It looks like Black Widow will not stop until it breaks all records. In what would sound like a bizarre record, the movie just broke the record of being the most pirated movie during the pandemic era.
It is the first movie after the COVID-19 pandemic hit the world that sold out in double figures. If we look at the popular torrent site TorrentFreak’s records, Black Widow has now surpassed Amazon’s The Tomorrow War to become the most pirated film online.
Weeks have passed by, but no other movie seems to be close to Black Widow in terms of sharing. Also on the chart are The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard along with the popular Netflix movie Gunpowder Milkshake.
Recently, the National Association of Theater Owners said that Disney Plus is to blame for their low opening revenue. In a press release, the group said,
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
NATO (National Association of Theater Owners) also said that they could have made more than $100 million if the movie was not streamed on Disney Plus. They added,
The average number of people per household in the U.S. is 2.37. One can assume the family-oriented Disney+ household is larger. How much? How much password sharing is there among Disney+ subscribers? Combined with the lost theatrical revenue and forgone traditional PVOD revenue, the answer to these questions will show that simultaneous release costs Disney money in revenue per viewer over the life of the film. Piracy no doubt further affected Black Widow’s performance and will affect its future performance in international markets where it has yet to open.
Black Widow is now in theatres in various nations and can be viewed using Disney+ Premier Access.
