Source: Sony Pictures
Directors like Christopher Nolan and Denis Villeneuve have decried WarnerMedia's decision to release all its 2021 movies on HBO Max. But a rival studio is reaping its benefits. Sony Pictures head Tony Vinciquerra told CNBC in an interview that its studio is enjoying "a bit of a boom" from Hollywood creators looking for a company that is still devoted to movie theatres. While he didn't name talents, he said Sony's role as a theatrical distributor had "worked very well."
Unlike WarnerMedia or Disney, Sony doesn't have a streaming service to support, so it can either sell films to third-party series or offer titles for rent earlier than expected. But while it doesn't have much of a choice when it comes to where it can release its films, Vinciquerra argues for greater flexibility in how long a movie stays in theatres, depending on whether the film does well or does not.
WarnerMedia, for its part, is conscious of the backlash of its move. The studio has even announced its theatre-first releases in 2023 to reassure filmmakers it wasn't shifting its focus to streaming.
Sony Pictures is gambling as much as WarnerMedia since movie theatre reopenings are still reliant on the success of mass vaccinations and whether moviegoers are willing to risk their health to watch a movie. If theatres are still closed or still performing poorly, Sony might have to look for digital alternatives, while its competition already has its streaming services to lean on.
Source: Engadget