Yesterday evening, WarnerMedia announced they will release Wonder Woman 1984 on HBO Max same day as the movie's theatrical release, which is Christmas Day. The release on HBO Max will be for a limited time of one month for no extra cost.
There were a lot of factors that came to this decision that WarnerMedia listed such as the pandemic, their belief in the theatrical experience and importance to exhibitors, their support for the cast and crew that worked on the movie, and finally the fans who have been waiting for this movie's release for some time.
Ever since March, WarnerMedia stood their ground on their stance towards releasing their movies theatrically rather than releasing them on video on demand. Over time, however, they became more open to the idea especially when their new streaming platform is in dire need of new content to gain more subscribers.
Currently, the Snyder Cut of The Justice League is still in production and will not be released on HBO Max for some time.
Based on this announcement, this has opened up the possibility that a lot of big budget movies from Warner Bros. could receive the same treatment. I'm not saying that it will happen again, but I'm saying the possibility is now there. I speculated that Warner Bros. could bring Godzilla vs Kong to HBO Max for various reasons such as money, needing to attract more subscribers, and movie theaters shutting down. Now, it looks like Warner Bros. has found a balance to allow movies to release theatrically and on HBO Max.
It also depends on the situation with COVID-19. Recently, there are two vaccines announced. One of the vaccines has a 90% effectiveness and the other has a 95% effectiveness and it is currently going through the final trials of testing before they get approved and distributed and they're estimating it could take April 2021 to start distribution. So we can say that Godzilla vs Kong could possibly see both a theatrical release and a limited time release on HBO Max.
Is there a possibility that releasing WW84 is a one time thing? Of course, that is another possibility. As you know, WW84 has already had the marketing for the movie run its course already. The merchandise, movie trailers, and articles had all been released months ago. The marketing for the movie is done at this point. Now, Warner Bros. just has to release the movie and hope that some profit can come out from it.
Godzilla vs Kong, however, had seen very little marketing. The only news we have received for the movie are different variants of the same banner and the first wave of toys by PlayMates Toys. Other than that, we have seen nothing from the movie itself. No official screenshots, articles, or even a trailer. Marketing for Godzilla vs Kong is so silent you can hear a pin drop. I just can't give you a guess as to when the marketing will start anymore. It is just whenever happens is when it happens. So maybe releasing the movie on HBO Max is not the best idea if marketing has not even started yet. Only time will tell.
What are your thoughts on the news for Wonder Woman 1984 being released on HBO Max? Do you think this opened the possibility for Godzilla vs Kong and other big budget movies to be released on HBO Max or do you think Wonder Woman 1984 could be a one time deal? Leave a comment in the comments section of your thoughts on big budget movies being brought to HBO Max. Make sure to follow me on my Facebook, Twitter, Parler, Minds, and MeWe pages to stay up to date for more news, reviews, and discussions.