I took a while. but this is the summer when digital delivery did to the movie business what it already did to the record industry– killed it.
Since Napster and everything that followed, the record biz has seen its weekly numbers grind down to nothing. Digital delivery destroyed the physical business. There are no record stores left anywhere. The ones that are still out there sell dozens of other items as well.
Now digital delivery has killed movies. Last night’s box office follows a three month trend. With a couple of exceptions– “Wonder Woman”–the audience has not shown up in movie theaters to see movies. They’ve stayed home to watch “Game of Thrones,” Netflix, and Amazon.
Last night’s top 10 barely made a total of $12 million. That should be a Friday night take for one movie. But nothing is doing business, except “Wonder Woman,” which was released back widely and made $475,000. But the top movie, “Hitman’s Bodyguard,” a holdover, made $3.3 million last night.
Movie theaters are going to go the way of record and book stores. It took a long time, but here it is. And this is tragic. Once the trend starts, it’s impossible to reverse it. So the studios better think of something fast.
