trolls: world tour may just have ruined the movie theater industry

[BUtterfield 8 41,466]

In three weeks, the VOD release made nearly $100 million -- five million rentals at $20 a pop -- which is more than what the first movie made in five months of box office sales.

This unexpected VOD success has made Troll's studio Universal more than a bit cocky, with NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell announcing that "[a]s soon as theaters reopen, we expect to release movies on both formats" at the same time. It's a massive betrayal of the blood pact studios made with movie theaters, who, under normal circumstances, must let their movies ride the box office exclusively for at least two months before dumping them online. In response, AMC Theaters CEO Adam Aron announced he will boycott screening all Universal movies in his 1,000 global theaters until the studio comes to its senses.

Aron is right to imply that Trolls World Tour is only so successful because it has virtually no competition.

On the very same day as Universal's announcement, the Academy Awards, is allowingdirect-to-digital releases into its nominations (a temporary measure, they lie). So in a time where streaming is prestigious, a Troll Doll VOD sequel can make $100 million without breaking a sweat. Now movie theaters may no longer have anything unique to guarantee their survival.

https://www.cracked.com/article_27611_trolls-world-tour-may-just-have-ruined-movie-theater-industry.html

[Kulture Kiari 3,433]

This is a hot mess but I dont see any huge impact tbh. Let's be real, online pirating has been a thing for ages, so how can it affect it now?

[chromatigaga 1,339]

I am guilty of renting Trollz a few weeks ago and me and my bf are avid cinema goers 

 

We just shat where we eat 

[Ryusei 61,110]

why do people watch this  

[PhantomOfTheDance 13,795]

someone plz photoshop troll hair on the joanne album cover to satisfy me.

[Seeka 12,372]

6 minutes ago, Kulture Kiari said:

This is a hot mess but I dont see any huge impact tbh. Let's be real, online pirating has been a thing for ages, so how can it affect it now?

A lot of people are far more wholesome than you'd think. 

This is a legal way of watching films. And also, without having to go to the theater I may add. 

People are not going to fork over cash, plan to go to the theaters, when they can stay at home and have free popcorn and drinks while watching a worldwide release. 

Also there is a good three months, at least, between theater release and at home releases. 

This will put a serious cramp in the moviegoing industry. Especially as it would make the industry very reliant on those who go to theaters for "atmosphere". 

[RRR 3,996]

A slay, we have to stan

[ShadowHunter 866]

The ultimate kind of trolling

[venusfly 17,885]

20 minutes ago, Kulture Kiari said:

This is a hot mess but I dont see any huge impact tbh. Let's be real, online pirating has been a thing for ages, so how can it affect it now?

Pirating films that are out in theatres actually isn't that easy most of the time, you usually only get super low quality handheld recorded videos of cinema screenings. This removes the need for many people to go to the theatres to see a new film b/c they can just rent it online for the same price as going to the theatre.

[Jeroen Bloeming 2,277]

Tbh. It was a fun movie. But it will probably have a little to none impact on the movie industry 

[Creyk 17,821]

I hope this won't be a real issue once the virus is gone, it would further cause cinemas to shut down which would cost so many jobs.

[Stanley Digaga 975]

I hope this kind of digital release doesn't become a common thing, we need theaters ! It's a nice place to go out with friends and, while it might not be the case for Trolls, it really adds something to the  experience for some movies.

[ToxicHot 6,444]

I really don’t think it’s going to affect the movie theater industry as much as people are anticipating it does. I mean, movie and film culture is so dependent on people going to see a movie in a theater. It’s part of the experience.

Although, I suppose it is a natural progression for the theater industry to start declining. Just look at Blockbuster and DVD rentals declining after streaming services like Netflix and Hulu have done so much to make movie-watching more convenient. 

AMC boycotting Universal movies over this is STUPID. This is just going to drive business to other movie theater chains, I mean they’re literally going to lose profit over this.  Oh well, might as well file for bankruptcy now!

[Daenerys 6,120]

I mean if I had a kid I wanted to shut up I’d fork up the $20 instantly. I’m not surprised considering the circumstances. 

[KNJ 4,170]

1 hour ago, Kulture Kiari said:

This is a hot mess but I dont see any huge impact tbh. Let's be real, online pirating has been a thing for ages, so how can it affect it now?

 

1 hour ago, Jeroen Bloeming said:

Tbh. It was a fun movie. But it will probably have a little to none impact on the movie industry 

The entertainment industry is just a giant gig economy. There are no projects = no gigs = no money. Studios and agencies are decimating their work forces.

Money needs to be recouped to pay for current projects and invest in future ones or the industry (and all the products we get from it) will dry up. 

Hard decisions have to be made NOW. Mulan, Wonder Women , No Time To Die, Dune, F9 are all due out this year. Release or hold? Where will they play????

Everything has to be reconfigured to accommodate the restrictions because of the virus. And if that means dropping the new James Bond into the living rooms of captive audiences -- with no press tours, advertising, or the usual promo bs to pay for-- they could possibly make 100s of millions without leaving their homes.

On top of theaters already failing and now closed and going bankrupt, this notion of VOD being the sole option for a movie-going experience will completely reshape the movie industry for the foreseeable future.

Theaters may not even exist on the other side of this, leaving VOD the only game in town.

The fact that a kids movie racked up over 100 mil in just 3 weeks on VOD alone --with a fraction of promotion, workforce and a captive,thirsty audience-- is shaking Hollywood to its core.

 

EDIT: the whole episode is great but he first 12 minutes of this ep is the straight-up TEA on the state of Hollywood right now

The Hollywood Read (April 21 2020) 

https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/sarah-marrs/the-hollywood-read/e/68994019