I give this a two – not for its inner-crack-pot qualities but for its timidity. It doesn't go far enough. I suggest that once a franchise is established phase two begins and the sequence of trailers is established. The goal is to simplify. The first wave should be three to four minutes in length introducing tent pole movie two (sequel 1.) The trailer will play on a few thousand screens on opening weekend. They will contain the pitch for 3 (sequel 2) – one to two minutes in length. Then in 3, the idea for 4 – one minute in length. At that point only the strongest and most profoundly condensed films will have survived and in the trailer for 5 (sequel 4) a subliminal pitch for 6 (sequel 5.)  The trailer should last about 10 seconds. A typical trailer at these heady heights would be a flash of Bob Downey jumping up and down, saying "Kill them all!" He will be thinking, "In the next one, in the next one." Eventually this will lead to non-existent trailers for movies that are only in the mind of the viewer. Costs will finally come down. You won't have to see any of them. Hollywood will finally have achieved its ultimate goal of disappearing up its own fundament.

David Freeman is a screenwriter, playwright, novelist and author of the best book about Hollywood ever written:  Hollywood Stories.

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