US release: 6th May 2022
Italy release: 4th November 2021
France release: 24th November 2021
£27.7 Thousand $180.1 Thousand
$0This weekend has a couple of big hitters making their way to streaming services that have been delayed for months due to the lockdown in the UK.
Godzilla Vs. Kong and Chaos Walking are both potential blockbusters that have missed out on a place in movie theatres due to the over crowding that is happening later in the year due to delayed films.
In a bid to promote its new streaming platform Paramount+ the studio today has announced that selected movies will be put exclusively on the platform between 30 and 45 days after release.
The new streaming platform is the latest home video on demand service to be launched alongside the likes of Disney+ from Disney which includes the likes of Pixar, Star Wars and marvel Cinematic Universe and HBO Max which is owned by Warner Bros.
During the last 12 months Disney and Warner Bros. have used their platforms to launch their titles that have had long delays, like Disney's Mulan, although often they have also given them a theatrical release in cities and countries where they are open, HBO Max has done it at no extra charge, Disney have charged a premium on top of the monthly fee.
During a press conference today (February 24th 2021) ViacomCBS chief Bob Bakish, who own Paramount and Universal studios laid out the plans for the new service which will take over from CBS All Access and their other streaming platforms.
The upcoming Mission:Impossible 7 and A Quiet Place Part II, both of which have suffered delayed releases because of the pandemic, are two title the CEO named which will be on the platform 45 days after an exclusive theatrical window.
Universal were the company last year that upset the cinema chains in the US when they announced they would shorted the exclusive window from 90 days to 30 days, and in a controversial move they put Trolls World Tour directly to video on demand (VOD).
Cinemas in the UK are going to open on or around May 17th and in the US cinemas are opening in different states as and when they can, the industry needs a hit movie in order to get people back into cinemas.
In China last weekend the movie Detective Cinamtown 3 was released which took over $300 Million on its opening weekend and to date has taken over $600 Million, challenging Avengers: Engame as the top grossing movie of all time.
China seems to cherish its industry and is doing all it can to make it thrive, so why is the same not happening in Europe and America?
Cinema attendance in the UK dropped by 75% to 44 million tickets sold in 2020 due to the pandemic closures and limited openings later in the year.
Things started off really well in the first 3 months of the year, with over 80% of the total happening between January and March.
The COVID-19 pandemic took hold in late March and as you expect things just collapsed after that with less than 10 Million tickets sold between March and December.
The industry suffered 3 closures during that time and unlike in countries like America there is no drive-in culture which in part has kept the industry ticking.
Just under £250 Million in tickets were sold in 2020, compared to £1.25 Billion in 2019 which amounted to 176 Million tickets.
The highest grossing movie of the year was the Sam Mandes directed 1917 which was released in January 2020 and took over £40 Million at the box office.
2021 has not got off to a good start and cinemas have been closed but with vaccines being administered fast and a drop in cases it is hoped UK cinemas will open soon and the country will slowly get back to normal.
With no big releases due until at least the second quarter of the year UK cinema goers are in for a busy end of year with film like No Time To Die and Ghostbusters: Afterlife set to be big hits.
When cinemas first closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic the major studios started shifting their release schedule, with a new spike in the virus studios are starting to make even more changes.
Warner Bros. Recently changed the release date of Wonder Woman 1984 October 2nd and then just this week they moved Tenet to August 12th.
Now today Disney moves the release of Mulan, again, to August 21st, this is the second move for a movie that should have been released in March, just as the virus hit the world.
What is interesting is that it seems the studios are delaying the release of these film worldwide, although it is only the US which is seeing a large spike, especially in the south, of the virus.
The UK government announced this week that cinemas in the UK could start reopening from July 4th, and in much of Europe and Australia many cinemas are open already.
With the US expecting the surge to get even worse, with potential lockdowns happening again, it is anyones guess when it will be safe for cinemas to open.
You can expect there to be more rescheduled film coming, and I hate to say it but some films, Mulan, Bill & Ted Face The Music and The New Mutants to name a few missing a theatrical release and going direct to VOD.
There is still no official box office numbers getting released but with many drive-in cinemas across America open and reporting numbers horror movie The Wretched spends a third week at the top of the US cinema chart.
Here is the top 5 films in America this weekend
Spending a third weekend at the top this horror film from directors Brett Pierce and Drew T. Pierce took $85K from its drive-in showings to bring its total gross in the US to nearly $300K.
Starring Beanie Feldstein this comedy movie stays at number 2 this weekend for a second week taking $36K for a total gross of $55K.
This is kind of the highest new entry of the week although it was released in 2018!
The documentary feature directed by Cassidy Friedman takes $4k over the weekend, the film wisely taking advantage of the lack of new films at the cinema.
This animated feature from May of 2019 spends its second week on the box office (of sorts) taking $1.5K on its second weekend pushing its total to $4K.
With a take of $55 this drama directed by Giuseppe Capotondi spends its fourth weekend on the box office, it has now taken $40K.
We know under normal circumstances the American box office would have been far different than this but its fun to take a look at what is happening across the county with the movie industry until we get more theatres opening.
At the moment the studios are hoping that will be by July when Warner Bros. have their big tentpole picture Tenet directed by Christopher Nolan opening.