Wow, this isn't looking good. Studios are waiting on NY (300 theaters) before releasing their big movies. Add in CA with 500 theaters (139 open) and the two states are 21.5% of the box office. Per this there is only 4 "major" movies coming out between now and the end of the year. Maybe we'll get lucky and get a Wonder Women or Croods standee. Not going to hold my breath. Anybody doing trailer checks, cross your fingers for maybe Thanksgiving, or Christmas.

Hm, there is Honest Thief with Liam Neesom (not considered a major movie) coming out this weekend. Have to try and remember next week to check and see what it did.

Fourth-generation movie theater operator says chain is months from bankruptcy
PUBLISHED FRI, OCT 9 202012:29 PM EDT

B&B Theatres, the sixth-largest cinema chain in the U.S., has been operating for nearly 100 years. Its owners now say it is months away from filing for bankruptcy protection.

The family-owned business has 48 theaters in eight states and was forced to shutter all of those locations in March due to the coronavirus pandemic. A handful of the company’s theaters were able to reopen to the public in June, but the majority didn’t until August.

During that time, B&B Theatres was unable to pay full rent and had to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to repair its projectors because the machinery had sat unused for so long. With Hollywood delaying the release of major blockbusters until next year, Brock Bagby, an executive vice president at B&B Theatres, said there’s little hope the business can keep running.

“We are probably a few months out if nothing changes,” he said. “If we run the course that we are running now, we are probably a few months out. It’s bad.”

Bagby is part of the fourth generation of his family to operate the theater chain. His father, Bob Bagby, is the CEO, and his siblings, Bobbie Bagby Ford and Brittanie Bagby Baker, also hold executive vice president roles.

Brock Bagby has been working with the National Association of Theatre Owners as well as with rival theater chains to get relief for cinemas. He said his sister Bobbie, who oversees the company’s marketing, has made hundreds of calls to government officials lobbying for financial aid.

“The government shut us down, so we would hope they’d help us,” Bagby said. “I mean, we didn’t shut ourselves down. And that’s the thing that’s so hard, and I keep telling my dad, ‘You didn’t do anything wrong. This is not your fault.’ But it doesn’t help. It’s still devastating.”

In the second quarter, around 93% of movie theater companies reported revenue that was down by about 75% from a year ago, according to NATO. If that trend continues, the organization, which represents more than 33,000 screens in 50 states, said that 69% of small and mid-sized cinema companies would be forced to file for bankruptcy or close permanently.

“The stark reality is that many movie theaters will not be able to open again if they don’t receive government help,” Esther Baruh, director of government relations for NATO, said in a statement. “This is as urgent as it gets. The exhibition industry thrived before this pandemic and it will thrive again, but theaters and their employees need a bridge to get them to that point.”

Bagby said his company has lost millions this year and the only hope for B&B Theatres is new content.

In the wake of weak ticket sales in September, “Wonder Woman 1984” was moved from its October release date to Christmas and “Black Widow” and “No Time to Die” were postponed to 2021.

The theatrical calendar became even more vacant this week after Cineworld, the second-largest theater chain in the world, shuttered all of its U.S. and U.K. locations, including more than 500 Regal cinemas domestically.

“Dune,” which was supposed to come out in December, was postponed until next year after the Cineworld news was announced. Warner Bros. also delayed its new “Matrix” and “The Batman.” “Black Adam” no longer has an official release date.

Now there are only four major films on the slate for the rest of the year: Universal’s “The Croods: A New Age,” 20th Century’s “Free Guy,” Paramount Pictures’ “Coming 2 America” and “Wonder Woman 1984.” And even those films’ release dates could change.

Movie theater operators fear that studios will continue to withhold blockbusters until populous states such as California and New York reopen more theaters. The two states together account for 21.5% of the total U.S. box office receipts each year, according to data from Comscore. The states also help drive buzz for films, since both are entertainment industry hubs.

California has loosened restrictions on movie theaters, but only around 139 of the state’s more than 500 cinemas are open. New York’s guidelines have remained firmly against theaters reopening. As of last weekend, only two of New York’s nearly 300 locations were open.

“New York State has been following the data and latest science on the virus to re-open our economy safely and we are doing the same when it comes to movie theaters,” Jack Sterne, a spokesman for Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration, said in a statement.

“Movie theaters and similar activities around the state remain closed, as they present the challenge of customers sitting for long periods in an enclosed space with the potential for activities such as eating and drinking that require a mask to be removed,” he said. “In New York, we will continue to track the data and the science, and we will make a decision on re-opening them here when health experts determine it is safe to do so.”

Cuomo’s administration did not respond to CNBC’s follow-up request for additional information about how it is tracking data and what would need to happen in order for the state to allow movie theaters to reopen.

Nearly 400 theater companies, including B&B Theatres, have adopted a new program called CinemaSafe, which was developed with the help of NATO and epidemiologists to make going to the movies as safe as possible during the pandemic.

The program calls for mandatory masks, social distancing, staggered showtimes and seating as well as increased disinfecting of auditoriums, concession areas and restrooms. Additionally, a number of these movie theater companies have invested a significant amount of money into new HVAC systems.

“Governor Cuomo seems to be in no rush for theaters to re-open in the New York Metropolitan area, especially since there are no specific metrics in place which would allow operators to move forward,” Eric Handler, managing director of media and entertainment equity research at MKM Partners, wrote in a research note published Friday.

Both Bagby and Mooky Greidinger, the CEO of Cineworld, told CNBC that studios have told cinemas that they will not release major blockbusters until theaters in New York are permitted to reopen. That’s why New York’s reopening is something Bagby is watching closely even though he doesn’t operate any theaters there.

For Greidinger’s company, closing locations was a way to stem the “bleeding.” He said that his business lost less money by not operating.

Bagby’s company, however, found that it would lose more money by shuttering and would be hit even harder financially if it had to go through the process of reopening again.

“We’ve been around 96 years and never seen anything like this,” Bagby said. “I’m sure my grandparents are rolling over in their graves.”

[www.cnbc.com]

Not sure what to make of this at all. Disney seems to be saying we're pulling our movies from the theaters because the box office is down. But the box office is down because there are no movies to see. How does Disney expect the box office to come back without any movies? Almost like Disney is pushing them into bankruptcy so it can pick up a bunch of theaters on the cheap.

And look at all the movie content "divisions" Disney has. And now it says it's "primary focus" is going to be on streaming.

< Under Horn and Bergman, the studios segment will focus on creating content for theatrical release, Disney+ and Hulu. Walt Disney Studios, Marvel Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Lucasfilm, 20th Century Studios and Searchlight Pictures all fall under their perview. >

Disney says its ‘primary focus’ for entertainment is streaming — announces a major reorg
PUBLISHED MON, OCT 12 20204:15 PM EDT

KEY POINTS
- Disney is restructuring its media and entertainment divisions.

- In order to further accelerate it’s direct-to-consumer strategy, the company will be centralizing its media businesses into a single organization that will be responsible for content distribution, ad sales and Disney+.

- The change comes as the global coronavirus pandemic has crippled its theatrical business and ushered more customers towards its streaming options.

Click here for the article, not that it makes much more sense then the key points.
[www.cnbc.com]

Another one bites the dust. So this leaves three major releases by the end of the year??? If any more drop out, theaters might not even be open for Christmas. Wonder Woman and Croods should stick it out. They would have to do good. There's going to be nothing else to watch. If nobody goes to the theaters, can always then release them on streaming. I don't see how trying the theaters first would hurt streaming. Of course if NY and most of CA stay closed, that's 20% of the box office right there. NY and CA will just have to wait until it comes on streaming. It's not like there is going to be some big spoilers is there?

Coming 2 America Skipping Theaters, Releasing On Streaming In December

Eddie Murphy's Coming 2 America is reportedly set to forgo theaters in favor of a streaming release this December on Amazon Prime Video.
By Mike Jones 10/13/20

Eddie Murphy’s highly anticipated Coming to America sequel, officially titled Coming 2 America, will release on streaming rather than in theaters this December. Paramount was originally set to release the film during the traditionally busy Christmas movie season.

