Final 'Divergent' trailer shows off dystopian future

Posted Wednesday, February 5, 2014 at 10:42 AM Central

by John Couture

Is Shailene Woodley the next JLaw? Will Divergent resonate closer to The Hunger Games' box office total, or will it simply be the latest and greatest "next best thing" to fail, taking the throne away from Ender's Game?

Having read the books, I honestly think it will fall short of its goal, but you have to give Summit credit for continually trying to find the next big thing. Of course, the rabid fan base of the books might prove me wrong.

I read all three books in the last few months given that I knew this film was coming and that the subject matter is something that intrigues me. And yes, while there are moments of brilliance in the series, it's painfully obvious at times that the books were written by a young woman who was just barely old enough to toast Divergent's book release with a beer or a glass of wine.

Now, at age 25, with three best-sellers to her credit and looming movie adaptations of all three, one can't help but wonder if she bit off a bit more than she can chew. From all accounts, Veronica Roth seems to be a well-grounded person who will be just fine, but her latest, and final, book in the series Allegiant really fractured the fan base of the books and there is now some question as to how much this turn of events will have on Divergent's box office.

Of course, what number would be considered successful? I can tell you right now that there's no way this film even approaches the $400 million paydays of The Hunger Games films. Is $100 million enough? $200 million? What if it bombs entirely and fails to make back its budget (~$80 million)?

I think it's safe to assume that the film will fall somewhere between the budget and $200 million, but nothing is guaranteed. Even as a group, Tim, Dannette and I were all over the board with this one. The good news is that the final trailer below finally does a fairly good job of introducing the uninitiated into the dystopian Chicago society.

If you think this looks like it could be a prequel to The Matrix, you wouldn't be far off. Many times when reading the series, I thought to myself that it felt like The Matrix from a female perspective.

Divergent is set to hit theaters on March 21, 2014.