Working title
Template:Short description Script error: No such module "about". Script error: No such module "Redirect-distinguish". Template:DMCA A working title is a preliminary name for a product or project. The usage is especially common in film and TV, gaming, music and publishing. It is often styled in trade publications as (wt) and is synonymous with production title and tentative title.
Usage
Working titles are commonly used in film and TV, gaming, music, and publishing.[1] They are used mainly because an official title has not yet been decided upon or to intentionally disguise the real nature of a project.[citation needed]
It is often styled in trade publications as (wt).[2]
Usage as production titles
The terms "production title" and "tentative title" are sometimes used instead of "working title".[3] Working titles are primarily a practical matter, just to prevent confusion as ideas for release titles can keep on changing for a variety of reasons. For example, while James Bond films are commonly produced under numerical titles such as Bond 22 until the official title is announced as part of its marketing, release titles may also change because of significant changes to the plot during production, as happened with Disney's The Emperor's New Groove, whose working title was Kingdom of the Sun.[4]
In some cases a working title may ultimately be used as the release title, as in the case of leading man Samuel L. Jackson insisting on the title Snakes on a Plane, after he learned the title was going to be changed to Pacific Air Flight 121 upon release.[5][6]
Usage as a ruse title
Fake production titles are frequently used by high-profile films or television series to prevent undesired attention by the press or fandom, price gouging by suppliers[7] and casual or targeted theft. Notable examples of ruse titles include Blue Harvest (Return of the Jedi), Incident of 57th Street (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets), Red Gun (House of the Dragon),[8] and the Batman films Batman Begins, The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises, which were produced under the titles The Intimidation Game, Rory's First Kiss and Magnus Rex.[9]
References
Page Template:Reflist/styles.css has no content.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Research Guides: Organizing Academic Research Papers: Choosing a Title". library.sacredheart.edu. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Andreeva, Nellie (23 November 2022). "'Dune: The Sisterhood' Creator Diane Ademu-John Steps Down As Co-Showrunner Of HBO Max Series". Deadline.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Travis, Ben (22 February 2019). "Bond 25's Production Title Is Shatterhand". Empire. Retrieved 4 March 2026.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Aguilar, Carlos (15 December 2025). "'The Emperor's New Groove' at 25: Kronk's Enduring Appeal". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 March 2026.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Stevens, Kirsten (December 2010). "Snakes on a Plane and the prefabricated cult film". Colloquy (18): 119–131. Retrieved 4 March 2026.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Blevins, Joe (18 August 2016). "Read This: It's been 10 motherfucking years since Snakes On A Plane". AV Club. Retrieved 4 March 2026.
- ^ Bloom, Jim, Production Supervisor; Ch. 9, bonus material disc of the 2004 Star Wars Trilogy DVD box set.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Albrecht, Louis (18 July 2020). "HBO's Game of Thrones Prequel House of the Dragon is looking for two female leads". Redanian Intelligence. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
- ^ Nolan Fans article "The Dark Knight Rises As Magnus Rex"
