Posted on 01/30/2020 9:46:11 PM PST by DoodleBob
Today’s news that all local film releases scheduled for the highly lucrative Chinese New Year period have been kiboshed has wide-ranging implications. Beyond being a prudent move by authorities and producers to stave off apotential spread of the coronavirus, this is expected to mean a $1B+ blow to global box office for 2020.
Says a finance source, “Moviegoing is so concentrated during this period, even with later releases, it will be impossible to overcome the massive loss.”
Last year’s full New Year holiday brought in about RMB 5.8B ($836M at today’s rates) with the month of February achieving a benchmark RMB 11.1B ($1.6B) boosted by the New Year pics.
As we have previously reported, this year is not primed to hit the highs of 2019 given the lack of giant tentpoles, but a massive blow in China, the globe’s second biggest market, will mean a massive blow worldwide. There had been predictions that China’s box office would overtake North America in 2020, while some in the industry remained skeptical. Through force majeure, the skepticism now hews closer to reality.
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After the Lunar New Year period, the Chinese would normally return to work on January 31. Without the benefit of having people off their usual obligations, this further impacts moviegoing. What’s more, should the epidemic continue, it would impact February where such Hollywood titles as Doolittle, Marriage Story and Little Women have previously been set. Mulan, a potential big draw in China, is eyed for March.
(Excerpt) Read more at deadline.com ...
I am so not weeping.
Couldn’t happen to a more deserving bunch. F’em, I hope they go under.
Hollywood Takes It On The Chin
Heeheehee.
Lie with dogs...
oh no that sucks
This is gettin’ serious. A billion here, a billion there, soon you’re talking about real money!
Good one!
A-a-a-a-a-a-choo! Pardon me. ;)
Seriously, though, people should be stocking up now to avoid being caught up in any possible human flood or lack of supplies in the coming weeks. Need to get the transportation going now, so that shelves and stockrooms will be filled again in time.
A couple of months’ worth of food and other necessities might be advisable to be comfy and cozy through a first wave of the virus.
My heart bleeds. Drip. Drip.
do people not think outside the box?
you’ve got a billion people sitting home staring at the walls, when they’re not fishing in their fish tanks or suntanning beside a tropical screensaver on the tv because they can’t go out.
Release the films on Chinese tv. Pay per view. They have a captive audience!! And probably more customers than would actually go to a theatre anyway.
Same thing with basketball games. Maybe LeBron will go over to China and help out his masters.
A stock at home is always a good idea.
Even if nothing dramatic happens, one saves a lot of money by being able to buy supplies when they’re on sale.
It’s a fool who puts himself at the mercy of the food industry.
Let them eat cake.
Die, Hollywood, Die!
It’s fitting that pretty much the only Oscar nominated movie I’ve seen this year that I paid for is “Parasite”
Yes, I did watch “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”, but that was on a plane, so I didn’t have to pay for it.
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