Aside from just messing up box office numbers for the forseeable weeks or months, this is putting a halt on actual productions. Some delayed for weeks, some indefinitely, which will directly impact workers, low-income actors, and production crew.
So, the Movie industry is pretty much screwed huh?
- Thread starter Chrome Hyena
- Start date
This damn virus is gonna make the great depression seem like an economic boom.
Friggin' Peter Rabbit 2 is getting delayed to August. It's a movie about bunnies that was gonna be released just before Easter. Black Widow isn't gonna hit theaters. Calling it.
So what can the movie industry do about upcoming releases? What about theaters? I have a few ideas, they might be dumb, I dunno.
RENT OUT NEW MOVIES DIGITALLY AT A BIGGER PRICE - Only fair. Instead of $3.99, have a $9.99 or $14.99 charge since you know other people in your house will be watching and that's about the same price as a movie ticket. Paramount should be doing that with Sonic in China. Also.....
NETFLIX, DISNEY+, HULU - Gotta recoup some loss. Why not just put it on a streaming service? I'm looking at you, New Mutants. You were gonna bomb anyway, so why not?
So what about theaters? How will they survive with fewer releases and low attendance?
FIXED SEATING AND MAX FILL AT 25% - Spread out! This virus is a serious business, so the further distance, the better. This doesn't count for families, however. Just use half the aisles and one seat per three seats so everyone is at a distance. This won't affect the attendance of most early and late shows, but the 1-7pm crowds will take a hit.
DIFFERENT PRICES PER SEATING - Some are gonna hate me for this, but it relates to the 25% max fill. Don't wanna pay much or wanna pay extra for the best seat? A seat in the first or third row is $10, the back is $15 and the middle is $20.
MORE CLASSIC AND PRIVATE MOVIE EVENTS AND FILMED CONCERTS - Less new movies means more events needed. Offer low prices for private screenings. Charge for one room and have the nursing home come in for a screening of Casablanca. Rooms just for kids' birthday parties with the lights on and cartoons on the screen.
I'm just spitballing here, but that's all I can think of. Otherwise, this virus will kill theaters as we know them.
Friggin' Peter Rabbit 2 is getting delayed to August. It's a movie about bunnies that was gonna be released just before Easter. Black Widow isn't gonna hit theaters. Calling it.
So what can the movie industry do about upcoming releases? What about theaters? I have a few ideas, they might be dumb, I dunno.
RENT OUT NEW MOVIES DIGITALLY AT A BIGGER PRICE - Only fair. Instead of $3.99, have a $9.99 or $14.99 charge since you know other people in your house will be watching and that's about the same price as a movie ticket. Paramount should be doing that with Sonic in China. Also.....
NETFLIX, DISNEY+, HULU - Gotta recoup some loss. Why not just put it on a streaming service? I'm looking at you, New Mutants. You were gonna bomb anyway, so why not?
So what about theaters? How will they survive with fewer releases and low attendance?
FIXED SEATING AND MAX FILL AT 25% - Spread out! This virus is a serious business, so the further distance, the better. This doesn't count for families, however. Just use half the aisles and one seat per three seats so everyone is at a distance. This won't affect the attendance of most early and late shows, but the 1-7pm crowds will take a hit.
DIFFERENT PRICES PER SEATING - Some are gonna hate me for this, but it relates to the 25% max fill. Don't wanna pay much or wanna pay extra for the best seat? A seat in the first or third row is $10, the back is $15 and the middle is $20.
MORE CLASSIC AND PRIVATE MOVIE EVENTS AND FILMED CONCERTS - Less new movies means more events needed. Offer low prices for private screenings. Charge for one room and have the nursing home come in for a screening of Casablanca. Rooms just for kids' birthday parties with the lights on and cartoons on the screen.
I'm just spitballing here, but that's all I can think of. Otherwise, this virus will kill theaters as we know them.
My bad read it wronfg..
