Biggest 2021 Warner Bros Movies On HBO Max, Same Day & Date As Theaters!!

Apologies to those let down by this news, but my beautiful future has arrived...



On the down side, this doesn't present an optimistic view of Covid in 2020. Hopefully it's just one more thing in the real world that Hollywood doesn't know anything about.

Paeter wrote:Apologies to those let down by this news, but my beautiful future has arrived...

Why would anyone (at least, anyone who would visit this forum) be let down by this? The movies are still going to be in theaters.

Good point! I think I was so focused on the movies at home part that I was forgetting they would still be in theaters... even though that is exactly what I typed.

UPDATE: This is only happening in the US. Sorry to those overseas who got excited about this.

AGoodReed wrote:

Paeter wrote:Apologies to those let down by this news, but my beautiful future has arrived...

Why would anyone (at least, anyone who would visit this forum) be let down by this? The movies are still going to be in theaters.

Okay, now that I think about it (after seeing a news report), there are a couple groups of people I really do care about who will be hurt by this kind of thing: people who work on the films and people who work in the theaters.

I'm not crying for movie stars who are worth tens of millions of dollars, but I assume that a lot of people who work on their films really depend on these movies making a profit in order to feed their families and pay their bills. But I think the people who work at the movie theaters are the ones who are really going to be hurt if this model takes off. They already have to jack up the prices of concessions to make any money, right? They don't make money off the tickets; that all goes to the studios, unless I'm mistaken. So if people aren't coming in and buying popcorn and Junior Mints, people are going to lose their jobs.

It's really been a tug of war within me this year when it comes to buying things like movie tickets. I want to be frugal and save money, but I also want to support businesses so people can make a living. It's really come to light for me during this pandemic, as I try to save my dwindling American funds while knowing that local businesses (where things are generally more expensive than at Wal-Mart and Amazon) are struggling.

AGoodReed wrote:

It's really been a tug of war within me this year when it comes to buying things like movie tickets. I want to be frugal and save money, but I also want to support businesses so people can make a living. It's really come to light for me during this pandemic, as I try to save my dwindling American funds while knowing that local businesses (where things are generally more expensive than at Wal-Mart and Amazon) are struggling.

I don't really know economics, but it's my hope and assumption that, as theaters inevitably shut down, different types of work will be created that will shift people from one job to another. I don't think you need to go to theaters out of a felt responsibility to support those working there, anymore than one should feel obligated to buy record players or other outdated technology. Change does bring some difficulty with it as jobs are destroyed and new ones created and people shuffle around in response. But I think change of this kind is inevitable. Covid just hastened it some.

I have a theatre owner who is also a client; perhaps I can shed a little light on some of these concerns:

Jacked-up prices at movie theatres. Retail prices of concessions are higher because the venue operators pay a higher wholesale price. Rather than looking at whole dollars, it is more useful to consider percentages. Volume is the key driver of most product costs. Venue operators move a comparatively small volume of product and so their costs are higher. My theatre client actually buys her concessions product from Sam's Club because it's less expensive to do that than to get it directly from the distributor. Consequently, the retail cost of the product is higher to the patron, who is paying list price plus channel costs plus profit margin - which is why a box of candy costs $1 at WalMart and $2.50 at the theatre.

That box of candy that you pay $1 for at WalMart? WalMart is able to buy is large enough quantity and to move enough product that they only pay about $0.80 for it, and can exist on a 15%-20% margin, instead of the 30%-50% that literally every other company in the country has to use.

Movie studios also take a cut of the venue's entire revenue stream. They get a cut of the box office (not the whole thing) and a cut of the concessions. I understand that percentages vary between venues.

Profit sharing from the movie is divided almost solely between the principals that funded or materially identify with the movie - ie the studio, anyone listed with a producer's credit, the director, and (usually) up to three lead actors. The vast majority of people who work on a film are paid for their time up front with no residuals.

When you hear the principals in the industry crying about not getting their movies in the box office, it seems to me to be primarily about the prestige of the box office and the single large payout that is generates. Most films make some money at the box office, but I expect the truly successful films generate far more cash on the residuals from other venues. Also, don't forget that this same hue and cry was raised when movies started being released for digital purchase, or on BluRay/DVD, or on VHS, or HBO subscription, or cable TV networks, or broadcast, or second-run venues.....

Interesting! Thanks for the info, Winston!

My biggest concern is for all the people who work in theaters:

Retired folks who relied on that little bit of income to help them pay bills.
High school and college students looking to earn money to pay for college.
The franchisees are getting raked over the coals right now because they have no income but still need to pay franchise fees.

Yes, nearly everyone associated with creating these films has been paid. Additionally, studios take out insurance policies in the event that they cannot get the box office numbers to recoup their costs. Gal Gadot got $10MM for the move to HBO Max to make up for the loss of ticket sales. Of course, she's "excited" it will be available on-demand and in theaters too! Even if the film tanks she got paid!

jorowi wrote:My biggest concern is for all the people who work in theaters:

Retired folks who relied on that little bit of income to help them pay bills.
High school and college students looking to earn money to pay for college.
The franchisees are getting raked over the coals right now because they have no income but still need to pay franchise fees.

Yes, nearly everyone associated with creating these films has been paid. Additionally, studios take out insurance policies in the event that they cannot get the box office numbers to recoup their costs. Gal Gadot got $10MM for the move to HBO Max to make up for the loss of ticket sales. Of course, she's "excited" it will be available on-demand and in theaters too! Even if the film tanks she got paid!

My thoughts exactly.