The Power of Second Bananas

The media notes:

... Though they were relatively minor — but pivotal — characters in "Madagascar," the penguins proved to be comedic superstars. Not only were they featured in the sequels, they also starred in their own popular Nickelodeon series, "The Penguins of Madagascar." ...

So after portraying a comedy sideshow in multiple animated features, after toplining the TV show, why not headline a movie? Especially when it looks to open almost as big as Christopher Nolan's space movie? ...



Then there's Minions, coming out next year, starring the short yellow scene stealers from the Despicable Me features. Most of Hollywood's green eyeshade types estimate that the spin-off will rake in big bucks and even bigger merchandising.

So how can it miss, especially with all the free marketing? (Note the last five seconds, now viewed by 28 million eyeballs on-line):



Lastly, there is Puss in Boots 2, destined to be on a theaters screen near you in 2018. The first outing made $555 million at world turnstiles, so it makes sense that there will be a second.

The use of second and third bananas isn't new, of course. Disney still gets good mileage out of Captain Hook and Smee in its far-flung empire.