As far as ideas for comedies are concerned, the plot to Fanboys is near and dear to the pasty sci-fi geek's heart. Starring petite Veronica Mars va-va-voom girl Kristen Bell, the film involves five friends in 1997 breaking into George Lucas's Skywalker Ranch to steal a pre-release print of The Phantom Menace for a friend dying on cancer.
Sounds pretty funny to me, but apparently I'm an evil sociopath with an ichorous heart, because according to research, audiences don't laugh for a full five to ten minutes after the word "cancer" is mentioned.
In fact, the studios are so worried about the cancer killing their comedy that they are cutting out the entire subplot entirely. I'm a bit confused by the hub-bub, frankly. Is dying of cancer funny? Certainly not. But being forced to watch The Phantom Menace isn't all that hilarious either and I have first hand experience of the latter.