‘Riverdale’ Suspends Production Due To Coronavirus Concerns
The CW's Riverdale has suspended production over concerns that someone on the show came in contact with a person who tested positive for COVID-19.deadline.com
I wonder if this will spread to the Arrowverse shows. They have about a month left of shooting.
I believe Supernatural has another 2 weeks or so left. Given that it's the series finale, I imagine they'll push through no matter what.
A lot of the bigger movies in China just went straight to streaming services. I would kill to see that happen elsewhere to set precedent.
The movie industry should shut up and make no changes at all, because Donald's economy narrative is on the line here.
This is a great year for the economy. Experts are calling it the greatest economy ever!
Have you french kissed a doorknob lately? If not, why not? Do you hate America?
This is a great year for the economy. Experts are calling it the greatest economy ever!
Have you french kissed a doorknob lately? If not, why not? Do you hate America?
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I've been waiting for movie theaters to become a secondary option I love streraming and hope major studios release their movies on there simultaneously. Even charge double of what they would cost the convenience is worth it.
theymtried experiments I think with the vod stuff but we're charging something like $30 for a ticket - I assume they figure there would be family/friends watching. not sure if that would fly.
Going VOD is a genie that they can't put back in the bottle- making new-release films so vulnerable across the board to piracy will make any movie executive shudder.
Battening down the hatches and hoping this blows over soon is just about all they can do, because the alternative is the likely destruction of their business.
Battening down the hatches and hoping this blows over soon is just about all they can do, because the alternative is the likely destruction of their business.
We'll be alright. Everything's gonna hurt, but we'll survive.
A cinema chain in Northern Ireland has started doing this, leaving a gap between each booked seat.
Coronavirus: Omniplex to leave every second seat empty
NI's biggest cinema chain introduces a 'seat separation' policy in response to coronavirus.
www.bbc.co.uk
Marvel Studios fans are so thirsty for new cinematic content that I don't even think they'll care.
They put out a statement yesterday saying they'll be doing extra wipe downs between showings during which the staff will wear gloves.
Was just about to say this. Productions are severely compromised with an outbreak like this. Everything on set is community based with hundreds of people sharing and touching things regularly. Crafty? Forget about it!
Considering that the grueling 12 hour+ days of erratic hours often tax the body, being on set is the last place you'd want a highly contagious virus to appear. It would ...bad.
Not sure how Netflix is doing right now, but I can see how it might be all positive. I guess most people who are into TV already has Netflix and people being stuck at home and watching more doesn't necessarily mean more subscribers or revenue since they aren't driven by ads. People running out of things to watch on Netflix may turn them to lesser known and newer competitors. In a recession, there probably would be less room for them to raise prices and streaming is probably one thing that is easy to cut down on if money is tight. I'm not sure what productions shutting down would cost Netflix; but if key shows are delayed, their might be a content gap down the line and they can loses subscribers then. And they borrow a lot to fund productions, a downturn might me they can't get to the capital as easily. In the long run, I think it'll drive up subscribers internationally for Netflix.
I'm on holiday at the moment but very curious as to what the heck'll happen when I get back to Stonehenge. When gatherings of X people are banned or prohibited, well, that kinda screws over the notion of people surrounding a big stone circle to take photos
nah. streaming will see a huge surge in popularity. netflix, amazon, disney etc will be fine. well of course...but they have streaming services. at the end of all this sure The Mouse will have saw some profits drop but it'll be a blip.
maybe the dinosaurs of the industry will try something different to get new movies into our homes ASAP. as much as i enjoy going to see a movie at the cinema i really do hate the ~4 month wait before i can watch it in my house.
who am i kidding... there is no way we'd get new movies on a streaming service day 1.
maybe the dinosaurs of the industry will try something different to get new movies into our homes ASAP. as much as i enjoy going to see a movie at the cinema i really do hate the ~4 month wait before i can watch it in my house.
who am i kidding... there is no way we'd get new movies on a streaming service day 1.
