Cinema chains in the US are reportedly considering cutting the ticket price to watch Warner Bros movies, in a retaliatory strike.
The ongoing unhappiness from cinema chains in the US towards Warner Bros continues. It sprung up following the studio’s announcement that its entire 2021 slate of movies will be heading to its HBO Max streaming platform in America, on the same day they land in cinemas.
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Lots of directors of the films affected have loudly expressed their displeasure, and multiplex cinema chains – reliant on big blockbuster movies – aren’t pleased either.
According to a piece over at The Hollywood Reporter, both the AMC and Cinemark chains in the US have already suggested that they won’t be carrying all of Warner Bros’ movies anymore, instead choosing which ones to take on ‘a title-by-title basis’.
Furthermore, it’s also being suggested that some exhibitors will be slashing the ticket price for Warner Bros movies at the box office. That the price of a ticket may come down as low as $3. Given that the studio would expect to take around 75% of the film’s first week ticket sales (before sliding over time more in favour of exhibitors), that would blast a further hole in Warner Bros’ finances. For cinemas, at least they’d have a chance of recouping revenue through the concessions stand.
This one’s set to run and run, and what impact a vaccine has on the exhibition business remains to be seen.
We’ll keep you posted as we hear more.
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