The Hollywood Reporter has a fascinating piece up about the impact WarnerMedia's decision to have each of Warner Bros.' movies debut on HBO Max the same day they arrive in theaters.
Needless to say, this has sent shock waves through Hollywood, and exhibitors like AMC Theaters and Cinemark are plotting revenge. That may sound dramatic, but insiders tell the trade that they could be among the chains considering cutting the prices of individual tickets to as low as $3 to $5 for Warner Bros. movies. They're also looking to keep anywhere from 75 - 80% of the revenue.
That means, on a title like Wonder Woman 1984, Warner Bros. would make absolutely nothing.
The studio is unlikely to take that lying down, and it's possible it will just encourage WarnerMedia to go all in on HBO Max. Ultimately, though, this could prove to be a lose/lose situation.
As for why exhibitors and filmmakers were taken by surprise when the news about the streamer broke, Warner Bros. CEO Ann Sarnoff says it boiled down to being concerned about leaks.
"I wish we could have had more time to speak to our partners and talent. We are very conscious of paying a fair price for the HBO Max 31-day distribution of the movie, and we think they’ll be happy to see how much effort we will put behind successfully launching these movies."
That feels like something of a flimsy excuse, but the one thing we can safely say is that the way movies are released moving forward is unlikely to ever be the same...whether theaters like it or not!
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