Talking to an actress right now that is worried about her production being canceled. Rehearsing all night every single night for weeks and weeks only for it to be canned right before it starts would be crushing. Plus she's really proud of it too. She said she wants to see if streaming is an option but I don't even know how you'd arrange that or make sure it's stable and high quality enough like an actual streaming service would be. Not to mention how you'd control access/payments, etc.
bloodshot is gonna bomb so hard this weekend. Valiant thought they had a shot at their own cinematic universe. So much for that dream.
Disney would be VERY wise to release Artemis Fowl and New Mutants on D+. Both of them are going to bomb, even without the virus.
This would give people big incentive to subscribe and snag them some good PR. Plus, the films can't flop if they're not released in theaters.
This would give people big incentive to subscribe and snag them some good PR. Plus, the films can't flop if they're not released in theaters.
The problem with this is that streaming doesn't make money for the studio. All of Disney's income from streaming comes from subscribers, which probably won't significantly increase if they put bigger Disney movies on instant access. Netflix doesn't pay royalties for streaming, all income a studio makes from putting a film on Netflix is the initial licensing fee which is never enough to cover production costs (Netflix isn't going to pay >1 million for a single streaming licence).
The only reasons big studios go for insta-streaming is when they think a movie would make literally no money in a market and in that case it might be more 'profitable' to go to Netflix instantly (as some money via exclusive streaming licenses beats making almost nothing). Examples of this include Cloverfield Paradox (was considered so awful by the studio that if they put it in cinemas it would just instantly die) and Annihilation (the studio saw no possible profit for an European release and had a conflict with the director and producer).
There's literally no upside for putting a film on a streaming service instantly for a studio, especially for bigger releases. Delaying makes much more sense than basically just throwing any chance of ever making money with the movie in the trash.
I think this will be an interesting year as studios scramble to figure out how to get the most money out of their movies when there's likely to be declining crowds at the box office.
Disney has their streaming service which theoretically could be very useful at this point in getting their movie out.
I actually find it really interesting when someone was asking last week about how much would you pay to view a new movie release from the comfort of your home?
Disney has their streaming service which theoretically could be very useful at this point in getting their movie out.
I actually find it really interesting when someone was asking last week about how much would you pay to view a new movie release from the comfort of your home?
OP
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So Fast and Furious 9 and Quiet Place 2 both been delayed, so it seems that's going to be the play for big movies, delay till next year. Does Disney follow suit?
Only a matter of time. Black Willow will most likely be pushed to the Fall. I don't see Eternals moving this early yet though, things will hopefully have calmed by that point.
Not one case in my country yet.
Hoping the situation is completely under control before the virus has a chance to actually hit us.
I dont think the whole year is a write off as people are making it out to be.....are people expecting the whole planet to be locked indoors for the whole year till the virus dies out?
Hoping the situation is completely under control before the virus has a chance to actually hit us.
I dont think the whole year is a write off as people are making it out to be.....are people expecting the whole planet to be locked indoors for the whole year till the virus dies out?
Yup, had this happened a year or two earlier they'd genuinely be screwed, but with streaming services they can add renting or PPV options for new releases.
With all the movies getting delayed, honestly dont know the point of keeping theaters open.Extended reruns???
They should probably shut the theatres until the situation improves a bit. Then maybe do the separated seating.
I think several of the Chinese New Year blockbusters got released for online streaming instead when theatres shut down. Not sure they could do the same in the West, but they should certainly experiment.
You are locked in for the year. You agreed to pay for a year if you cancel
My gf's production has been halted for a month - her roommate too. this really sucks.
This place seems to only stretch it's sympathies to developers and/or wait staff lol
This place seems to only stretch it's sympathies to developers and/or wait staff lol
Well, there is one type of movie theater that might thrive well in this environment. The drive-in. My brother and his wife are gonna go see a double-header of Sonic and Onward safe in their vehicles. The only problem is that these types of theaters are few and far between now. I would be surprised is some places take old, abandoned parking lots and turn into makeshift ones.