“Where We’re Going, We Don’t Need an Effective Online Audience Engagement Strategy”: The case of the Secret Cinema viral backlash

During the build-up to the Secret Cinema Presents... Back to the Future event, a compelling conflict played out on social media between the creators and the audience. In this article we retell the story of how that drama unfolded in the lead-up to the opening night of the event, and how the surrounding social media communications became a site of audience engagement and participation. We also outline the way in which these channels made visible a proliferation of divergent fan and anti-fan practices and contested viewing pleasures.