'Thor' Hammers 'Justice League' In Post-San Diego Comic-Con Social Media Wars

It’s no secret that the first two “Thor” movies of Marvel Studios’ slate of shared-universe flicks left critics underwhelmed. Coming out of the San Diego Comic-Con, the third installment - the completely weird “Thor: Ragnarok” - has taken social media by storm.

“Ragnarok” was directed by New Zealand indie auteur Taika Waititi and stars Chris Hemsworth as the god of thunder and an Oscar-worthy lineup that includes Mark Ruffalo, Tom Hiddleston, Idris Elba, Cate Blanchett, Tessa Thompson, Jeff Goldblum, Karl Urban, and Anthony Hopkins as a homeless, Earth-bound version of the Norse god, Odin.

It’s due to open Nov. 3, and it’s already become a cult hit from its fascinatingly peculiar trailers alone. Marvel’s parent, Walt Disney Co DIS, hopes to exploit the utter oddness of an epic, intergalactic buddy/road-trip movie about gladiators fighting for the amusement of a cosmic grandmaster (Goldblum).

Related Link: Hollywood Seeks Salvation At San Diego Comic-Con In Midst of Summer’s Slump

Social Media Bedlam

Variety reported that “Thor: Ragnarok” edged out bitter rival DC’s “Justice League” after the San Diego event, the most influential of its kind, played extended trailers of both. Disney-Marvel’s “Thor: Ragnarok” dominated social media buzz with 264,000 new conversations last week, according to media-measurement firm ComScore.

“Justice League,” which opens two weeks after “Thor,” was in second place with 215,000 new conversations in the wake of the studio debuting a trailer, which heavily featured “Wonder Woman,” whose solo outing in June was the only legit break-out hit of Time Warner Inc’s TWX critically panned efforts to imitate Disney/Marvel.

Warner Bros. is plugging Superman, Batman, the Flash, Aquaman, Cyborg and Wonder Woman into its maiden effort to outsell Disney/Marvel at the box office with its premier dream team. Marvel already has released two billion-dollar blockbusters based on “The Avengers,” featuring Thor, Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk, and the Black Widow.

‘Justice League’ Betting Big On Wonder Woman

The Justice League trailer leaned heavily on Gal Gadot’s "Wonder Woman," the only critically acclaimed hit of Time-Warner’s superhero lineup, which is on track to be the biggest movie of the summer.

When it came to pure buzz, though, Thor emerged triumphant over (gasp!) Superman, Batman and Co., though Hollywood has learned not underestimate the crossover appeal of “Wonder Woman,” the sequel to which was announced in San Diego to rapturous cheers.

It’s no wonder that Gadot’s interpretation of the character was so heavily featured in the Justice League teaser. Even Superman didn’t get a fraction of the face time as DC’s superheroine.