With $134 million domestic and still #9 this weekend, “Elvis” is the first WBD film this year not available on HBO 45 days after release. That’s a radical shift for the studio, which released all films in theaters and on HBO Max day-and-date last year. With every release, studios with streamers must weigh the values: PVOD at $19.99, allowing it the immediate benefit of retaining a rental price of $14 or more? Or, the more-uncertain potential to attract a subscriber who adds to the value of the streaming service — especially when it will soon wind up there as well? (“Elvis” will likely debut on HBO Max next month.)
A PVOD-first release allows the creative team entitled to backend a chance to benefit, which in turn allows a studio to minimize conflicts like Disney vs. Scarlett Johansson last year over “Black Widow.” Experience shows that PVOD, where the cost for a home viewer is comparable to two theater tickets, has a minimal impact on later weeks of theatrical grosses. Last week, Universal was contractually allowed (per its AMC agreement) to make Jordan Peele’s “Nope” available to PVOD; sources indicate it also is not expected this week. Variations like this are rare — M. Night Shyamalan’s deal with Universal for “Old” last year was the most recent of very few. The studio also made recently released PVOD titles like “The Black Phone” available for its Peacock streaming site more quickly — closer to 45 days after theatrical release, less than a month after PVOD. Little else changed this week, with “The Minions: The Rise of Gru” and “Jurassic World: Dominion (both $19.99 at Universal) either second or third at all sites, and “The Black Phone” (now $5.99) the other to place everywhere. The significant new entry this week is “My Hero Academia: World Heroes’ Mission” (Funimation/$9.99), which is #5 at Vudu. Parrish Lewis/Netflix Netflix has a new big-name original leading its movie viewing. “Day Shift” with Jamie Foxx as a vampire hunter-pool cleaner was #1 from its first day out. It upended a week-long run by “Uncharted,” licensed from Sony. “Purple Hearts,” the military marriage drama, another original and former #1, is still the #3 in its third week out. That’s a better performance than its high-priced “The Gray Man,” which fell more quickly; it remains at #8.
iTunes and Google Play rank films daily by number of transactions. These are the listings for August 15. Distributors listed are current rights owners. Prices for all titles are for rental.
iTunes
- Elvis (WBD) – $19.99
- Minions: The Rise of Gru (Universal) – $19.99
- Jurassic World: Dominion (Universal) – $19.99
- Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24) – $4.99
- Gone in the Night (Vertical) – $6.99
- The Black Phone (Universal) – $19.99
- The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (Lionsgate) – $4.99
- The Northman (Focus) – $5.99
- Ted K (Neon) – $0.99
- Downton Abbey: The New Era (Focus) – $5.99
Google Play
- Elvis (WBD) – $19.99
- Jurassic World: Dominion (Universal) – $19.99
- Minions: The Rise of Gru (Universal) – $19.99
- Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24) – $4.99
- The Black Phone (Universal) – $19.99
- The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (Lionsgate) – $4.99
- Spider-Man: No Way Home (Sony) – $5.99
- Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Paramount) – $4.99
- The Lost City (Paramount) – $4.99
- Morbius (Sony) – $5.99
Vudu
Vudu ranks by revenue, not transactions, which elevates Premium VOD titles. This list covers August 8-14
- Elvis (WBD) – $19.99
- Minions: The Rise of Gru (Universal) – $19.99
- Jurassic World: Dominion (Universal) – $19.99
- The Black Phone (Universal) – $19.99
- My Hero Academia: World Heroes’ Mission (Crunchyroll) – $9.99
- Lightyear (Disney) – $19.99
- Grease (Paramount) – $2.99
- Gone in the Night (Gravitas Ventures) – $6.99
- Doctor Strange in the Multi-Verse of Madness (Disney) – $5.99
- The Bad Guys (Universal) – $5.99
Netflix Movies
Most viewed, current ranking on Netflix’s daily chart on Monday, August 15. Originals include both Netflix-produced and -acquired titles it initially presents in the U.S. Netflix publishes its own weekly top 10 on Tuesdays based on time viewed.
- Day Shift (2022 Netflix original)
- Uncharted (2022 theatrical release)
- Purple Hearts (2022 Netflix original)
- The Informer (2019 theatrical release)
- Flight (2012 theatrical release)
- Sing 2 (2021 theatrical release)
- The Nice Guys (2016 theatrical release)
- The Gray Man (2022 Netflix original)
- Wedding Season (2002 Netflix original)
- Code Name: Emperor (2022 Spanish Netflix original) Sign Up: Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.