Unfortunately, as has been the case for a growing list of upcoming films, the COVID-19 pandemic has made the theatrical release model a highly problematic undertaking. Again and again over the past several months since the pandemic took hold, cinemas around the world have either been forced to close or stand by helplessly as audiences failed to turn up in significant numbers. Many industry insiders had predicted that a slate of upcoming big name, big budget releases would turn things around for theater owners and studios alike, but as more time passes, this proves to be an unlikely prospect. Coming 2 America was one such film, as the original 1989 fish-out-of-water comedy starring Murphy and Arsenio Hall had pulled in nearly $300 million during its original theatrical run. The sequel has been in the works for several years and fans have been extremely eager to see what’s in store for them.

According to recent reports from Deadline and Variety, however, Paramount has sold Coming 2 America to Amazon Studios. The deal is reportedly still being finalized as of this writing, but the sale is said to carry a hefty $125 million price tag. As a result, Coming 2 America is expected to premiere December 18 on Amazon Prime. The film joins a list of other impressive titles that Amazon has managed to claim as of late, including Sacha Baron Cohen’s Borat sequel, as well as the Tom Clancy adaptation Without Remorse.

The rest of the article here, [screenrant.com]

Some of NY is finally being allowed to reopen. Is it enough to get the studios to release some movies to the theaters?

Andrew Cuomo Says Movie Theaters Outside of New York City Can Open Oct. 23
Oct 17, 2020 9:33am PT

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has announced that movie theaters outside of New York City will be allowed to open beginning Oct. 23.

During a press briefing on Saturday morning, Cuomo said that movie theaters not located in the city can open at 25% capacity with a limit of 50 people per screening if they meet state safety regulations.

Only counties that have an average COVID-19 infection rate lower than 2% over 14 days and no cluster zones will be allowed to open their theaters. Masks, assigned and socially distant seating and additional staff to enforce the new rules will be required, in addition to air filtration, purification and ventilation standards.

Movie theater owners in New York state have been pleading with Cuomo over the past few weeks, urging him to allow for them to safely reopen. On Wednesday, the executive committee of the Global Cinema Federation wrote an open letter addressed to Cuomo asking him to soften his stance.

“We recognize your commitment to ensuring that the citizens of New York remain safe and protected from COVID-19. With certain zip codes in New York seeing spikes of the virus, we are, of course, not suggesting that you open the entire state at once. We are, however, requesting that you adopt a plan similar to that in California, where Governor Newsom has allowed openings on a county-by-county basis according to virus data,” the letter said, which was signed by leaders from AMC, Cinemark, Cineplex and Cineworld, in addition to other large chains from around the world.
[variety.com]

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/17/2020 08:19PM by StandeeInstaller.

There really isn't anything to see in the theaters and they are going to hold it till the 25th??? Are they stupid? They want everybody to try and cram into the theaters on the 25th? Sure they can put it on half or more of the screens in a theater to space it out since they have to limit the people in theaters. But why wait until the 25th?

Looking at the calendar, 25th is a Friday. Schools, if they are open at all should shut down for Christmas break on the 18th? Anybody know? So they should release it the 18th, with previews on the 17th and that would give them the whole week before Christmas for everybody to go see it. Why wait for Christmas. There is no other competition for the movie. People after not going to theaters for over 6 months are not suddenly going to show up on Christmas. Just won't happen. Plus they are throwing away a whole week when kids are going to be sitting around with nothing to do just because of how the calendar works this year.

Hm, these days with all the kids having phones and texting, opening it say on the 11th to get word of month going at school the week before Christmas break probably wouldn't be a factor like it might have 15-20 yrs ago.

They should do a standee for it the middle of November. Crosses fingers.

Will ‘Wonder Woman 1984’ Open on Christmas? ‘I Don’t Think Anybody Can Be Confident,’ Says Patty Jenkins
Oct 16, 2020 6:17am PT

When Warner Bros. announced last month that “Wonder Woman 1984” would open on Dec. 25, it was no less than the sixth release date for the movie, and the third since the COVID-19 pandemic has forced the film industry to play a losing game of hopscotch with the theatrical release calendar. Once expected to be the biggest movie of the summer, “Wonder Woman 1984” has been pushed this year from June 5 to Aug. 14, then again to Oct. 2, and now to Christmas as practically the only major theatrical release left in the calendar year.

Asked about the ever-shifting release dates for the project for the latest Variety cover story, “Wonder Woman 1984” costar Pedro Pascal — who plays the villain Max Lord in the film — basically shrugged.

“As far as movie releases are concerned and the tremendous way that the industry is having to improvise around these circumstances, nothing is surprising,” Pascal said. “We’re all getting used to things shifting day-to-day, hour-to-hour, you know? That’s what we’re all dealing with.”

Whether Diana Prince will indeed grace multiplexes in the U.S. and Canada in 2020 at all remains very much an open question. Cases in the U.S. are surging once again, flu season is beginning to kick into gear, and some exhibitors have already announced plans to close before Dec. 25 due to the lack of fresh films and moribund consumer interest in attending theaters.

“I don’t think anybody can be confident of anything right now,” director Patty Jenkins told Variety in a separate interview last month about Pascal. “We just don’t know what the course of COVID is going to be like.”

Jenkins was quick to add that she’s “very hopeful” her film can still open on Dec. 25. “It feels totally possible to me,” she said.

Still, by this point in the year, “Wonder Woman 1984” was supposed to have wrapped up its theatrical run after presumably conquering the world. Instead, Jenkins has been caught in an unpleasantly novel variant of Hollywood purgatory.

Rest of article here, [variety.com]

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/18/2020 12:20AM by StandeeInstaller.

Wow, what a difference a month makes. This turned out to be a smart move. Especially with No Time to Die getting moved. And with Dune and West Side Story getting moved from Dec 18th, and Coming 2 America going streaming, that leaves the 18th wide open for Wonder Woman. They need to move it to the 18th and take advantage of the wide open schedule instead of trying to make everybody suddenly show up on Christmas.

‘The Croods 2’: Universal Moves DreamWorks Animation Pic Into Thanksgiving Frame
September 16, 2020 11:30am

Universal is moving up The Croods: A New Age from its December 23 release date to Wednesday, November 25.

The move indicates the studio’s confidence that, according to recent reports, Disney will move Pixar’s Soul out of the Thanksgiving stretch. Soul is still scheduled to debut November 20 on the same weekend as MGM’s No Time to Die.

Here’s the interesting proposition with The Croods: A New Age: With Universal’s new shortened theatrical-PVOD window with AMC, they stand to make money with the DreamWorks Animation feature during two lucrative holiday periods: on Thanksgiving in theaters, and over Christmas in homes on PVOD. This plan isn’t definite, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if it happens especially as moviegoing remains unpredictable during the pandemic.

Following Trolls World Tour‘s day-and-date theatrical-PVOD release over Easter weekend during the pandemic (the nation’s big theaters were closed), AMC became irate about Uni’s plans for theatrical-PVOD releases. But it worked out a sweetheart deal where the exhibitor would benefit from shortened Uni theatrical releases going straight to PVOD, essentially getting a share of such streams. Other exhibitors I understand are boarding similar deals with the studio. Uni reportedly made close to $100 million in the PVOD release of Trolls World Tour.

The first Croods, released by then DWA distribution partner 20th Century Fox, made $187.1M domestic and $587.2M at the global box office in 2013.

The departure of The Croods: A New Age from the year-end holiday period leaves the following wide releases behind for that span:

December 18

Dune (Warner Bros/Legendary) - now moved to next year
Coming to America 2 (Paramount) - now gone to streaming
West Side Story (20th/Amblin) - now moved to next year

Christmas Day

Wonder Woman 1984 (Warner Bros)
News of the World (Universal)

December 30

Escape Room 2 (Sony)
[deadline.com]

Wow, something really strange is going on with Box Office Mojo. They pulled all the daily numbers for Tenet for all dates. So if you look at say Oct 3rd, a Saturday, it is now showing Hocus Pocus as the number one movie. And then it has a light blue background which at the top says Key: estimated, with the estimated having a light blue background. Only two movies of the 25 listed have a light blue background, Hocus Pocus and Star Wars Episode V. Really weird. What does it mean? [www.boxofficemojo.com]

Now if you go to the weekend, it's still showing Tenet. So for last weekend it came in 3rd with $1.6 million with a total so far of $50.6 after 7 weeks. But it too now has a light blue background meaning estimated. I don't remember if anything in the past had the light blue background meaning estimated. Really hadn't paid any attention. Is that something new? Strange. [www.boxofficemojo.com]

The weekly still has Tenet in it, but again now has the light blue background. Most puzzling.

