Marvel Gets Concerning News With ‘Black Widow’s’ Box Office Returns

Marvel appeared to have their first big hit in some time when Black Widow was released last week and saw an $80 million opening weekend. It was the biggest weekend a film has had in over a year and was a positive sign for theaters. However, it was followed up by some concerning news.

Black Widow’s second weekend was not so hot. The film only snagged $26.3 million at the box office this past weekend, which is a 67% decline from where it was last week. That’s the biggest second-week drop-off for an MCU film. Just looking at those numbers is enough to cause concern but the situation is a bit more layered than that. Right now, you can watch the film on Disney+ at home for a $29.99 fee. If you have a family, that’s a far cheaper price tag to pay than taking the whole gang to the theater. Disney is likely to still get plenty of money from the film but it’s not good news for theaters. This is the biggest example yet of how streaming a film when it’s released in theaters can affect the box office.

The National Association of Theater Owners decided to blast Disney for their new business strategy in a press release.

“Despite assertions that this pandemic-era improvised release strategy was a success for Disney and the simultaneous release model, it demonstrates that an exclusive theatrical release means more revenue for all stakeholders in every cycle of the movie’s life.”

We’ve also seen Warner Bros. show a commitment to premiering their films directly to HBO Max without any added fee. That’s not something theaters can compete with. It could be a long road for theaters to regain prominence as the top way to view a new movie.