We are in an interesting moment in entertainment history that has been dubbed the “streaming wars”. This war is made up of dozens of companies trying to own the on-demand entertainment space. The war has many players such as Hulu+, Disney+, AppleTV+, Sling TV, HBO Max, Paramount+, YouTube TV, and many others. Each streaming service has its own movies, TV shows, documentaries, and content of every kind. At this point, most people have a streaming service hosting some of their favorite shows and movies. It provides a place to consume content on your own schedule.
But streaming will never beat out the theater experience….right? Movies are made to be viewed on the silver screen with surround sound, an overpriced bucket of popcorn, and some stranger loudly explaining the film to their neighbor. Not to make the experience sound bad, I love the theater. It is a portal into a world where only the story mattered. It’s a place built to house movies and showcase them at their best. But is the draw of the theater strong enough or has the convenience of streaming become too powerful?
This viral clip from Anthony Mackie provides an honest look into the culture around movies and how it affects theaters.
Even with the current movie culture, the theater release model makes sense. People pay for the theater experience and to see the movie first. What if that model is challenged? The pandemic matched with the streaming wars has provided that challenge. Big movies like Pixar’s Luca and Soul went straight to streaming without a theater run. Other movies like Wonder Woman 1984 and Black Widow were released to streaming and theaters at the same time. Throughout 2020 this model has become exceedingly popular.
This audience movement to streaming has been growing so quickly, 50% in 2020, that studios are focusing on driving people to their streaming platforms rather than the theaters. This has led to a foley of blows to theater companies. Universal struck a deal with major theater chains including AMC to shorten the theatrical window to 17 days in 2021. Warner Bros. went further with plans to release all of its movies simultaneously to theaters and on HBO Max. With each battle in the streaming wars theaters seemly get the boot.
Theaters have started to fight back though. AMC took Warner Bros. to court guaranteeing an exclusive release to theaters for 45 days in 2022. Netflix is also in talks with the theater chains to bring their movies to the big screen. These are positive steps for the theaters. Even the model of the day one streaming release with theaters has taken a hit with Scarlet Johansson’s suing of Disney. The movie Black Widow dropped 67% in its second week! WHY? Johansson blames the streaming release model. People who want to watch the movie in theaters go the first week. Then no one goes to the theater after that. Why would you if it’s already on Disney+?
This second-week drop has been extreme with every movie following the streaming release model. Universal’s F9 fell 67%. Warner Bros. Space Jam: A New Legacy saw a 69% drop. Theaters need to fight to hold off the streaming wars from destroying them. I feel that without the silver screen part of the movie dies. In a world filled with remakes, reboots, and superhero franchises I want to hold on to that experience of going to the theater. If you agree grab some friends, buy some overpriced popcorn, and enjoy watching the movie how it was meant to be watched… on the big screen.