Check some showtimes and see if it's still playing. Whoa, forgot Regal is closed again. Check AMC. Yikes, Tenet is down to only 2 showtimes. Hm, looks like this theater's first show was 1:30pm and the last was 8:30pm. Most movies only got 1 or 2 showings, with a few movies getting 4-5. And that's for a Saturday. Check Sunday. Wow, first show is 3:50 and the last is 8:30. Check a different theater. Holly smokes, AMC Phipps didn't even open until 4pm and last show is 10pm. For Sunday, first show it 2:30 and last is 8:30. Ok, it looks like they are having the employees all come in at the same time and just doing one shift. And them moving the window of when they are showing the movies to when they think people want to come.

Check a few others. First show was 3:15 and last 8:45. For Sunday first is 3:15 but last is only 8:00 and all but 2 movies only get 1 or 2 showings. Wow, Monday first show is 5:15 and last 8:45 with only 1 movie getting more than 2 showtimes.

Hm, check Northpoint. Is this for real??? Today first showtime was 3:00 and last 8:15. Sunday same thing. Monday is 5:00 to 8:15 and of 11 movies, 7 have only one showtime. Wow. Apparently nobodies going, but we already knew that from the Box Office numbers.

So does anybody have any idea what is going on with Tenet and Box Office Mojo? Why did they pull all the daily numbers? Was there some kind of hanky panky going on? I can't imagine there was over reporting, so was there some serious under reporting? The theaters trying to get some extra cash in their pockets? Or do the distributors report the numbers to Box Office Mojo and they were padding them, trying to make it look like it was doing better then it was to get some buzz going. It's a mystery, that's for sure.

So I was originally checking to see what last weekends box office did when I was, wait a minute, where did Tenet go. So we had Honest Thief open with $3.7 million for last weekend. So that was good for an extra $2.6 million over the previous week. Believe it or not we had $1.3 million from The Nightmare Before Christmas which was good for 4th. Honest Thief's per screen was only $1697 so about 170 over 3 days or not even 60 a day or probably about 10-15 per show. And that was the best movie out there. Everything else was much less.

Wait a minute, Tenet was $799 per screen, but might not have been getting that many showings per screen. So if we say 80/3 is 27 a day and at only 2 shows, that gets you into the 10-15 per showtime. Hard to say with the limited data we have. 3 showings per screen gets you under 10.

Oct 16 - $13.0 Total weekend box office
Oct 9 - $10.4
Oct 2 - $9.2
Sep 25 - $9.5
Sep 18 - $11.3
Sep 11 - $12.6
Sep 4 - $27.0
Aug 28 - $12.7
Aug 21 - $6.8

See what the weeks were and how much was coming in Mon-Thur.

Oct 16 - $15.6 - $2.6 Total for the week box office
Oct 9 - $12.7 - $2.3
Oct 2 - $10.8 - $1.6
Sep 25 - $11.3 - $1.8
Sep 18 - $13.8 - $2.5
Sep 11 - $14.8 - $2.2
Sep 4 - $30.2 - $3.2
Aug 28 - $16.0 - $3.3
Aug 21 - $8.2 - $1.4

So we're seeing a little bit of an up tick the last 2 weeks with some more movies coming out, but not much. Checking the schedule, really nothing until Croods which is 5 weeks out. Wow, I guess we'll just have to wait and see how bad it gets between now and then with nothing new to see. And then Croods is going to be the big test.

I'm telling you, Wonder Woman needs to open the 18th. To wait until the 25th is plain stupid. Who on Christmas day is going to run out to a movie theater when most people haven't gone in over 6 months. Who's going to cram into a theater to see if they can catch something? It is a Friday though, so then gives you Sat-Sun, 26th, 27th.

Checking a few local school calendars, 18th last day before Christmas break. There's absolutely no other movie competition out there so why would you waste that whole week when kids are going to be sitting around with nothing to do. Fingers crossed they don't cancel it altogether with all that can happen between now and then. But they still need to move it to the 18th.

See what else we can make wild guesses on from the numbers. At $15.6 million for the last week, puts us at about 1.5 million people went and guessing 1,000 theaters are open gives 1500 per theater. Most of those were on the weekend, so say 1250 gives about 416 a day. Mon-Thur was $2.6 million so about 260k or 260 per theater or about 65 a day. I don't know. When I went around doing standees (I did 17) a month and a half ago, I wouldn't have guessed 65 people a day. Maybe 30-40.

Oh, keeping forgetting Regal is closed. And they are like 500 theaters. So the last 2 weeks of numbers are without them. And yet the numbers went up. Did their closing not have much effect? Or would the numbers have been much higher with them? Need a crystal ball to try and figure that out. We do know this though, with Regal being closed and the revenue numbers still going up, it helped all the other theaters that are still open. Anybody know how many theaters are actually open? If we guess 700, that gets per theater to about 2100 or 600 more. And the Mon-Thur numbers would jump to about 90 per day. That should be enough to pay for the employees and the electricity at least.

Wow, MM has a few trailer checks for this Wednesday. Few is the key word here. I did a 200 mile search and there was one, AMC Southlake and it was already taken. I was almost tempted to do one just to check out the theaters and see what is going on. I assume Regal is still shut down. Hadn't heard anything. Maybe a little later I'll check show times at a sampling of theaters.

Was curious so did a search of the Orlando, FL area. Had 4 locations. 3 already taken. Again a 200 mile radius. I assume the rest of the country is like this. Only a handful of locations.

This is going to be the big test. If Crood can't pull them in, might as well just shut it down. Quick peak at the Box Office, Freaky won the weekend with $4.2 million. Shouldn't it have come out for Halloween? R rated no less. War with Grandpa is still holding in there with $1.5 million to take 3rd. Total box office was only $12.8 million.

I heard they are going to release Wonder Woman on streaming same time as theaters, the 25th. Why? They just trying to do the theaters in? And what's with this 25th nonsense. There is no competition. Your audience is going to be sitting around starting on the 18th with nothing to do. Has to be one of the biggest marketing blunders of all time. I guess we'll find out in a few days if it even matters when we see the numbers for Crood.

I'm in FL, and I get the emails for MM checks and no, there were not that many in the Orlando area. My son lives in that area and I looked as well. I don't bother with the smattering of trailer checks that come along now from MM, because none are near me. They did the same thing for Freaky. They had 2 for Orlando.

There were trailer checks for Freaky? Really. Are any of the other companies doing trailer checks? A 200 mile radius search would have picked up Chattanooga. Maybe Birmingham. I'm surprised Atlanta only had one location. Southlake is 24 screens. It was some what busy when I did the Bond standee there a few months back. I heard a rumor they tried shopping No Time to Die to the streamers. Nobody wanted to cough up $600 million for it.

Check some showtimes. Wow, Wednesday they are going to start showing Croods at 12:30, every half hour until 8:30. Looks like 5 screens. Where it looks like today hours are 4-8:30.

Try another one. Hm, looks like 2:30-8:30 but most movies are only getting 1 or 2 showings. Freaky has 5. See what Wednesday is. Whoa, looks like they dumped everything except the very recent releases. Tenet and War with Grandpa aren't listed. Croods is 2:30-8:30 with 10 showings. Hm, wonder if they even have the full schedule yet. Certainly doesn't look like it for Friday. Only has 4 movies, and more like place markers for what the show times are going to be. Strange. Try another.

Whoa, Cinebistro is closed. Regal still closed. NGC is open. Strange hours, 1:05-7:35 with over half of them last show time in the 6 o'clock hour.

Seeing strange stuff on Fandango. That one must not be open today. Has Tuesday show times, but not Wednesday and none further out yet. Wow, the discount theater that shows the older movies, has the current ones, since there aren't any older ones. Freaky is only $6.63. And then apparently are going to closed on Thanksgiving, no showtimes. Look at that, is getting Croods, but only has 2 show times, 4:20 and 6:30. Hours look to be 4-7:15. Still too early to get the Friday show times yet.

