The Franchise answers the question of whether superhero films are killing cinema with a resounding yes right off the bat, sending up everything from convoluted cinematic universes

The Franchise,' a new series from HBO premiering Sunday that stars Himesh Patel and Lolly Adefope, takes a comic look at the production of a second-tier superhero movie from a Marvel-like studio.

All that’s before we come onto dwindling box office, hostile crew, neurotic talent, ambulance-chasing press, VFX artists going postal, and Martin Scorsese issuing edicts that movies like Tecto are destroying moviemaking, while everybody involved is just trying to get through their 27-hour day and complete the paperwork on their divorce.