Owen Gleiberman writes that "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" has posted the biggest domestic opening weekend in film history and nearly $1 billion globally in just three days, reigniting Hollywood's "blockbuster mentality" after a period of pandemic, streaming and strike-related upheaval. He argues this mindset is not simply about making hit films but a broader, semi-addictive industry obsession with chasing ever-bigger numbers, one he compares to the pursuit of an intense high, warning that an unchecked focus on blockbusters risks creatively depleting cinema as it did in the late 1980s.

The film ranked second worldwide behind "Avengers: Endgame" but still could become the first movie to reach $1 billion domestically and $3 billion globally. Gleiberman traces the blockbuster mentality back 50 years to "Jaws" and "Star Wars," noting that after a decade of such dominance, exhaustion set in around Tim Burton's 1989 "Batman," prompting the rise of the independent film movement via "Sex, Lies, and Videotape" weeks later. He suggests history may need to repeat itself, with a countervailing creative movement needed to balance the current blockbuster resurgence.