Well they are a business first and foremost.
Back then, Nolan’s trilogy, Burton’s films, Rami Spider-man trilogy, Alien, Predator, were all the rage. I think this is largely due to Hot Toys customer base at the time being grown adults that grew up on these films, hence catering to their audience.
Once Marvel’s Avengers and cinematic universe took off, a lot of the old customer base dissipated, opening up space for younger new collectors eager to chase the new character designs, providing Hot Toys enough fuel to extensively execute lengthy lines without fear of overproducing.
Now, with the MCU wrapped up, lines finished, a lot of those new collectors have either since moved on from the hobby selling off their MCU collections or are now beginning to branch out to other older IPs they weren’t originally interested in.
The writer strike, among Hollywood’s slower paced past two years has forced companies to revisit old material, which is bringing back older collectors. It’s a cycle, they want to appeal to the youth 15-25, not guys with families. Make no mistake, it’s not their intention to revisit these old franchises.
There was a huge spike in collecting throughout the two years of Covid with everyone trapped at home. Now that it’s over, people don’t want to be tied down to material possessions, they want to travel, like never before.