It’s all in the name
TEXT OF STORY
SCOTT JAGOW: The title says it all: “Snakes on a plane.” Today, the movie so many people have been talking about hits the theaters. Ethan Lindsey reports.
ETHAN LINDSEY: Dave Waldon is the author of a book about the movie’s remarkable underground buzz.
DAVE WALDON: From the moment this movie was announced over a year ago, and particularly from the moment that Samuel L. Jackson fought against the attempted change of the title — that’s kind of when the legend really began.
Jackson reportedly demanded that New Line Cinema keep the name “Snakes on a Plane,” after studio execs wanted to change it to “Pacific Air 121.”
Jackson’s actions excited hundreds of fans, who started blogging about it, making fake trailers and even weighing in on editing decisions.
Waldon says other films can learn from how New Line reacted.
He says fans can smell fake buzz immediately and if New Line had tried to manufacture it, fans would have lost interest.
In Los Angeles, I’m Ethan Lindsey, for Marketplace.
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