Here's a Studio Movie Grill, looks they are only open Wed-Sun. Hours 3:15-8:15 with all but two movies only getting 1 or 2 showings. Croods gets 5.

Here's one that's open Thur-Sun and Tue. And then a Movie Tavern that doesn't look like they got the memo, Are closed Monday, but Tuesday is 12:00-9:00. Are they getting enough people to be open that many hours? Hm, have Harry Potter and Dark Knight. Don't have the Wednesday schedule except Croods which is getting 14 showtimes.

Looks like they are bringing back Frozen on Wednesday. The Santa Clause also. Going to have to remember to check again on Wednesday since these schedules don't seem totally filled in.

This is the make or break week. If Croods doesn't bring out the movie goers, I wouldn't be surprised if Wonder Woman gets pulled. Thinking it needs to do at least $15-20 million. See what Tenet did the first week back in September, $20 million

OMG, as long as I was on Box Office Mojo checked this past weekend. The box office numbers were scarier than Freaky. Freaky won the box office with only $1.2 million. No other movie even did $1 million. Whoa!!! War with Grandpa came in 2nd with $747k. Who is still even going to see it at week 7? And yet it came in 2nd.

The total box office this past weekend was only $6.3 million. That is just sad. Wait a minute. Are more theaters closing down? Only one movie, Freaky was in more then 2,000 theaters and it only had 2,057. Only did $622 per theater. What's that, about 20 people a day? And that was good enough to win the weekend. Wow. The rest didn't even do that good.

The Forgotten Carols??? What the heck is that? Did $1,732 per theater but was only in 58 for $103k. That would have been almost 60 people a day. Oh, religious movie with a limited audience appeal, but apparently those that wanted to see it knew where to find it.

Maybe everybody was saving up and waiting for Croods. They said the heck with Freaky, Halloween is over. So the weekend before Freaky had 2,472 theaters, $1,456 per theater, or what, about 45 people a day. That was good enough for $3.6 million and #1.

Comparing the last two weekends, besides the fewer theaters, the per theater average dropped. There was basically nobody that went to the theaters last weekend. I wonder why? If we're generous and say only $10 per ticket so padding the numbers to the high side, that would only be 630k or about 210k per day. Hard to say how many theaters are still open. Hm, Tenet was still in 864 theaters. Are there really still 864 theaters open? Maybe. That would give you about 240 people a day per theater.

So the weekend before Tenet was still in 1,223 theaters. So did 359 theaters close this past week? Wait a minute, War with Grandpa was still in 1,688 theaters, down 457. I can't see it still being on more than one screen per theater, but I can't imagine there are that many theaters open. Time for google.

Ok, from NATO (National Association of Theater Owners) there are 40,988 screens at 5,798 theaters. The top 10 chains have 24,954 screens in 2,030 theaters. So if the top 10 only have 2,030 theaters, where are the other 3,768? Are there that many mom and pop theaters out there? They have about 16,000 screens or about 4.5 per theater. [www.natoonline.org]

So with this new info, apparently the data on Box Office Mojo is per theater and we have no idea how many screens any particular movie was showing on. Interesting. So if Freaky was still in 2057 theaters, but only had about 20 people a day, but might have had 5-10 showings a day, you had the theater to yourself. So if there were 210k a day in say 2057 theaters, that drops you to just over 100 people per theater. So if you are looking for some place to get away by yourself, go to a movie theater. Nobody there.

Trivia, this week last year Frozen II did $130 million. It looks like the total box office over the last 10 weeks might have just about equaled that.

So this past weekend was the big test, how did we do? Croods, for the 5 day "weekend" totaled $14.3 million. Not terribly bad. Best days were Fri/Sat with $3.9 and $3.6 respectively in 2,211 theaters which was about $1630-1760 per theater. So depending on ticket prices we're looking at only 100-150 people spread over maybe as many as 10 showtimes. So a "crowded" theater would have been 20 people. Mon/Tue came in at $440k/$512k with Tuesday per theater of $231 so 15-20 spread over 4-5 showtimes. So if you want to get away by yourself, go to a movie theater.

The top 10 did $18.9 million so everybody else did only $4.6 (5 days) where the dismal weekend before top 10 did $5.3 (3 days) so down even more. Top 10 had been averaging $8-10 million per weekend until last weekend. So over the 5 day weekend only Croods and Freaky made it over the $1 million mark. Looking at the per theater the two surprises were National Lampoons Christmas Vacation and Elf with $714/$629 beating out all the other top 10 except for Croods. The only catch was they were only in 308/683 theaters so only made it to 9th and 7th in box office.

The big bomb though was Disney brought back Frozen and it only did $113 per theater for the total 5 days. Not even $25 a day. Did manage 11th but that was only because it was in 1367 theaters. It was mostly showing to empty theaters. Then there is that mysterious The Forgotten Carols that is still packing them in with $1886 for the 5 days but at only 63 theaters so only managed 13th.

And still seeing Tenet not showing up on the daily box office numbers. Hm, not on the 5 day or 4 day "weekend", but is on the 3 day coming in 8th with $300k @ 656 theaters for $457 per theater. Checking the weekly Nov 20-26, came in 9th with $360k. And the week even with that god awful weekend still did $13.5 million but that's because Croods did $4.5 million on Wed/Thur.

So looking at how the Thanksgiving weekend went, I still think Wonder Woman needs to come out the 18th. If it did that, I think it could do $60 million through the New Years weekend. If it's real good, word of mouth from people going the weekend and week before Christmas when kids are sitting around with nothing to do, will drive traffic Christmas weekend and the week after. With Christmas on Friday you're missing out Croods biggest day of the weekend. Croods starting Wednesday did $1.9, $2.7, $3.9, $3.6 and $2.2 with Monday falling off a cliff to only $440k. So far Croods has done $15.2 million or figure about 1 million people.

Oh wait a minute, they are going to release it on streaming same time as the theater release. I forgot about that. I could see it doing more on streaming than in the theaters. Already being told not to travel, not to get together. Big markets of NY and CA aren't open. Regal is still closed. Down to only 2200 theaters from 2800 just a few months ago. So anybody want to guess on how long before AMC closes back down? I would be surprised if Wonder Woman does $25 million opening weekend since it's going to be on streaming. Why go to the theaters when you can just have a party at whose ever house has the big screen.

I've seen several stories of various AMC theaters that are closing for business as well. Many independent theaters are closing permanently.

Our local CineBistro has closed and opened three or four times in the last month because they just can't get enough customers to justify opening.

Wow, Warner Brothers drops this bombshell. So we're about to start rolling the vaccine out and yet they still do this. And once they do this, how do you ever go back to the old model of giving the theaters exclusivity for a number of weeks or months? Will the theaters boycott Warner Brothers? Disney has basically pulled all their NEW movies from the theater schedule, but is re-releasing their older movies. We taking bets on when AMC is going to file Bankruptcy?

Warner Bros. Smashes Box Office Windows, Will Send Entire 2021 Slate to HBO Max and Theaters

10:30 AM PST 12/3/2020 by Aaron Couch , Pamela McClintock

In an unprecedented announcement, the studio will send 17 films — including 'The Matrix 4,' 'The Suicide Squad' and 'Dune' to its streaming service for 31 days the same day they hit theaters.

Warner Bros. is plotting a sweeping response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which has shuttered movie theaters around the country. After announcing that Wonder Woman 1984 will go to HBO Max as well as theaters on Dec. 25, the studio has laid out a similar path for its 2021 slate amid uncertainty about when movie-going will get back to normal.

The studio announced Thursday day-and-date releases for its 17-film slate, which will hit HBO Max for a one-month window that starts the same day they will be available in U.S. theaters.

The studio's 2021 slate includes projects such as The Suicide Squad, The Matrix 4, Dune, Godzilla vs. Kong and Space Jam: A New Legacy. Other films include Little Things, Judas and the Black Messiah, Tom & Jerry, Mortal Kombat, Those Who Wish Me Dead, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, In The Heights, Reminiscence, Malignant, The Many Saints of Newark, King Richard and Cry Macho.

