The number three has always been common in storytelling: there are three blind mice, three little pigs, three Billy goats gruff, Goldilocks met three bears, Cerberus had three heads, a genie grants three wishes and Jonah spent three days in a whale.

This summer it seems all major movies come in threes. More than six movies this summer are the final chapters of trilogies, including the Friday release of "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," as well as "The Bourne Ultimatum" and "Rush Hour 3" both premiering in August.

"We have become a people of sequels; we're the fans of the things we know, and we want to see them over and over again," said Jeff Parkin, a media arts associate professor.

Many children remember sitting in front of the television, watching a blockbuster film like "Star Wars" or "Raiders of The Lost Ark," then rushing to push the next tape in the VCR to find out what happened in the next chapter.

The first chapter of many of these trilogies introduces the characters and their world, the second usually takes the world and twists it into something fresh and the third takes the world from the second and connects it back to the world of the first, Parkin said.

"Stories generally break down into three parts; first, second and third acts. Trilogies fit nicely into that," Parkin said, "I think the story structure is how we experience life."

The motivations for expanding a film into a trilogy vary from project to project. However, there are usually both creative and financial aspects.

"Creatively, they [the filmmakers] have a part of the story that hasn't been told, which is why they make a film a trilogy," said Justin Cook, a staff member of BYU's Media Arts Department.

Financially, movie sequels do even better than the first installments because viewers come back hoping for more.

"It [a sequel] gives you a built-in audience," Parkin said.

Recently the "The Lord of The Rings" trilogy swept up the world in a flurry of hobbits and wizards, magically drawing in crowds eager to pay sums of money the thieves of the June release "Ocean's 13" could only dream about.

"Studios see what is making money and what people eat up and they decide to go with it," Cook said.

These films are certainly expected to bring in money and break some records while doing it. "Spider-Man 3" has already broken the record for most money earned in a single weekend at $148 million and largest opening day at $55.8 million.

At $122 million, "Shrek the Third" now has the record for the largest opening for an animated film, according to Entertainment Weekly's Web site.



Copyright Brigham Young University 23 May 2007