Mars". The marketing team had yielded to Stanton on that, and he explained that "it means something by the end of the movie, and if there are more movies I want that to be what you remember." After the film's release and subsequent failure, the truncated title was seen as part of the problem. "What the hell is John Carter? What's the film about?" asked Peter Sealey, former marketing president at Columbia, told the Los Angeles Times. " I don't know who John Carter is. You've got to make that clear." Stanton reportedly believed there was enough awareness of the books that this would not be a problem, to which another marketing executive responded, "People don't say, 'I know what I'll be for Halloween! I'll be John Carter!'" Trailers The film's teaser trailer released in August 2011 was also seen as poor marketing. It relied largely on visual imagery from the film, without saying much about the creators and their previous accomplishments, or Burroughs's work and how it had influenced later science fiction universes like Star Wars. There were few effects and little action; Stanton has denied a rumor that that was because he did not have enough finished effects shots to use. Disney executives have faulted Stanton for this, since his success at Pixar allowed him to demand and get control over John Carters trailers. They reportedly strongly implored him to listen to their suggestions and he refused. "This is one of the worst marketing campaigns in the history of movies," a former studio marketing chief complained to Vulture shortly before the film opened. "It's almost as if they went out of their way to not make us care." After the full trailer, and the Super Bowl ad derived from it seemed similarly bland, enough for Kitsch to publicly concur with criticisms of the film's marketing campaign, a fan group online put out a competing trailer meant to address the official one's deficiencies. During February 2012, new television ads emphasizing story points were launched, and a similarly-cut trailer was attached to Act of Valor. Early 2012 After several weeks away from her office, Carney left at the beginning of 2012, with four years remaining on her contract, to be replaced by Ricky Strauss, former president of Participant Media, for the beginning of the period immediately preceding the film's release when promotional efforts become more intensive. He committed to spending