The unprecedented move is likely to catch theater owners off guard and upsets a model that has been in place for decades. Warner Bros. stresses that these are pandemic-only rules, but once a something is broken, can you really put it back together again? This also raises serious concerns about the landscape of movie-going in 2021.

Sources say these discussions were kept close to the vest and not shared with many exhibitors. Warner Bros. will likely have to agree to far more generous terms with theater owners to avoid them boycotting their films. Insiders say the Wonder Woman 1984 split of ticket sales is far better for exhibitors than normal. Sources also say the studio did not inform partners such as Legendary, which has Godzilla vs. Kong, that their films were included in this plan.

“We’re living in unprecedented times which call for creative solutions, including this new initiative for the Warner Bros. Pictures Group,” said Ann Sarnoff, chair and CEO, WarnerMedia Studios and Networks Group “No one wants films back on the big screen more than we do. We know new content is the lifeblood of theatrical exhibition, but we have to balance this with the reality that most theaters in the U.S. will likely operate at reduced capacity throughout 2021. With this unique one-year plan, we can support our partners in exhibition with a steady pipeline of world-class films, while also giving moviegoers who may not have access to theaters or aren’t quite ready to go back to the movies the chance to see our amazing 2021 films. We see it as a win-win for film lovers and exhibitors, and we’re extremely grateful to our filmmaking partners for working with us on this innovative response to these circumstances.”

“After considering all available options and the projected state of moviegoing throughout 2021, we came to the conclusion that this was the best way for WarnerMedia’s motion picture business to navigate the next 12 months,” said WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar. “More importantly, we are planning to bring consumers 17 remarkable movies throughout the year, giving them the choice and the power to decide how they want to enjoy these films. Our content is extremely valuable, unless it’s sitting on a shelf not being seen by anyone. We believe this approach serves our fans, supports exhibitors and filmmakers, and enhances the HBO Max experience, creating value for all.”

“This hybrid exhibition model enables us to best support our films, creative partners and moviegoing in general throughout 2021,” said Warner Bros. Pictures Group chairman Toby Emmerich. “We have a fantastic, wide-ranging slate of titles from talented and visionary filmmakers next year, and we’re excited to be able get these movies in front of audiences around the world. And, as always, we’ll support all of our releases with innovative and robust marketing campaigns for their theatrical debuts, while highlighting this unique opportunity to see our films domestically via HBO Max as well.”

HBO Max is only available in the United States, and Warners' 2021 slate will roll out internationally in theaters as planned. The move comes after Warners released Christopher Nolan's Tenet in theaters this summer amid challenges faced by the pandemic.

Universal has already shortened theatrical windows via its unique VOD plan, which was put in place because of the pandemic.

[www.hollywoodreporter.com]

Checking the Box Office, Croods on Wednesday dropped to only $333k and the top 10 only did $503k. Wow, hadn't been to Rotten Tomato in a while and it's like, wait a minute, where are the movie ratings. Kind of hard to have movie ratings when there are no movies. They're actually going to streaming movies and TV shows and oh, by the way, some where around here we have movies in theaters too. So Croods has a 95% audience and still is having trouble drawing them in. Have to see how it fairs this weekend.

OMG, looking at the per theater on the dailies, Croods averaged $150 per theater. No other movie other than that mysterious The Forgotten Carols ($116 per theater) even averaged $30 per theater. So if you have 3 people at a show time you have a crowd. Now I see why when I was checking show times, during the week most movies are down to only 1 or 2 show times. Maybe they should just go to on demand. When the 1 or 2 people that want to see a movie show up, then they run it.

How bad is it? You don't even have to do $10k nation wide to make the Top 10. Wow. On Monday and Wednesday, once you got out of the top 2 you didn't even have to do $25k. With discount Tuesdays the top 5 all did at least $25k. Hm, so if you had $5 Tuesday, you might have seen 4 or 5 people at a showing.

Let's see what the good old days were like. We'll pick Feb 19th a Wednesday. Wow, you had to do almost $300k just to be in the Top 10. Even 16th did at least $100k. Holy smokes, on Tuesday the 18th you had to do at least $500k to make the Top 10.

So I guess this means no standees any time if ever soon. Especially after No Time to Die and then they pulled the movie. I had a feeling that was going to be the end. Why I grabbed everyone I could, 16 or 17. Something like that. For old times sake. Oh well, was fun for the 10 yrs while it lasted.

Apparently they are just trying to get HBO Max subscribers and writing the movie theaters off. They are not even going to charge extra for the movies on HBO Max, but are only going to play them for 31 days and then yank them. You won't be able to wait for a bunch of movies to be on HBO Max, subscribe, watch all the movies and then unsubscribe. And they are only doing this in the US, not internationally where the money in movie theaters is. Basically they are saying, we don't care about the movie theaters right now since there currently is no money there, and instead are going to use this content that is just sitting there to drive subscriptions for HBO Max in the US. I guess time will tell if this is a good move for Warner Brothers or not. And who cares about the movie theaters. Ouch.

WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar doesn’t think he just destroyed the movie theater industry
PUBLISHED THU, DEC 3 20204:48 PM EST

On Thursday, AT&T’s WarnerMedia announced it would release its entire 2021 slate of films directly on HBO Max at the same time they hit theaters. Investors and industry-watchers greeted it as earth-shattering news for the movie theater industry. AMC Entertainment fell 16% on the day. Cinemark fell 22%.

WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar thinks they’re overreacting.

“Everyone should take a breather,” Kilar said in an interview. “Let’s let the next six, eight, ten months play out. And then let’s check back in.”

Kilar blamed the pandemic for his decision, and refused to say whether his decision to kill the decades-old theatrical window next year will last beyond 2021.

“Certainly this is pandemic-related,” Kilar said. “That’s why we’re doing it. We haven’t spent one brain cell on what the world looks like in 2022.”

He added, “I learned long ago not to make statements over a year from now.”

Still, WarnerMedia may have just pulled the genie out of the bottle. The decision to kill next year’s theatrical window is in line with Kilar’s greater mission -- to turn HBO Max into a global streaming behemoth that competes with Netflix.

Even if the move becomes permanent, Kilar doesn’t believe that ending the theatrical window would spell doom for movie theaters.

“I have conviction that for the next several decades there will be a very large volume of consumers worldwide that will choose on any given night, especially a Friday or Saturday night, to go out to a theater to be entertained by a great Warner Brothers movie,” Kilar said.

Kilar also noted that international movies -- which generates the bulk of box office revenue -- will be first released in theaters with normal windowing rules. HBO Max will debut globally next year.

Kilar believes other entertainment companies -- Disney, Lionsgate, Comcast’s NBCUniversal, ViacomCBS -- will have to decide in the next “couple of months” whether they will follow WarnerMedia’s lead to nix the window for 2021. WarnerMedia didn’t make financial arrangements with any of the theater companies before Thursday’s announcement, according to a person familiar with the matter.

“Clearly, Warner Media intends to sacrifice a considerable portion of the profitability of its movie studio division, and that of its production partners and filmmakers, to subsidize its HBO Max start up,” said Adam Aron, CEO and President of AMC Entertainment, the world’s largest theatre chain. “As for AMC, we will do all in our power to ensure that Warner does not do so at our expense. We will aggressively pursue economic terms that preserve our business.”

Disney has already broken the window with movies like “Mulan,” but it charged consumers $30 extra to watch on Disney+. The HBO Max decision -- which makes 17 movies available for no extra charge for subscribers -- is a much bigger step in the direction of putting streaming subscriber growth over all else.
[www.cnbc.com]

The thing that is shocking about the WarnerMedia announcement is they aren't even going to charge for them, but are going to limit it to a 31 day run so if you want to see it after that you can go to a movie theater. Or if you don't have HBO Max, go to a movie theater. To be noted, Disney has an investor day Thursday and there is expected news on their plans.

Your movie theater experience is going extinct
PUBLISHED FRI, DEC 4 202010:20 AM ESTUPDATED FRI, DEC 4 20203:19 PM EST
Steve Kovach

The theatrical window isn’t broken, but it is full of cracks.

Like so many other digital trends that have been accelerated by Covid-19, the way we watch theatrical releases saw big changes throughout 2020. The most significant shake-up: On Thursday, AT&T’s WarnerMedia announced that all 2021 theatrical releases from Warner Bros. will debut simultaneously on HBO Max for U.S. subscribers at no extra cost.

