Given the overwhelming popularity of its namesake novels with today's readers, Lionsgate's (LGF-A -1.22%) upcoming Divergent movie franchise has the potential to be absolutely huge.
According to Amazon.com, the trilogy's final installment -- titled Allegiant -- not only outsold the last Hunger Games book by a stunning five-to-one margin in the month leading up to its release, but also shattered HarperCollins' first-day sales record with an incredible 455,000 copies.
Earlier this week, however, Lionsgate investors and fans alike panicked when news broke that Divergent director Neil Burger won't be leading the charge for the series' second film, Insurgent, which is slated for release in March 2015.
But don't worry too much, says the Fool's Steve Symington in the following video. Why? Because Summit has confirmed while Burger won't be directing Insurgent due to production schedule conflicts, he will serve as an executive producer for the big-budget sequel.
What's more, it's worth noting the first Hunger Games film successfully weathered a similar situation when it lost director Gary Ross, whose successor has not only done an admirable job so far continuing the franchise with Catching Fire, but is also returning to direct both of Lionsgate's Mockingjay films.
Check out the video below to hear Steve's full take both on what this means for the films, and for some hints on how Divergent might perform when it hits theaters three months from now. What do you think? Does the Divergent franchise have all the makings of a box office blockbuster?
