“Trolls 2” streaming success, movie theaters worried

Movie theaters in the United States stepped up to the plate on Tuesday to defend their industry after reports that the cartoon “Trolls 2” has raised nearly $ 100 million on video on demand platforms.

Due to the confinement caused by the coronavirus, the cartoon was broadcast by Universal Studios directly on streaming platforms like Apple TV, for the lump sum of $ 19.99.

Only a few days after its release, over the Easter weekend, Universals announced that “Trolls 2 – World Tour” had broken records on video on demand, without giving any figures.

The Wall Street Journal revealed on Tuesday that the children’s film had raised a whopping $ 95 million after being rented by nearly five million customers in North America in the past three weeks.

According to the newspaper, which quotes “a source familiar with the matter”, “this performance convinced Universal executives that digital releases can be a winning strategy” and that streaming is economically viable. This could encourage Universal to undermine the role of cinemas in distribution channels even after the health crisis has passed.

“Short out theaters”

Theater operators were quick to respond to the news, saying in a statement that the exceptional performance of “Trolls 2” was the result of containment, which prevents hundreds of millions of spectators from going to the movies.

“Universal is not justified in using these unusual circumstances to short out the real theatrical releases,” insists John Fithian, head of the American association of cinema operators.

In addition to “Trolls 2”, many films have been released online directly or more quickly due to the closing of theaters in many countries.

This will be the case for “Scooby!” of Warner Bros. next month, as well as the film “Artemis Fowl” which will go directly to the Disney + platform. Paramount Studios will broadcast the film “The Lovebirds” directly on Netflix without first going to theaters.