How do you milk superheroes? Put 'em together in the mother of all tentpole movies. Drum up enough pre-launch excitement, and the lucrative spinoffs never have to end.
That's exactly how Walt Disney
So the table has been set for a feast of heroic proportions. The crowd is appropriately hungry for action.
When Disney posted the trailer for The Avengers last week, 10 million fans downloaded the two-minute clip in the first 24 hours. Available exclusively from the Apple
The old record belongs to Transformers: Dark of the Moon, which has collected $1.1 billion in worldwide grosses all by itself. Producer and distributor Viacom
The Avengers looks ready to break the billion-dollar mark for Disney. Cinema chains will love it, the action-oriented IMAX
The Marvel deal may have looked expensive at $4 billion, but the Mouse House will make those heroes pay their dues -- and then some. Marvel is an economy unto itself.
So that's how you milk a barn full of heroes and earn a perfect five-star CAPS rating. What will Disney dream up next? Be the first to find out with the help of our Foolish watchlist service.