That means if you’re already an HBO Max subscriber, you’ll get to watch blockbusters like “Dune,” “The Matrix 4″ and “The Suicide Squad” from your living room couch instead of risking a trip to the theater next year. (WarnerMedia previously announced that “Wonder Woman 1984” will debut on HBO Max on Christmas Day.)

Everyone saw this coming. With the rise of streaming video, interest in going to a theater and spending all that time and money to watch a two-hour movie plummeted except for the biggest blockbusters. The smartest thinkers in media saw a not-to-distant future where lining up outside a theater for a movie release would become a niche event only for the most dedicated cinephiles. And then Covid hit, theaters were forced to close and studios had to dream up innovative ways to get eyeballs on their slate of 2020 releases.

There’s been a lot of experimentation throughout the year from various studios. Early on in the pandemic, Disney released its Pixar animated movie “Onward” directly on its Disney+ streaming service, for example. And several movies, like Universal’s “Trolls: World Tour” and “King of Staten Island” were released straight to on-demand platforms.

But as it became clear that theaters would remain closed for months or reopen with strict capacity restrictions, studios were forced to get even more creative as 2020′s blockbuster movies saw delay after delay.

To recap:

- After several delays, Disney released its $200 million film “Mulan” on Disney+ for a one-time, $30 fee. Disney hasn’t reported revenue for “Mulan” yet, but executives promised more details on its theatrical release strategy at the company’s investor day set for Thursday. It’ll be interesting to see how Disney’s 2021 plans compare to WarnerMedia’s bold move this week.

- NBCUniversal negotiated a smaller theatrical window with major theater chains like AMC and Cineplex, so movies can go straight to on-demand platforms in a month or less, down from the standard 90-day window.

Keep in mind that the studios are careful to say these moves are all temporary, and that they would like to keep their relationships with theaters once the pandemic is over and it’s safe to go out to the movies again.

“Everyone should take a breather,” WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar told CNBC’s Alex Sherman in an interview Thursday. “Let’s let the next six, eight, ten months play out. And then let’s check back in.”

But Kilar also left room to maintain the disruptive model he announced on Thursday.

“Certainly this is pandemic-related,” Kilar said. “That’s why we’re doing it. We haven’t spent one brain cell on what the world looks like in 2022.” He also declined to predict where things will stand a year from now.

And the market sees the reality of the situation. AMC shares tanked 16% on Thursday following WarnerMedia’s announcement, a sign that investors think the straight-to-home releases of movies is a trend other studios will jump on and consumers will prefer.

“Clearly, WarnerMedia intends to sacrifice a considerable portion of the profitability of its movie studio division, and that of its production partners and filmmakers, to subsidize its HBO Max start-up,” AMC CEO Adam Aron said in a statement Thursday. “As for AMC, we will do all in our power to ensure that Warner does not do so at our expense. We will aggressively pursue economic terms that preserve our business.”

On the other hand, there’s a risk for the studios. Is it worth spending $100 million or more on a blockbuster that’ll be released directly to customers in their homes at no extra cost if they’re subscribers of any given streaming service? Even if we’re trending toward a majority-streaming future for movies, theaters are where studios make a lot of their money, especially in international markets. The economics just don’t work out.

“Pushing your best content into a subscription window caps the upside on the truly mega hits that drive all of the profit,” Moffett Nathanson analysts wrote in a note Friday reacting to the WarnerMedia announcement. “And the move into HBO Max undoubtedly will have downstream impacts on home video and rental revenue streams, as well.”

“Assuming these factors lead to lost revenue of $1.2 billion, HBO Max’s annual average subscriber base would need to be 8.4 million higher than status quo to restore current revenue levels,” the analysts said.

In other words, WarnerMedia will have to hope millions more sign up for HBO Max next year if it wants to make up the expensive production costs of its upcoming movies. And if WarnerMedia continues down its path, it’ll have to take on more debt to produce movies for HBO Max, with the hopes AT&T’s investors will believe its building the next Netflix. That’d be a hard sell to the execs at AT&T considering the company is already saddled with loads of debt from its Time Warner acquisition.

In the meantime, we’ll continue to see a lot of experimentation from studios as the pandemic rages on. It might be a hybrid model, where you pay a one-time fee to watch a movie through a given streaming service. (The Disney “Mulan” model.) Or go straight to on-demand services after a shorter-than-normal theatrical window. (The NBCUniversal model.) Or just give the movies away for free, hoping it convinces more people to subscribe to a streaming service. (The WarnerMedia model.)

But the signs are clear that we’re in the early innings of theatrical windows going away for good.

“We have a hard time believing the messaging that this is only a temporary 2021 plan, however, even if that might be the current plan today,” the Moffett Nathanson analysts wrote. “Once the windows change, it will be hard to go back.”

[www.cnbc.com]

Checking to see how the weekend went, Croods managed $4.4 million in 2,205 theaters. No other movie cracked the $1 million mark. Total for the weekend was $8.1 million. A re-release of Die Hard took 10th with an estimated $189k. The Elf re-release took 5th with $320k.

On Mon/Tue the box office dropped to $365k/$519K. On Monday didn't even have to make $5k to make the top 10. Croods fell to only $190k, but on Tuesday Croods inched back up to $280k,

Checking the international market, the US is no longer # 1. Tenet has done $359 million but only $57 million in the US. China has done $66 million with a $29 million opening weekend. Didn't even manage #1 opening week getting beat by a Chinese film that was on week 3. Next was Japan with $25m, then the UK, $23.1m, France, $22.9m and Germany, $19.5m. Croods so far has done $60.5m, but only $20.8m in the US. China, the only other significant country still open is $36.1m. Looks like Europe re-shut their theaters the beginning of November.

Wow, first weekend of Oct China had a $309 million weekend. Some Chinese film that will never make it here. Did $181 million last weekend of August. Movie was The Eight Hundred, another Chinese film that did a token $372k in the US. Looks like an average weekend is running $20-50 million depending on what new movie comes out.

Hm, Disney didn't come out with a huge announcement like Warner Bros on their investor day. Did say that Raya and the Last Dragon will be VOD along with theaters in March. But they are going to charge for it, unlike Warner Bros just giving it away. Seem to be really concentrating on their streaming service with lots and lots of new series and movies for it. Trying to take over from Netflix. Movie theaters seems to be an after thought.

Disney Investor Day: Dozens of branded series headed to streaming, and 'Raya' film to Premier Access
Dec. 10, 2020 4:59 PM ETThe Walt Disney Company (DIS)By: Jason Aycock, SA News Editor9 Comments

At its streaming-focused Investor Day event, Disney's (NYSEIS) streaming czar Kareem Daniel says the company is heavily ramping up Disney Plus content - with 10 Marvel series and 10 Star Wars series earmarked for the streaming service.

Daniel also said there would be 15 series from the Disney and Pixar brands, as well as 15 feature films from those two brands, headed to Disney Plus.

There's not yet a blockbuster Warner Bros. style "all day-and-date" announcement yet, but Daniel says Raya and the Last Dragon, set for theaters in March, will also appear on Disney Plus Premier Access (the extra-price option the company used in releasing Mulan to VOD in September).

Recapping performance against prior guidance, the company notes its 2024 forecast had called for 60M-90M Disney Plus subs; 40M-60M Hulu subs, and 8M-12M ESPN Plus subs. Today, the company has 86.8M Disney Plus subs; 38.8M Hulu subs; and 11.5M ESPN Plus subs.

On the Disney Plus subs, the company notes about 30% are via India's Disney Plus Hotstar.

After hours: DIS +2.2%.
[seekingalpha.com]

Found another article. Kind of long so I'll just put the movie theater stuff. While they are concentrating on their streaming services, movies are still important since the did $13 billion at the box office in 2019. Just 80% of their content creation will be for streaming. And yet, they don't expect Disney + to be profitable until 2024.

Disney unloads a slew of impressive Disney+ announcements, announces price hike
PUBLISHED THU, DEC 10 20204:14 PM EST

(snip)
Disney has tapped pop culture icons from in front of the camera and behind it for these projects and for theatrical releases. Notably, Lucasfilm has brought on Patty Jenkins to direct “Rogue Squadron,” a new Star Wars film due out in 2023.

