Audiences have now been trained not to worry about going out to the cinema because most of the big films will be available on VOD in 45-60 days. It doesn’t help that movie tickets have become very expensive, with most theaters charging $20+ for a single fare.
It used to be a frequent occurrence for people to go watch a movie in theaters every week, but that’s not the case anymore — they just can’t afford to do that. Plus, why would you bother when you run the risk of having someone texting on their brightly lit phones or even chatting up during the screening.
With that said, it looks like “Furiosa” might be headed to VOD only 30 days after its initial release in theaters. A tentative June 25 date is being scheduled for the film on platforms. However, this is not going to be that detrimental to the film’s grosses as Miller’s film is mightily struggling at the box-office.
“Furiosa” only made $1 million in previews last night, and it’s set to be dethroned at the box-office by “Garfield” this weekend. Its current domestic tally stands at $38 million on a budget of $170 million. My best hope is that it can become a success of VOD, make its money back and, by some miracle, we get “The Wasteland,” but I’m not holding my breath for that to happen.
Of course, we all know the rule: take these reactions with a grain of salt rather than treating them as gospel. Still, I will say that the film tested like gangbusters earlier this year, and Lionsgate clearly has confidence.