As 'Black Adam' takes over VOD, WBD breathes in the sweet scent of money

“Black Adam” (Warner Bros. Discovery/$19.99) swept the #1 positions on all VOD charts this week. The DC Comics hit starring Dwayne Johnson (still #6 in theaters this weekend) is the second $100 million+ domestic release to hit home availability. The other is "Smile" (Paramount/$19.99). Now in its second week, it's gone from #1 to #6 on Vudu (which ranks by revenue), is #10 on Google Play, and isn't listed on iTunes at all (both calculate by transactions ).

The difference: "Black Adam" is not airing on HBO Max. "Smile" is on Paramount+.

We've seen some past releases thrive with this side game, but studios are starting to realize that the gold in the PVOD hills justifies delaying streaming for subscribers. Blockbuster movies increase subscriptions, but they don't offer the immediate rush of a long VOD run. It also suggests that consumers are beginning to understand: how many people have rented a VOD only to realize that it was soon heading to (or worse, had already arrived) on the streaming platform they were paying for. already?

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"Smile" doesn't appear anywhere in iTunes' top 30, nor on its home page which highlights what's new. Pure speculation, but: Apple doesn't like to compete with streaming.

"The Woman King"

Courtesy of Jenel Stevens

Five new home release titles made at least one list. “The Woman King” (Sony/$19.99) did best by making all three lists and reaching #2 on Vudu. "Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile" (Sony/$19.99) is #3 on Vudu, just missed the iTunes top 10, and #21 on Google Play (which is usually a few days behind).

The direct-to-home release of "Poker Face" (Screen Media/$6.99) directed by and starring Russell Crowe took #7 on iTunes. "Till" (United Artists/$19.99) is the only specialized release to be placed. Helped by its PVOD price, it's #10 at Vudu - and only because our list omits "Yellowstone Season 5".

Many low-budget specialty titles like "Parasite", "Promising Young Woman", "The French Dispatch" and "Everything Everywhere All at Once" reaped profits over several weeks on VOD. This year, recent theatrical releases "TÁR" (Focus/$19.99), "Armageddon Time" (Focus/$19.99) and "Triangle of Sadness" (Neon/$14.99) have been widely below the top 10.

Along with 'Adam' and 'Woman King', 'Maverick', 'Bullet Train' (Sony/$5.99) and 'Ticket to Paradise' (Universal/$19.99) complete the list of films that have made all the charts.< /p>

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery" caused a stir in theaters over the weekend in a limited-time release ahead of its broadcast from December 23. In the meantime, Netflix is ​​jam-packed with other original films with six debuts in its top 10 this week.