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Warner Bros. · 2022
The Batman
RoleLaunch + sustain creative · Social
DisciplineCAMPAIGN
Year2022
The brief
How do you reintroduce one of cinema's most iconic characters to a new generation, while respecting the established fan base, generating massive pre-release buzz, and driving ticket sales across diverse global markets?
The primary hurdle was cutting through the crowded entertainment landscape and establishing The Batman as the must-see theatrical event of the season, all while maintaining absolute brand secrecy around key plot elements until launch.
The strategy had to make withholding feel generous: every asset a clue, every drop an event, every fan a co-conspirator in the marketing.
By the numbers
850 M
Total social impressions across every major platform in the four-week pre-release window, a studio record for the franchise.
11.5 %
Engagement rate
On core social assets, over 3 points above the benchmark for a $100M+ release.
− 22 %
Cost per acquisition
Lower CPA to ticket-purchase intent vs. the studio's benchmark for comparable theatrical launches.
1.2 M
New community
New followers across X & TikTok by opening weekend, built from a standing start on TikTok.
The work
How it came together.
01 / 03
A social-first content engine
We moved beyond trailer shares. I built a high-impact calendar of platform-native assets, retrospective nostalgia, iconic quotes, and short-form video cut specifically for the demographics that live on TikTok and Reels.
01 · feature
02 / 03
The “Dark Knight Drop”
On Twitter/X I ran a drop strategy: exclusive assets released at peak-engagement windows, paired with tightly segmented spend to reach specific fandoms, DC loyalists, thriller fans, and the merely curious.
02 · feature
03 / 03
The Riddler, as an invitation
An interactive social campaign tied to the Riddler pulled users off-platform to the official film site, boosting traffic 35% in premiere week and capturing thousands of new email sign-ups for retargeting.
03 · feature
How it unfolded
A rollout step by step.
01
Phase 01 · Tease
The first riddle
A cryptic asset, no logo, no date. Seeded to the fan communities most likely to decode it, and they did, within the hour.
02
Phase 02 · Build
The Dark Knight Drop
Recurring high-fidelity drops at peak windows turned the feed into appointment viewing and trained the audience to wait for us.
03
Phase 03 · Activate
The Riddler hunt
A multi-step social-to-site experience rewarded participation with exclusive footage, and routed every player into a first-party data capture.
04
Phase 04 · Convert
Premiere weekend
Segmented presale creative deployed the moment the final trailer dropped, collapsing the gap between hype and ticket.
Secrecy was the whole campaign. Every post had to feel like a clue, not an ad, so the audience did the marketing for us.
Josh Miller · Digital Strategy Lead
What happened
The results.
01
Generated 850M+ impressions in four weeks, a franchise record across owned and earned.
02
Held an 11.5% engagement rate, beating the major-release benchmark by 3+ points.
03
Grew the film's social community by 1.2M while keeping every plot secret under wraps.
04
Drove a 22% lower CPA to ticket intent versus comparable studio launches.
“Josh treated the rollout like a thriller, withholding, timing, the payoff. He made restraint feel like the most generous thing we could give the fans, and it showed in every number that mattered.”
Maya Chen · Sr. Director, Global Campaign Strategy
Credits
Role & recognition.
ClientWarner Bros. Discovery
Year2022
RoleDigital Strategy Lead
DisciplinesSocial strategy · Paid media · Content
CollaboratorsWB digital marketing · Agency collective
RecognitionFranchise-record pre-release reach
A similar brief?
Let's talk.
Pitch me the project, even if you're not sure where it lands.
Prefer email?
josh@joshwroteit.com