In what might be a true first in the direction that the industry is heading, we’re going to have a good old fashioned blockbuster movie battle on Christmas day.
But instead of this fight playing out in theaters like they normally do, it will be playing out in our living rooms and on our mobile devices.
In one corner, we’ve got Wonder Woman 1984 starring the excellent Gal Gadot, in the one DC superhero franchise that has been almost universally enjoyed in it’s first outing. Because Warner Bros said so, it will be in theaters as well as HBO Max.
In the other corner, we have Pixar’s “Soul” starring the voices of Academy Award winner Jamie Foxx and Tina Fey. If it’s Pixar, it’s making money, but Soul will be streaming on Disney Plus due to the pandemic after multiple delays.
Who wins? And how do we determine a winner to begin with?
Well, quality is king. The better movie will likely win in the court of public opinion.
But let’s talk about the money.
HBO Max is an expensive streamer. It is. But you’ll have fans take the free trial and watch Wonder Woman 1984, then they may hold on to the service or not. Warner Bros is dropping their entire movie slate on HBO Max next year, so they’ll probably see some strong retention.
Disney Plus is a more affordable streamer, and there is a chance that you may have it already if you’ve got kids or love the Star Wars and Marvel franchises. They’ll also see some strong retention after announcing they’re dropping ten new projects from each major brand.
Then you’ve got Tom Hanks’ News Of The World out there too. But that will probably take from another demo altogether.
The truth is that we probably won’t know right away. And the point is that this is a moment in the movie industry that may shape the future as we know it.
Who takes the first game?