THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER 11 MARCH 26, 2020
as, instead of going to the theater
and all the costs associated with
that, getting there, parking, pop-
corn, a babysitter if you have kids.
... Are they going to say, ‘Wow,
this is a real bargain compared
to that?’ ” Blum says. “Or are
they going to say, ‘What a rip-off.
Netflix is $12 a month. I could
watch a hundred movies.’ No one
knows the answer to that.”
Universal’s groundbreaking
decision was followed quickly by
Disney, Sony and Warner Bros.
making similar moves, albeit
offering their films for pur-
chase, rather than rental, and
by Paramount sending its April
romantic comedy The Lovebirds
to Netflix. Though the shifts were
a response to a singular catastro-
phe, this change may reverberate
long after the crisis has passed, as
consumers, who can now watch
fresh-from-the-theaters releases
like Disney’s Onward, Sony’s
Bloodshot and Warner Bros.’ The
Way Ba ck at home, may come to
expect such convenience. So may
audiences who watched Oprah
Winfrey’s interview with Idris Elba
about his coronavirus diagnosis
via the Apple TV+ app on their
iPhones rather than the linear TV
sources they used to rely upon for
such newsworthy moments. And
households that are ditching their
$100-plus cable bills without the
lure of live sports may not return
when the pandemic passes,
especially under the financial
pressures of a recession.
Some insiders counter that con-
sumer routines are more resilient
than any single crisis. “People
will still want to go to events,
games, concerts, movies,” says
billionaire and Dallas Mavericks
owner Mark Cuban, who sold his
stake in the Landmark Theatres
chain in 2018 and has been an
advocate for shortening theat-
rical windows for more than a
decade. Cuban does not believe
the shorter windows will inspire
people to stay home when the-
aters reopen. “People will forever
get cabin fever, and ‘Netflix and
chill’ is not a long-term solution
for 16-year-olds who are dating, at
least not in my house. People will
return to their old habits once
they trust their environments to
be safe. We have had tragedies
in entertainment venues before,HOLLYWOOD
BOULEVARD
Traffic in Los
Angeles has been
significantly
reduced under
governmental safer-
at-home decrees.
According to data
from INRIX, a firm
that specializes in
analyzing traffic
data, vehicles are
now so sparse on
the streets that rush
hour has ceased to
exist.
THE THEATRE
AT ACE HOTEL
Marquees across
L.A. acknowledged
the shutdown
with block-letter
messages like
“Intermission” and
“Gone Fishing.”
DISNEYLAND
Disneyland joined
Disney World
Resort, Disney
stores throughout
North America
and the company’s
cruise line in
closing because
of the pandemic.
New CEO Bob
Chapek, previously
in charge of the
parks division,
received his
bachelor’s degree
in microbiology.yet people have returned. I don’t
expect this to be different.”
Sony Pictures chairman Tom
Rothman says the eventual end
of the pandemic will unleash
pent-up demand for entertain-
ment outside the home. “There
will be a great surge of emotional
appreciation for collective experi-
ences,” Rothman says. “That’s
who we are, as human beings, and
that’s who we have always been
since telling stories around the
fire in prehistoric times, and I
think it’s primal. I think it’s going
to remind people how much they
love what they’ve missed.”
Still, the closure of theaters
because of COVID-19 has provided
an opportunity for studios to
learn something about consumer
behavior that they’ve been want-
ing to explore for years. In 2011,
Universal attempted an experi-
ment with its movie Tower Heist,
proposing a plan
to make the Eddie
Murphy comedy
available for home
viewing three weeks
after its theatrical
debut at the rental cost of $59.
to 500,000 people in Atlanta
and Portland via Comcast’s VOD
system. Theater chains rebelled,
threatening to boycott the movie,
and Universal abandoned the
plan. Now a crisis has inspired a
similar test, in a moment when
exhibitors have scant leverage.
National Association of Theatre
Owners chief John Fithian told
THR in a fiery interview March 20
that “exhibitors will not forget”
what Universal in particular did
during this crisis. While other
studios delayed their tentpole
releases rather than dropping
them online — MGM pushed its
James Bond movie No Time to
Die, Paramount delayed A Quiet
Place Part II, Warners resched-
uled Won d er Woman 1984 and
Disney postponed Mulan and
Black Widow — Universal decided
to release its DreamWorks
Animation sequel Trolls World
To u r, scheduled to arrive in
theaters April 10, direct to home
entertainment. “Every other
studio has demonstrated true
partnership and belief in the
theatrical model during this time
of crisis,” Fithian said. Universal
did not respond to a request forRothman10:24 A.M.
FRIDAY, MARCH 20
Disney lot, Burbank10rep_opener-5_L [P]{Print}_53732644.indd 11 3/25/20 4:25 PM