Larson was accused of producing mockbusters at the height of his career, with his television series plagiarizing popular films of the time ( Battlestar Galactica, for example, capitalized on the popularity of Star Wars, while Alias Smith and Jones was a take on Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid). The 1979 film Angels Revenge bore many superficial similarities to the popular TV series Charlie's Angels its promotional materials even resembled Charlie's Angels' graphic style. Most mockbusters capitalize on the popularity of theatrically released films, but some are derivative of a TV series. Blockbuster, once the largest DVD rental chain, implied support to the concept by buying 100,000 copies of The Asylum's version of War of the Worlds during the theatrical opening week of Steven Spielberg's film based on the same novel starring Tom Cruise. The lower costs of using modern video and computer graphics equipment and the tie-in to the mainstream film's advertising have allowed the mockbuster to become a profitable niche in the home video market. Such films fit the B movie model, being produced on a small budget and derivative of the target film and other similar projects. Attack of the 50 Foot Woman spawned Village of the Giants, and The Land That Time Forgot spawned Legend of Dinosaurs & Monster Birds. For example, the 1959 Vanwick film The Monster of Piedras Blancas was a clear derivative of Creature from the Black Lagoon, complete with a creature suit by the same designer, Jack Kevan. Mockbusters have a long history in Hollywood and elsewhere. A mockbuster may be similar enough in title and/or packaging that consumers confuse it with the actual film it mimics, but their producers maintain that they are simply offering additional products for consumers who want to watch more films in the same subgenres. Unlike films produced to capitalize on the popularity of a recent release by adopting similar genre or storytelling elements, mockbusters are generally produced concurrently with upcoming films and released direct-to-video around the time the film they are inspired by is released. "Mockbuster" is a portmanteau of the words "mock" and "blockbuster". Mockbusters are often made with a low budget and quick production to maximize profits. A mockbuster (also known as knockbuster or drafting opportunity ) is a film created to exploit the publicity of another major motion picture with a similar title or subject.
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