Films like “Tom & Jerry” and the next “Godzilla vs. Kong ”will be key for cinemas that want to bring audiences back inside the house before the summer blockbuster season
Three months after shocking Hollywood with its decision to put all of its 2021 films in theaters and on HBO Max at the same time, Warner Bros. became an important player in the early stages of the US box office recovery, with films like “Godzilla vs. Kong ”, which comes out this Friday, playing a key role in the reopening strategies of cinemas.
While the Disney cartoon “Raya and the Last Dragon” has given a remarkable boost to the box office over the past three weekends, Warner Bros. it was the only studio to win an opening weekend of more than $ 10 million since the pandemic closed theaters last March. Along with the $ 20.2 million debut for “Tenet” last September ($ 58 million in the domestic total), Warner Bros. also saw “Wonder Woman 1984” win a $ 16.7 million debut for a domestic total of $ 45.5 million since Christmas Day and “Tom & Jerry” post a $ 14.1 million opening for a total of $ 33.7 million since the end of February. And the last two films have earned those revenues despite being available on HBO Max.
Now comes “Godzilla vs. Kong ”, a confrontation of arguably the two most famous movie monsters of all time in a blockbuster designed to be seen on the big screen with an expanding cinema sound system. For theaters, it is exactly the type of film they hope can bring back audiences who haven’t been to the cinema in a year, even if the option of watching it at home is still there.
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“Tom and Jerry” (Warner Bros.)
“What happened to Warner Bros. last month reminds me of the disagreement between Universal and AMC when the ‘Trolls World Tour’ came into demand at the beginning of the pandemic, but ultimately ‘Trolls’ was a success while Universal continued to release movies for theaters that performed well despite the pandemic, like ‘The Croods: A New Age’, ”said Comscore analyst Paul Dergarabedian.
“Likewise, we saw a similar disagreement when Warner Bros. announced this change with HBO Max to adapt to the pandemic, but what we’ve seen so far is that providing this streaming option to the public has not yet come at the expense of the theater, ”he continued. “The consumer base is broad enough to support domestic and theatrical models for these new films and they don’t have to be adversaries.”
And Warner Bros. also took steps to allay fears among movie theater owners that the move to HBO Max will not extend until 2022. Along with the announcement that it would reopen all of its locations on April 2, Regal Cinemas announced that it had closed a agreement with Warner guaranteeing 45 days of theatrical exclusivity for all of its films from 2022. The agreement not only signals Warner’s commitment to cinemas, but signals that the hard-fought 90-day period of exhibitors is probably gone forever .
Read too: Royal cinemas will reopen in April, make deal for 2022 Warner Bros. releases.
Daniel Kaluuya in “Judas and the Black Messiah” (Warner Bros.)
Warner also won favors, giving cinemas a larger share of ticket revenue to make up for the potential losses of consumers who choose to broadcast instead. The studio’s generosity stands in stark contrast to Disney, which refused to renegotiate the box office terms – and saw Cinemark refusing to show “Raya and the Last Dragon” as a result. The loss of the chain’s 400-500 locations led to a disappointing $ 8.5 million opening weekend, although “Raya” held up well and dropped just 11% in its third weekend.
Cinemark CEO Mark Zoradi pointed to the next Warner Bros. films. like “Godzilla vs. Kong “and” Mortal Kombat “, which will be released on April 16, as reasons why he is feeling optimistic about the recovery of his network. “We have seen solid numbers in our locations within the capacity limits under which we are required to operate in states like California, and our customers are feeling very comfortable with the security restrictions of COVID-19,” said Zoradi. “As we have more films like ‘Godzilla’ that are made to be seen on the big screen and more people are vaccinated, we should see an improvement with each passing weekend.”
There is also another detail for Warner Bros. ‘HBO Max’s strategy that could allow the studio’s spring releases to reach the box office as more cinemas reopen: New films released for streaming will be temporarily suspended 30 days after their initial release. “Judas and the Black Messiah” left HBO Max the same week that it won five Oscar nominations, including Best Picture. This makes cinemas the only place for Oscar fans to watch the nominee for the award.
And while earnings this weekend remained in the six-figure range for Oscar nominees – with $ 250,000 for “Judas” and $ 321,700 for “The Father” – that could change as the older audience, for example, long the main demographic group for the Oscar fare, continue to be vaccinated and become more comfortable when returning to cinemas.
“Godzilla vs. Kong ”may have similar legs on a larger scale as it will leave HBO Max in late April. And his outlook has improved markedly, as his biggest potential competitor, Marvel Studios’ “Black Widow”, changed from May 7 to July 9. As long as an increase in COVID-19 variant infections does not force cinemas to close again, Warner Bros. finds himself filling the demand for highly successful shows on the big screen with battles between Japan’s most famous kaiju and the Eighth Wonder of the World.