The company has a number of films slated for theaters in the coming years, showcasing its continued commitment to movie theaters. This includes two new Pixar films coming in 2022, a massive slate of Marvel movies and even non-franchise films like “Jungle Cruise.”

CEO Bob Chapek acknowledged that Disney garnered around $13 billion at the global box office in 2019, calling that success “not something to sneeze at.” In fact, Disney had seven films tally more than $1 billion that year.

(snip)
At the box office
On the heels of rival Warner Bros. announcing that it will release 17 films on HBO Max and in theaters on the same day next year, analysts and investors are keen to see how Disney will maneuver through the uncertainty still poised by a global pandemic.

Daniel said that theatrical release help establish franchises, something Disney has done well in the last decade with blockbusters from Marvel and Star Wars. Chapek echoed this sentiment, as well.

While the company will release the animated feature “Raya and the Last Dragon” on premium video on-demand through Disney+ and in theaters at the same time, it doesn’t plan on making this a permanent box office strategy.

Disney executives said that they will remain flexible about future releases, but made sure to reiterate that titles like “Black Widow” and “Jungle Cruise” will head to theaters as planned.

The company revealed a number of new projects. Notably, Patty Jenkins will direct the previously untitled Star Wars film due out Christmas 2023. The film is called “Rogue Squadron.”

This will make Jenkins the first woman to direct a Star Wars feature film. Victoria Mahoney was the first woman on a Star Wars directing team, having worked as the second unit director for “The Rise of Skywalker.” Deborah Chow, who is helming the upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi series, also directed and episode of “The Mandalorian.”

Marvel added a few more titles to its packed slate including a “Fantastic Four” film.

Pixar will have two new movies coming in 2022. First is “Turning Red,” a movie about a young teenager that turns into a giant red panda every time she gets excited. The second is “Lightyear,” the story of Buzz Lightyear, the character that inspired the toy from “Toy Story.” Chris Evans stars as this new Buzz Lightyear.
[www.cnbc.com]

Interesting inside look at the industry and how all the money gets divided up and the bonuses that different people get for block busters. Shows why movie theaters are so important to the movie industry as a whole. Warner Media is getting backlash on their decision to eliminate the theatrical window next year. Kind of upsets the apple cart on how things have worked for decades.

Agents, Studios Pursue 2-Track Deals as More Films Skip Theaters for Streaming
Beatrice Verhoeven 12/14/20

So many Hollywood studios this year have been offloading their films to either streamers or their own digital platforms — leaving creatives without the accustomed bonuses from hitting box office targets — that dealmakers are developing a dual approach to negotiations on future projects.

According to multiple agents, they are now negotiating terms with studios for both a theatrical release as well as a a streaming debut when setting up a project so that contingencies (and compensation) is in place no matter how the film eventually reaches consumers.

"Going forward, every deal that gets negotiated — whether it's for an actor, writer or director — will incorporate streaming buyout language. So you'll be making two deals every time you're making one deal," one agent told TheWrap. "If a film is set for traditional theatrical distribution, a contingency plan will need to be in place for if it goes to streaming."

Another agent who has been at the forefront of negotiating theatrical-to-streaming deals during the pandemic said, "We're trying to convince the studios to make a theatrical and streaming deal today. Streaming and theatrical needs to be negotiated up front from now on."

A third agent added: "Yes, that will be the reality of dealmaking moving forward."

Even before the coronavirus pandemic shut down movie theaters and disrupted the studios' release slates, there had been instances where projects initially developed for the big screen were diverted to content-hungry streaming services, as when Netflix picked up Paramount's sci-fi sequel "The Cloverfield Paradox" and Warner Bros.' live-action "Mowgli" in 2018.

But the pandemic disruption of movie theaters has accelerated the phenomenon this year — with Warner Bros.' plan to release all of its 2021 movies on streaming the same day as theaters and Disney shifting three films initially intended for cinemas to Disney+ instead. "This transition was always going to happen, but the closure of the theaters accelerated the timeline and it has taken place over the past few months," the first agent said. "Ultimately, these new deal structures will exist irrespective of the pandemic, and I think it's going to apply to finished films as well."

And there's no question that sheer volume of movies bypassing theaters this year has kept agents busy revisiting contracts that had been signed under an old distribution framework. "No one anticipated the pandemic, so there was no streaming contingency/back-up deal negotiated," the third agent said. "So all parties have been forced to renegotiate in those theatrical deals."

When a film gets a traditional theatrical release, top actors, directors and producers often negotiate bonuses based on the box office performance of the film — for top A-listers that can include a coveted share of the first-dollar gross calculated even before the studio turns a profit.

But when a film debuts on streaming — or when the theatrical release is hobbled by a simultaneous streaming debut, as with Warner Bros' 2021 slate — the streamer typically finds a way to compensate key parties for that backend compensation. The streamer typically pays the film's production budget, plus a fee ranging from 20-30% of that amount, plus an additional buyout to cover any backend bonuses.

Typically, though, the streamer calculates that buyout with the assumption that the film would have been only a modest success in theaters — which could deflate compensation for a film that would have turned out to be a blockbuster.

One insider told TheWrap that everyone has a different backend, depending on what was negotiated for them, so it really depends on who it is and what leverage they have. For example, a producer who has done one movie and doesn't have a set backend deal in place won't get the same payout as, for example, an A-lister with 50 credits to her name and a negotiated backend deal of 10% of the adjusted gross.

"How studios compensate A-list actors, directors, writers and producers is complicated, with contracts negotiated film by film and person by person," the insider said. "But it boils down to two checks. One is guaranteed (a large upfront fee) and one is a gamble: a portion of ticket sales after the studio has recouped its costs." With a film being sold to a streamer, the second check becomes a moot point — unless the streamer is willing to pay an upfront fee.

For example, Warner Bros. decided to simultaneously debut "Wonder Woman 1984" on HBO Max and in theaters on the same day (before they announced the same move with 17 other films). Given the circumstances, the studio acknowledged that the sequel was unlikely to match the $400 million domestic gross for 2017's original "Wonder Woman." After a tense negotiation, star Gal Gadot and director Patty Jenkins each got $10 million in backend bonuses, according to The New York Times. Representatives for Warner, Gadot and Jenkins did not respond to requests for comment.

Brush Nash, box office analyst and founder of the-numbers.com, predicted studios will want to have a backup plan for streaming factored into all their theatrical deals — particularly those without robust streaming services of their own. "Universal, Paramount and Sony will be looking at films at a more deal-by-deal basis, and it could go in two directions," he told TheWrap. "One direction could be the PVOD window deal that Universal has done, and I certainly think that's going to be in the conversation in the future," he said, referring to Universal's deal with AMC Theatres that now gives the studio the option to release its films as premium video on-demand titles after they have been in theaters for 17 days.

"But I can also see Paramount or Sony going to Netflix or a streamer and making a contingency plan in case a film doesn't get to theaters or doesn't do well right away in theaters," Nash added.

The pandemic's disruption of movie distribution has led to rapid change for studios and streamers alike — but it's also accelerated shifts that had begun with the rise of streaming services and the shift in consumer behavior. "Obviously, this pandemic is unprecedented but it may cause some studios to think of backup plans in case theatrical release plans fall apart," he said.
[www.msn.com]

Checking to see how the weekend faired and it was dismal. Barely beat the weekend before Thanksgiving. Top 10 was only $5.6 million and over all was $6.7 million. Weekend before Thanksgiving which is the low since reopening was $5.4/$6.4 million. Croods managed $3.0 million. No other movie did even $500k. Four of the Top 10 were re-releases with Elf taking 3rd with and estimated $400k. They even brought out the original Wonder Woman which managed 9th with $189k. Polar Express and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation were 6/7 with $245k/$239k.

I see MM is going to be doing open checks the 25th or 26th for Wonder Woman. They can't really expect anybody to spend all day Christmas day in a movie theater counting people can they? Still too early for showtimes but I expect probably at least 10 or more if they do them every 1/2 hour. Shouldn't be too hard to count since 15-20 people is going to be a lot. Also have to do trailer checks of every screen, but not showtime. Depending on how many trailers, with the short times between showings, might have to do some planning so you are able to get them all. Wait a minute, it just occurred to me, what trailers are they even playing? And how many? It's not like there are a bunch of movies coming out. Did anybody do trailer checks for Croods? What was there? Normally for a movie like Wonder Woman you would have 7-8 trailers. I don't see how they could have that many now.

