The top four U.S. movie theater chains say they won’t play the sequel to “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” if it is telecast on Netflix simultaneous with its Aug. 25 2015 debut in theaters.
Independent distributor The Weinstein Co. and Imax say that “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: The Green Legend” will be booked on big-screen Imax screens at the same time as subscription TV service Netflix. The normal gap is at least 3 months (and usually more) between cinema and any TV runs. Sometimes there are limited high-cost VOD runs at or near theatrical, but often priced at $30. If VOD is lower priced, then movies typically get only truncated cinema exhibition.
However, the Regal, AMC, Carmike and Cinema theater chains vow not to book the Chinese-language martial arts film, including on their Imax screens. The original “Crouching Tiger” was a surprise blockbuster in the year 2000 grossing $128 million in the U.S./Canada for Sony Pictures Classics.
“For decades, the window between theatrical and TV releases has been compressing — a change that is distressing for theater owners as it cuts down on the length of time they can profit from a hit film,” says a New York Post article by Richard Morgan.
Says an Imax press release: “The film is to be the first of several major films backed by Netflix to premiere on the same day on the world’s leading Internet TV network and in select IMAX theaters globally, giving consumers and exhibitors around the world unparalleled flexibility in how, when and where they enjoy a major motion picture.”
“In February, for instance, Warner Bros. simultaneously released “Veronica Mars” in only 270 theaters on the same day the film was made available to buy or rent online,” says a New York Times article by Emily Steel and Brooks Barnes. “Warner had very limited theatrical options because Regal and Cinemark refused to play the film, and AMC forced Warner to buy out entire auditoriums in advance rather than splitting actual ticket sales after the fact, which is the typical practice.”
| Theatrical Windows 2014 | |
| Window | Months after cinema |
| Theatrical | n/a |
| Premium VOD | 0-3 months |
| Home entertainment (DVD/Blu-ray/EST), VOD, pay-per-view | 3-6 months |
| Preium pay TV | 7-15 months* |
| Subscription VOD | 7-15 months* |
| Network TV (free and basic) | 27-30 months |
| Licensing and merchandising | n/a |
| International releasing | usually concurrent |
| * first window; same films may return later | |
| Source: “Marketing to Moviegoers” from industry sources |
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