Dune - Villeneuve adaptation

[Clonehomer]

I am not sure that audience is going to be consistent enough to afford production and promotional budgets of $300+ million for some films. Drop $30 for something like this...? Or how about we just watch one of the billions of free things already available on the various streaming services and online generally?

That is not a competition that makes a producer of these would-be blockbusters feel very comfortable right now. Didn't work at all with Mulan. That was around $200 million for production (no idea how), and it is on its way to losing upwards of $100+ million for the House of Mouse by the end of the year.

$300 million / $30 = 10 million

There are roughly 130 million American households.

Are 7.5% of the households in this country really going to drop $30 to rent every big budget blockbuster spectacle? When there are so many other options at home and these films are no longer "events" that you must see in theaters? Even if you count foreign gross, are 5% going to do that transaction...?

This is uncomfortable math for the industry.

Maybe the issue was more with Mulan than the direct to streaming platform. Trolls did very well back in the Spring. The Invisible Man did well after having to go VoD when it was released right as theatres started closing.

And dropping $30 for a family is still cheaper than going to the theatre these days. But hopefully by next spring or summer theaters will start to reopen and we'll get full releases again. I just wouldn't be surprised if you only see a 30 day run or so before the studio releases movies via VOD as there aren't going to be as many theatres as there were before.

 

[Sousaclone]

Maybe the issue was more with Mulan than the direct to streaming platform. Trolls did very well back in the Spring. The Invisible Man did well after having to go VoD when it was released right as theatres started closing.

And dropping $30 for a family is still cheaper than going to the theatre these days. But hopefully by next spring or summer theaters will start to reopen and we'll get full releases again. I just wouldn't be surprised if you only see a 30 day run or so before the studio releases movies via VOD as there aren't going to be as many theatres as there were before.

I think they are going to have a hard time finding a VoD price point that works well. While $30 may be a steal for a family of 4 to go see Trolls or a Pixar film, your single movie watchers or even couple may balk a little bit more about the price. I'd have to think long and hard about spending $30 on a movie, especially if I can just wait a couple of months and rent it it VoD for $5 or $7.

 

[BryceC]

This could really revitalize the Independent film industry and local theaters. We could see another rebirth of spartan filmmaking like how Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino started out in the early 90s.

I'm not going to go totally crazy by saying blockbusters are dead, but at this point I'd be shocked if Endgame ever gets passed for the record. That's going to stand for all time I think. I also think we're going to be done seeing movies with 200 million budgets. It's just too much risk now.

 

[harimad]

I'm in the middle of reading Dune for the first time right now. As a reader of science fiction since I was a kid (many moons ago), I don't know why I was never introduced to this series. I guess better late than never.

Isn’t it amazing?

 

[Clonehomer]

I'm not going to go totally crazy by saying blockbusters are dead, but at this point I'd be shocked if Endgame ever gets passed for the record. That's going to stand for all time I think. I also think we're going to be done seeing movies with 200 million budgets. It's just too much risk now.

I originally read this thinking I was going to have to break some tough news to you.

The World’s Last Blockbuster Has No Plans to Close (Published 2019)

With the closing of a Blockbuster store in Australia, the one in Bend, Ore., will be the last to survive changes in technology and shopping that reshaped the way people watch movies at home.

www.nytimes.com

 

[GBlade]

The problem with Mulan was you need a Disney+ account $ then rent the movie on top of that $$. But if I subscribe to Disney+ won't it eventually come out?

I don't think the blockbuster movie is dead. Batman, Bond, Marvel can all draw crowds if crowds were allowed.

 

[Sigmapolis]

The problem with Mulan was you need a Disney+ account $ then rent the movie on top of that $$. But if I subscribe to Disney+ won't it eventually come out?

I don't think the blockbuster movie is dead. Batman, Bond, Marvel can all draw crowds if crowds were allowed.

Could.*

We do not know what the public's moviegoing will be like after the pandemic ends.

We might just all fall out of the habit/not want to crowd around each other again.

And as crowd-pleasing as those superhero/action franchises can be, they are not exactly the most subtle or artistic of filmmaking. Losing high-concept *and* high-budget films forever would be a downer.

