# Alternative title

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> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_title
> Source revision: 1308031613
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

{{Short description|New title for a work that differs from the original published title}}
{{for|the 1967 double A-side by the Monkees, 'Alternate Title'|Randy Scouse Git}}
{{About|the marketing strategy|the practice in book publishing|Alternative title (publishing)}}{{More citations needed|date=August 2025}}
An '''alternative title''' is a [media](/source/Media_(communication)) [sales](/source/sales) device most prominently used in [film distribution](/source/film_distribution). [Book](/source/Book)s and [film](/source/film)s are commonly released under a different [title](/source/Title_(publishing)) when they are screened or sold in a different country. This can vary from small change to the title, such as the addition of ''The'', to wholesale changes.  Film titles are also often changed when they are released on [DVD](/source/DVD) or [VHS](/source/VHS).

The reasons for this are varied, but usually point towards marketable, [linguistic](/source/natural_language) or [cultural differences](/source/cultural_differences). Some titles may not be easily understood in other parts of the world, and may even be considered offensive. Most title changes are [commercial](/source/Advertising). An example is [Italian](/source/Italy) director's [Sergio Leone](/source/Sergio_Leone)'s 1971 film ''Duck, You Sucker!'', initially released with this title as he was convinced it was a well-known English saying. When the film performed poorly, it was subsequently rebranded as ''[A Fistful of Dynamite](/source/A_Fistful_of_Dynamite)'', similar in name to his 1964 film ''[A Fistful of Dollars](/source/A_Fistful_of_Dollars)'', part of the successful [Dollars Trilogy](/source/Dollars_Trilogy).{{Citation needed|date=August 2025}}

In the music industry, many songwriters use the hook of a song as its alternative title.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Forest |first=Greg |url=https://archive.org/details/completemusicbus0000fore/page/16/mode/2up?q=%22alternative+title%22 |title=The Complete Music Business Office: Survival skills for a rough trade |date=1999 |publisher=MixBooks |isbn=0872887111 |location=Vallejo, California |pages=17}}</ref>

==References==
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Category:Film and video terminology

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Alternative title](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_title) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_title?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.