So these open checks are probably going to be fairly easy money. Just going to have to spend all day at the movie theater. Anybody brave enough to spend all day Christmas at a movie theater could probably do two. One Friday and a different one Saturday. Looks like there is plenty of locations. Fortunately I don't need the money so won't be doing any. I've done them a few times before years ago when they were super bonused and for Friday evening, and all day Saturday and Sunday you got like $350. It helps if it's a movie you like so you can watch the movie while waiting for the next one to start. Otherwise after 6-7 hrs you're going to be pulling your hair out going, I can't believe I've got 5 more hours to go. I doubt you'll have to stay that long. Maybe 10 hours at the most.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/16/2020 07:44AM by StandeeInstaller.

Since when did this thread become anything besides posting about jobs available through Movie Measure or other companies? You can start your own thread. MM does have Open Checks and not as many as they had for Tenet, and no you can't watch the movie with open checks, you are confusing that with Blind checking assignments. The showtimes are actually posted for some theaters now, but I'm sure they will add more as date gets closer. Some do not have 10 or more showtimes at the moment. There are other companies doing open Checking as well for Wonder Woman and they will be Christmas and New Years weekend. I would sit at the Theater all Day Christmas working, if I didn't have my son home for Christmas from college. I like this work and and it has been too few and far between lately, I will take what I can get rather I need it or not. I have always loved theaters.

Um, you might have noticed the movie industry is having serious problems. Regal shut back down how many months ago? In my area that was at least half the work. Gone. How many more weeks can any of the other movie theaters continue to stay open when for the weekend only one movie did over $500k in ticket sales? When 4 of the top 10 were re-releases because there are no new movies anybody wants to see. It's pretty much a given AMC is going to have to declare bankruptcy in January. February at the latest. Are they going to shut down then, or continue operating in some limited fashion while reorganizing? Once AMC shuts down, why would anybody release any new movies?

I'm kind of surprised MM is even still in business. Probably barely hanging on. Kind of hard to do trailer checks when there are no trailers let alone movies. It's why I asked if anybody did the Croods trailer checks (was only 1 location within 200 miles of me) what actually played and how many trailers were there? How much longer can MM hang on when there is no work, or only token limited amounts. And one thing to consider, if you do, do work for MM, are they going to be able to pay you? How do you know? What's their financial condition? They seem on the up and up, but how long can they continue when there is no money?

The Warner Media news shook the movie industry to it's very core. It's already changing the contracts people are signing. If you hadn't noticed, the work we do is at the bottom of the food chain. Most of what we do comes out of the advertising budget. So if Warner Media is just going to give Wonder Woman away for "free" on their HBO Max service, how much money do you think they have for their advertising budget? As soon as they announced that I knew there wasn't going to be any standees. And there's little chance for any standees going forward. All the standees I did for No Time to Die in Regal are sitting in closed theaters, not that it matters since the movie got yanked. Who would spend money to put standees in theaters when the theaters could close, or the movie get yanked? How can you do trailer checks when there are no movies? Does anybody know if they are playing trailers for the movies they are re-releasing just to have something to play?

Thinking about it, is NCM (National CineMedia) still doing First Looks, or Noovie? What actually plays before a movie these days? I'm almost tempted to go see a movie just to see.

I was expecting, or hoping that the box office would have been recovering some what by now, but it actually is getting worse. And once the theaters close down again, when if ever are they going to open again. It could easily be summer or later. How many of the chains are going to go bankrupt? What happens then? It was hard enough getting the distributors to release any movies so the theaters would have something to play last August. Playing old movies to try and jump start things ain't going to work. Already did that and people have already seen the movies. If things get shut down again, do you really think the companies that you are doing work for are going to still be around when or if things ever open back up again?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/17/2020 06:14AM by StandeeInstaller.

I'm pretty happy to do open checks on Christmas Day. I have to play for Christmas services and my family lives far away. So I would probably just be taking a nap! Instead I got 11 showtimes for the theatre right by my church, starting about 30 minutes after I get off the bench.

My lunch (and probably dinner) will be purchased with my movie gift card from the snack bar. :-)

You're the organist? I collect them. I almost bought a 27 rank pipe organ a few years ago. It was only $3,000. A church had gotten rid of it and nobody wanted it and the organ tech just wanted it out of his shop. I didn't have anywhere to keep it, and didn't want to pay to store it since it would have just been costing me money. Would have been cool to have it though.

In your case it makes sense since you've got nothing else to do. It's just most people wouldn't want to spend 8-12 hrs at a movie theater on Christmas day. I've done audience reaction checks but that's less than an hour. It got me out of the house and then afterward I went over to my parents for Christmas dinner.

The ones for MM are just for one day, right? Is there another theater near you? You could do another on Saturday? The ones I did for Market Force were Friday evening, all day Saturday and Sunday. And Sat/Sun were 12+ hour days.

Things are not looking good though. These could be the last open checks. How is MM even staying in business? Unless something changes soon, I don't see how the movie theaters don't shut back down sometime in January. Once that happens, then the bankruptcies start. Then how do you ever open them back up?

I thought Regal might have opened back up for Christmas but too many movies got pulled. And the box office just isn't there at all. When only one movie over the weekend does more than $500k, it's pretty much over. Nobody can afford to stay open when that few people are going.

I'm really curious what they are even playing before the movies. Is NCM even still doing First Looks, or did they change the name to Noovie? Do they play trailers? Of what? Very many? Checking a theater near me, of the 9 movies, I see two I might go see. Certainly not going to go see Croods. So that leaves Tenet or the original Wonder Woman. Whoa, tickets are only $5.45 for Wonder Woman. Where Tenet is $11.75 before 5pm and $16.87 after. I've never actually seen Wonder Woman from beginning to end. I've caught 10-15 mins here, 20 mins there while doing trailer checks. A small popcorn would probably cost me more than the ticket.

Checking a different theater, only $8.09 no matter what time, and $5.40 for Wonder Woman. They are basically begging people to please come. Of the 13 movies, only 4 get a second showtime.

Check one more, $10.70 and $15.36 with Wonder Woman only $5.30. Not seeing Elf, Polar Express or National Lampoon so they are already gone. And yet they were 3rd, 6th and 7th last weekend. I guess if I'm going to go see a movie, I better go soon before they are closed again. If I go see Wonder Woman, probably have the whole theater to myself. And if I go to that theater, they have the reclining seats. I wonder if the old managers are still even working there. If I go in and talk shop with them for a few minutes, they will probably give me the run of the place. Check out whatever I want. I will at least buy a ticket and a popcorn.

@Schoolmarm wrote:

I'm pretty happy to do open checks on Christmas Day. I have to play for Christmas services and my family lives far away. So I would probably just be taking a nap! Instead I got 11 showtimes for the theatre right by my church, starting about 30 minutes after I get off the bench.

My lunch (and probably dinner) will be purchased with my movie gift card from the snack bar. :-)

I actually love doing these, and any related checks at theaters. I'd be sitting there watching a movie Christmas day, if I didn't have my kid home from college with me that week. You're lucky you have 10 showtimes. VeriTes has this as well and they are doing Christmas and New Years weekend with more locations and they are picking up the locations MM doesn't have, which was good for me, because then I had one in my area, which at the moment only has 6 showtimes, but with 12 screens I think that might change closer to release date. I've done several of these before with CFA when they actually had you do Fri, Sat and Sun of the same film. Now that was a little much, but at the end of the weekend you made good money.

Hey everyone... It's been a while since we posted and hope you all survived this past year. Wanted to say that moviemeasure is still here and going strong. We spent time rebuilding some of our infrastructure and adding some new (and maybe familiar) team members (who we love!). We've started trailer checking and open checking again, so either use our portal [checker.movie-measure.com] (with your login) or email assignments@movie-measure.com to find out what we have this coming weekend and beyond. Thanks and always happy to answer questions here or on PM. Rakesh (CEO)