Upcoming Previews: Who Chooses the Movie Trailers We Watch?

It's not just in your head: Cinemas now display more trailers than ever before. iQoncept/Shutterstock

What do you envision when you think about a trip to the cinema? Naturally, the main film, and maybe some oversized buckets of popcorn. Another staple of the movie theater experience is the previews. In fact, some enthusiasts visit theaters just to catch the trailers.

While audiences expect to watch trailers before the main feature, many are unaware of the intricate system that decides which previews they’ll see. The selection process is far more complex and layered than most moviegoers might imagine.

How Did Movie Trailers Begin?

Movie trailers have been around almost as long as cinema. The first trailer, promoting a Broadway musical, was created in 1913 by marketer Nils Granlund, who used rehearsal footage to boost ticket sales. A year later, Granlund produced a trailer for a Charlie Chaplin film, marking the first time a trailer was used to advertise a movie rather than a live performance.

Granlund's early trailers were quite different from modern ones. For instance, they were shown after the main feature, not before. This is why they were called trailers—they literally trailed the movie! Eventually, theater owners realized it was more effective to show trailers before the film, but the name "trailer" remained.

Early trailers were simple and practical, often made using existing footage. In contrast, today's trailers can be elaborate productions, sometimes rivaling the movies they promote in entertainment value. Some fans even argue that certain trailers were

more enjoyable than the films they advertised, or that some trailers were entirely deceptive about the movie's content.

Why Do Certain Movies Have More Trailers?

Whether you adore movie trailers or find them annoying, it's inevitable that your cinema experience will include watching a few. But who determines which trailers you'll see? Is it the theater owner, the film studios, or both? The answer involves a combination of both parties.

Film studios typically require theater owners to screen specific trailers as a condition for showing certain films. For example, a theater screening the latest "Star Wars" movie might also need to display previews for upcoming Disney releases, since Disney owns the studio behind "Star Wars." The specific requirements vary depending on the film. Blockbuster franchises often come with more conditions than independent or art house films.

Theater owners also play a significant role in deciding which trailers are shown. Just as they select which films to screen, they determine the number of trailers shown before a movie. While it's rare, you might occasionally see just one trailer. Most national theater chains show between five and eight trailers, a number many viewers consider excessive. After fulfilling the studios' requirements, theater owners can choose additional trailers. Large chains may feature a variety of previews, while independent theaters often highlight films they plan to screen soon.

Movies with the most trailers are typically those that attract the largest audiences. Blockbuster franchises and superhero films, which draw massive crowds, often have the highest number of pre-show trailers. In contrast, a foreign language film at an art house cinema might not have any trailers at all.

What Factors Influence Which Trailers Are Paired With Movies?

A green-band trailer, always marked by a green screen, signifies that the preview is appropriate for viewers of all ages. Motion Picture Association/Wikipedia

At its core, studios and theater owners aim to align trailers with the audience most likely to watch the associated film. They frequently employ a "quadrant system," categorizing moviegoers into four groups: women under 25, men under 25, women over 25, and men over 25. (This system may have adapted internally to include other gender identities.) Trailers are tailored to the quadrants expected to be in the audience.

For example, a G-rated animated film will attract many viewers under 25, often accompanied by parents who might appreciate some adult-oriented content. However, this content must remain suitable for younger audiences, ruling out certain trailers aimed at the "over 25" demographic. Since theater owners lack the detailed viewer insights that streaming platforms have, they rely on these broad quadrant classifications to guide their trailer selections.

Just as films receive ratings from the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), trailers are also rated. The rating is indicated by the color of the screen at the start of the trailer. A "green-band" trailer is suitable for all audiences and appears before any type of film. A "red-band trailer," however, is restricted to "mature audiences only" and may include content similar to that found in R-rated movies.

Theater owners have the final say on which trailers their audiences view. (Typically, a red-band trailer is shown only before an R-rated movie.) If a theater has a policy against red-band trailers, studios usually provide green-band versions instead. However, audiences aren’t entirely excluded from watching red-band trailers if they’re interested. Platforms like YouTube and various streaming sites make these trailers easily accessible online.

Do Studios Pay to Have Their Trailers Shown Before Films?

Traditionally, production companies don’t pay to have their trailers screened before movies. Instead, there’s a mutual exchange of benefits: theaters get to feature the films they select, while studios and producers get to showcase their trailers. (Theater owners typically don’t pay studios to screen movies; instead, they agree to share ticket revenue with the studio after the film’s theatrical run.)

However, this system has faced challenges in recent years, with some theaters now openly charging studios to screen their trailers. In 2013, the Los Angeles Times reported that it was widely known that major studios had multimillion-dollar agreements with large theater chains, securing multiple trailer slots and prime placements. (The most coveted spot is the final trailer, shown just before the movie begins.)

The industry remains tight-lipped about these transactions, but it’s likely that smaller or independent theaters lack the influence to charge for trailers in the same way larger chains do.