Minecraft Movie‘s promotional blitz. Without them, Minecraft wouldn’t be nearly the cultural phenomenon it has become. Across 15 years of activity, the blocky sandbox game has hauled in more than a trillion YouTube views (and counting). The game’s top creators have parlayed their passion into numerous off-YouTube ventures.
It’s fair to suggest that A Minecraft Movie wouldn’t exist without Minecraft creators, which is why it’s so odd that those tastemakers haven’t factored into the film’s pre-release hype. One of the only influencer partnerships Warner Bros. sought was a cameo appearance from streamer Valkyrae, but thus far, her planned appearance has resulted in as much on-set gossip as excitement.
Subscribe to get the latest creator news
Finally, with about two weeks to go until A Minecraft Movie‘s premiere, the film’s lead scored some face time with one of the biggest Minecraft stars on the internet. Quackity, who reaches 6.4 million Twitch followers with his gaming streams, teamed up with Jack Black for a collab that went live on March 19.
Black prepared for the team-up with a unique form of method acting: He played more than 100 hours of Minecraft on set. For his trip to Quackity’s stream, he was accompanied by fellow Minecraft Movie cast members Emma Myers and Sebastian Eugene Hansen.
A Minecraft Movie can still fit in more collabs like this one, but time is running short. Warner Bros. could improve upon the film’s projected opening weekend box office of $58 million by turning creators like Aphmau, Preston, and DanTDM into promotional vehicles. Perhaps partnerships with stars of that caliber are in the works — or maybe the biggest names in Minecraft have embraced the sense of skepticism that has dogged this adaptation from the time it was first announced.
The success or failure of A Minecraft Movie could determine whether future creator-friendly properties get big-screen adaptations. If you want to see A Roblox Movie next, you can buy a ticket come April 4.
