If there’s one thing that the post-pandemic recovery period has made clear, it’s that theatrical releases are far from dead. In fact, we’ve seen compelling evidence that for many productions, a combined theatrical-streaming release plan can be the best performing option. It seems Amazon has gone all-in on that idea, as we see them pledge to spend a whopping $1B in theatrical release productions per annum. Brandon Blake, entertainment lawyer and industry expert with Blake & Wang P.A, has all the details for us.
Cinema Stocks Rise
As can be expected on the back of a rather large spending pledge, we saw cinema stocks rise on the back of the news that Amazon intends to release 12-15 theatrical films a year starting in 2023. Additionally, some Amazon insiders suggest this number could rise in coming years. No doubt some of these will be produced under the MGM banner now it falls under Amazon leadership- they were fairly clear about their intent to keep the Hollywood powerhouse producing movies.
Trend Reversal
As we see more and more key streaming studios make a push into the theatrical landscape, it’s hard not to remember the early pandemic backlash from key players- yes, Netflix, this does mean you- against the idea of theatrical releases at all. At best, we were seeing a push for a model with very truncated theatrical releases before the push onto the associated streamers.
However, as this year has amply demonstrated, we’ve seen streamers reevaluate this stance. Theatrical releases have proven a key player in the overall marketing cycle for properties, offering better ‘hype’ and visibility for key releases and a notable way to distinguish them from the never-ending content churn feeding the gaping streaming maw. With Apple+ TV also making inroads into the space with an enthusiastic embrace of the theatrical with streaming model, we will doubtless see even more support for theatrical releases in years to come.
Film and Television 