AMC and Regal Take on Universal’s “Trolls” Movie in Theaters

Get ready for a battle between studios and theaters that could change the industry – at least for a few months. With most of the motion picture and television industries out of work due to the Covid-19 pandemic, studios are finding huge financial success in video on-demand releases and early additions to streaming platforms like Disney+. Universal Pictures took a risk and pulled Trolls World Tour from its theatrical debut and moved it directly into VOD, revealing huge profits. In fact, Trolls 2 pulled in an astounding $100 million dollars, making it the biggest VOD release of all time. With the percentage of profit Universal keeps in VOD sales compared to theater premieres, we are talking multi-millions of additional profit. Traditionally, a film’s theater release nets the studio 50% of the profits, and the theaters keep the other 50%. With video on-demand, studios can keep up to 80% of the profits. This success has led Universal to consider releasing films in theaters and on VOD at the same time from this point on. However, theater giant AMC was quick to respond, threatening not to release any of Universal’s upcoming films in their theaters around the world. Warner Bros. and Disney are also removing theatrical releases and going straight to VOD. While VOD may be a viable market for instant on-demand releases, there will always be blockbuster releases that audiences want to enjoy in the comfort of a theater.