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The Magic of the Movies… Is It Gone?
Hollywood On Strike - TV in 1960, Streaming & AI Now
Did you know, that the three stooges, Larry, Curly, and Moe, with their physical and slapstick comedy that we all know, never got a dime for all their movies that we saw on our TVs? Why? Because those residual incomes were not in their contracts!
Citing estimates from the National Association of Theatre Owners, the Wall Street Journal reported that the movies Oppenheimer and Barbie were purchased as a pair this weekend by more than 200,000 moviegoers. The double feature is an unlikely pair. But then again, a repeat of their $302M success at the box office this past weekend, may also be unlikely.
According to the WSJ, this time of the year back in 2019 — the summer before Covid, domestic box-office sales were at $6.4 billion. This year, sales are considerably less, $4.6 billion. That’s a 29% drop ($1.84B).
The success of Barbenheimer happened against the backdrop of Hollywood’s strike that started two weeks ago when actors joined writers who were already on strike. On Friday, July 14th, the Screen Actors Guild ended their contract negotiations with the studios as well. Consequently, Cillian Murphy and Emily Blunt, the lead actors in Oppenheimer, walked out of that movie’s premiere in London.
