Hypodermic needle theory and Gratification model theory

Film: Fast and Furious 7

Target audience: 
The target audience for Fast and Furious 7 was the pre-existing fans from the previous films and mature audiences. The film is about friendship, loyalty and love between close friends and a couple.

Where was it distributed?:
The film was distributed by Universal Pictures all over the United States and Universal Pictures International in the United Kingdom. 

What was the budget and do you believe it had an affect on marketing strategies?
The budget of the film was $190 million and it made $1.516 billion in the box office. I do not believe the budget had an affect on marketing strategies because the film already had a large pre-existing fan base who would have flocked to see the newest installment of the film. People who weren't already apart of the fan base might have gone to see it as well as they might have perceived it to be a little different to the previous ones.

Justify the films gross profit using the Hypodermic Needle Theory & Gratification Model

The film mostly uses the Gratification model theory as it was aimed at the films fan base in the sense that, it was made for them to enjoy and for them to see the latest bit of the journey for the friends and family within the film. The film was aimed to gratify the needs of the audience who wanted to know what life was like for them after the sixth installment for the film, hence the reason the film grossed so much in box office. Fast and Furious 7 was the highest grossing of the films, earning over $1 billion at the box office with the second of the franchise was Fast and Furious 6 with only $629 million at the box office. The hypodermic needle theory can also be applied because the film could have been aimed at people who had seen a couple of the films but stopped watching. This could have been to the re-introduction of a much loved character in the franchise.