 

[VeloClone]

The problem with Mulan was you need a Disney+ account $ then rent the movie on top of that $$. But if I subscribe to Disney+ won't it eventually come out?

I don't think the blockbuster movie is dead. Batman, Bond, Marvel can all draw crowds if crowds were allowed.

Yes, I've heard that it will eventually be free with the Disney+ subscription - December, maybe?

 

[BryceC]

The problem with Mulan was you need a Disney+ account $ then rent the movie on top of that $$. But if I subscribe to Disney+ won't it eventually come out?

I don't think the blockbuster movie is dead. Batman, Bond, Marvel can all draw crowds if crowds were allowed.

Agreed, I just don't know if we're going to go completely back to the way it was. I mean a movie like Thor: Ragnarok, which I really enjoyed, earned like 600 or 700 million. I just don't know if that is going to be a reasonable expectation.

 

[Sigmapolis]

Agreed, I just don't know if we're going to go completely back to the way it was. I mean a movie like Thor: Ragnarok, which I really enjoyed, earned like 600 or 700 million. I just don't know if that is going to be a reasonable expectation.

An industry with a business model depending on superhero and action franchises with decades-long IP behind them to set records every summer... which then subsidizes the "art" stuff for awards season...

Well, it might not work much longer if the $500+ million cash cow is a thing of the past.

 

[kmcbrid]

Yes, I've heard that it will eventually be free with the Disney+ subscription - December, maybe?

Yes, December 4th is the date, I believe that Mulan will be on Disney+ without having to pay the premium price for it.

 

[3GenClone]

Dune will be available on HBOMAX (at no extra cost besides the monthly subscription) the same day it premiers in theaters. WB is doing this with all of their 2021 theatrical releases

 

[Bader]

Dune will be available on HBOMAX (at no extra cost besides the monthly subscription) the same day it premiers in theaters. WB is doing this with all of their 2021 theatrical releases

AT&T consistently makes some of the dumbest business decisions. I'm really curious what HBOMax subs are gonna cost come 2022. But as a current Max sub, hooray!

 

[simply1]

He's not happy.

‘Dune’ Director Denis Villeneuve Blasts HBO Max Deal (EXCLUSIVE)

I learned in the news that Warner Bros. has decided to release "Dune" on HBO Max at the same time as our theatrical release.

variety.com

 

[BWRhasnoAC]

Really enjoying The Storm light Series by Sanderson. Dune is on my list one of these days.

 

[knowlesjam]

AT&T consistently makes some of the dumbest business decisions. I'm really curious what HBOMax subs are gonna cost come 2022. But as a current Max sub, hooray!

I agree...but with ATT giving HBO Max for free if you are an "Elite" customer, I'm not complaining.

 

[BryceC]

Really enjoying The Storm light Series by Sanderson. Dune is on my list one of these days.

I like Sanderson a lot. He can get a little wordy but nobody writes a supernatural fight scene like he does. Dune is unbelievable though.

 

[BWRhasnoAC]

I like Sanderson a lot. He can get a little wordy but nobody writes a supernatural fight scene like he does. Dune is unbelievable though.

Words of Radiance has such a great ending. Madeline Miller is another author that writes battle very well but she only has two books.

 

[SECyclone]

So how does this streaming service era come to an end ? Every single tech company/TV Channel/ movie company now have their own streaming service. Some have live TV, but if you want certain things you’ll need 4+ subscriptions!

 

[BryceC]

So how does this streaming service era come to an end ? Every single tech company/TV Channel/ movie company now have their own streaming service. Some have live TV, but if you want certain things you’ll need 4+ subscriptions!

Ultimately I think we're headed for another round of consolidation. Everybody is making these huge libraries of stuff that only pay of off of people sign up for a long time. There are so many things to watch now, and there is just more and more coming, so that I don't feel like I need anything. Right now my family has Disney+Hulu/ESPN+ because of the bundle. We have Prime because we'd have it anyway for the shipping. That's it. Honestly I don't have any more time to watch half the stuff I'd like to already just on those services.