‘Trolls World Tour’ Has Biggest Opening Weekend For A Digital Release Ever, According To Universal
By Ben Pearson/April 13, 2020 11:00 am EST
When NBCUniversal became the first major company to announce that some of its movies would be available online at the same time that they (would have) hit theaters, it marked an unprecedented break in long-established practices in Hollywood. As the industry paused to wait out the coronavirus, all eyes looked to April 10 and the opening of Trolls World Tour, the first significantly-budgeted studio movie to open directly on VOD instead of going to theaters as originally intended.
Now the film has opened, and it has performed incredibly well – according to Universal, the animated sequel has broken records and now stands as the biggest opening day and opening weekend release ever for a film released digitally.
‘Trolls World Tour’ Has Biggest Opening Weekend For A Digital Release Ever, According To Universal
By Ben Pearson/April 13, 2020 11:00 am EST
When NBCUniversal became the first major company to announce that some of its movies would be available online at the same time that they (would have) hit theaters, it marked an unprecedented break in long-established practices in Hollywood. As the industry paused to wait out the coronavirus, all eyes looked to April 10 and the opening of Trolls World Tour, the first significantly-budgeted studio movie to open directly on VOD instead of going to theaters as originally intended.
Now the film has opened, and it has performed incredibly well – according to Universal, the animated sequel has broken records and now stands as the biggest opening day and opening weekend release ever for a film released digitally.
Now the film has opened, and it has performed incredibly well – according to Universal, the animated sequel has broken records and now stands as the biggest opening day and opening weekend release ever for a film released digitally.
Trolls World Tour Breaks Records
But theater owners are likely shaking in their boots right now, and for good reason. Their future of their entire business is up in the air, and watching a studio bypass them completely and release a major movie direct to streaming can’t be a good feeling. “Unlike every other distributor who must simply delay their releases in that time period, but still understand that theatrical release is essential to their business model, Universal on Trolls didn’t make that decision,” the head of the National Association of Theatre Owners said last month. “Exhibitors will not forget this.”
As evidenced by other studios moving major releases like No Time to Die, Black Widow, Wonder Woman 1984, and Top Gun: Maverick, the idea of releasing huge movies directly to streaming is not going to be a “one size fits all” solution. But with the Trolls sequel breaking records, it’s clear that parents are desperate for new entertainment to distract their children during quarantine. When the coronavirus recedes, will those same parents be willing to pay four or five times the amount to take the kids out of the house to see movies again? Or are patterns being formed right now that will forever alter the way the exhibition industry works?
Trolls World Tour is available now. Check out our review here.
