Universal is pulling back the curtain on what Jon M. Chu’s Wicked has earned in premium VOD sales, numbers often kept a closely guarded secret by the major Hollywood studios.
The blockbuster film and Oscar hopeful has earned nearly $700 million at the global box office to date, or $686 million worldwide through Wednesday, as well as racking up more than $70 million in premium video-on-demand sales in the U.S. and Canada in its first week in the home.
It may seem counter-intuitive, but going in the home as early as 30 to 40 days doesn’t mean it hurts a tentpole’s box office profile.
In 2020, Universal’s Filmed Entertainment Group became the first studio to strike a landmark deal with top exhibitors that formalized a plan for a premium transactional window that would allow consumers to watch first-run movies in the home far sooner than the norm. (It was previously 75 days to 90 days). Several other studios quickly followed suit, and PVOD has since been a boon for many films.
For Universal, PVOD has become an integral component of its business plan and has accounted for more than $1.5 billion in consumer spend to date on titles from Universal Pictures, Focus Features or DreamWorks Animation.
Wicked — the top-grossing Broadway musical adaptation of all time — was made available on PVOD on Dec. 31, just as the studio commenced special sing-along shows in cinemas. The title is also still available on the big screen in regular formats.
Consumers can currently purchase Wicked in the home at a $30 price point for Premium EST (digital ownership) and $20 for PVOD (digital rental), which includes the original film and the sing-along versions.
Wicked generated more than $26 million in premium EST and premium VOD sales on Dec. 31, its first day of release, on its way to $70 million in sales in its first seven days. That is the biggest first day and biggest first week for a Universal theatrical title going to PVOD, and on its first day did double the business of Universal’s next-best performer, The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
Universal consistently releases its larger tentpoles in the home after their fifth theatrical weekend, but it decided to wait another week and turn Wicked into a New Year’s Eve event for families after it played exclusively in cinemas for 39 days. (It bowed in theaters Nov. 22.)
Universal’s largest first week on PVOD for a theatrical release was previously $44 million for Mario. Wicked still has a two-and-a-half-month exclusive premium home entertainment window before it goes to NBCUniversal’s streaming service Peacock.
Heading into its eighth weekend of theatrical release, Wicked continues to rank high up on the box office chart, including a domestic total of more than $453 million.
