This weekend is the opening of Sony’s Skyfall, marking the 23rd installment of the James Bond franchise. The film smashed through several box office records overseas as it hauled in $320M in two weeks. Yesterday, the flick earned $2.2M in IMAX runs and another $2.4M in midnight screenings in a preview of what could be an impressive weekend tally. Thumbs up from Ebert: “Skyfall triumphantly reinvents 007 in one of the best Bonds ever.” (full review)
Via Seeking Alpha and Chicago Sun-Times
Squeezing more money out of movies: 20th Century Fox plans to offer HD versions of its films closer to their theater release date and in advance of availability through video-on-demand services or physical purchase. With the flurry of new ways to download movies, the strategy is viewed as well-timed to help Fox drive up digital sales. Prometheus, which has churned up $351M so far, will be the guinea pig for the new plan with a Sept. 18 digital release date well in front of its Oct 11 launch on DVD, Blu-ray, and VOD.
Next in line: Disney (DIS), Lions Gate (LGF), Comcast (CMSA), Sony (SNE), Viacom (VIA)
Via The New York Times, Seeking Alpha, BoxOfficeMojo.com
Clark Schultz Blog 