Disney reduced the price to $5.99 last weekend and it bested “Old” (Universal/$5.99), which also dropped its price from $19.99. M. Night Shyamalan’s thriller placed #2 on two charts, #4 at Vudu (which charts by revenue; it was second to “Free Guy” there among non-PVOD titles). Two of the year’s most acclaimed international releases — Julia Ducournau’s Cannes winner “Titane” (Neon/$6.99) and Mia Hansen-Love’s “Bergman Island” (IFC/$6.99) — debuted this week but didn’t come close to the top 10 on any chart. “Titane” spent three weeks in 562 theaters for a $1.4 million gross. “Bergman” debuted to under $100,000 in 115 theaters.
The edgy and French-language “Titane” is one of the most talked-about specialized titles of the year and received national exposure in its wider release. “Bergman Island,” which stars Tim Roth and Vicky Krieps, has better-known actors and is mostly in English (a clear advantage for home rentals). Despite their early home appearance, each debuted at $6.99, not $19.99 — the standard for titles recently in theaters titles. IFC releases its titles at home early and often, but the early debut is a less familiar strategy for Neon. Focus and A24 prefer three-weekend windows. but titles like “The Card Counter” and “The Green Knight” went for $19.99 initially. Other distributors expressed surprise at IFC’s and Neon’s decisions to skip the more lucrative Premium VOD route (receiving 80 percent of $19.99 after carrier share) for VOD (70 percent of the same from $6.99). “Titane” got as high as #19 during the week at AppleTV/iTunes; it’s #35 today. GooglePlay now has it at #33. “Bergman” is #48 at Apple TV/iTunes, and it’s not on the top 100 at GooglePlay. (Released on Friday, that chart usually is slower to show initial results.) Fox/Disney Would the films have gotten one third of the viewers at the higher price? Both films pursued the impulse buyer, which is far more likely at a lower price. Small indie films can thrive on these platforms: The Western “Old Henry” (Shout/$6.99) had a tiny theater footprint ($30,000 in one week in 30 theaters). Now in its second week at home, it remains #4 at AppleTV/iTunes and managed #8 at Vudu despite its lower price.
It’s possible these results suggest that giving films like “Titane” and “Bergman” a slower build might be best. That said, neither film represents a huge financial investment and without knowing actual revenues, we can’t be certain that these choices were incorrect. Apart from “Free Guy” and “Old,” only “The Addams Family 2” (United Artists/$19.99) hit all three charts. Two newcomers — “After We Fell” (Vertical/$19.99) and “Injustice” (Warner Bros./$19.99) — placed on two. YA romance “Fell” grossed $2.1 million in domestic theaters. “Injustice” is a $20 million budgeted animated original that is neither in theaters — nor yet on HBO Max. Netflix The Netflix original of the week is “Night Teeth,” an LA-set vampire-themed thriller involving a college student who agrees to chauffeur two partying young women for the night. It is #1. A second new original, Polish thriller “In for Murder,” is #10. Among their theatrical titles, “Going in Style” (a 2017 remake of the 1979 classic led by Morgan Freeman) scored for a second week as the top viewed title. Apple TV/iTunes and Google Play rank films daily by number of transactions, irrespective of revenue accrued. These are the listings for October 25. Distributors listed are current rights owners. Apple TV/iTunes
Google Play
Vudu
Vudu ranks by revenue, not transactions, which elevates Premium VOD titles. This list covers October 18-24
Netflix Movies
Most viewed, current ranking as of Monday, October 25; originals include both Netflix-produced and -acquired titles they initially presented in the U.S.
