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Like most industries affected by COVID-19, the film business has been forced to acclimatise to the Brave New World we’ve been thrust into. I’ve written previously about the impacts of the pandemic on this industry, as theatres globally have been closed for months in an attempt to help curb the virus. This has prompted some studios to release their films—some of which saw a brief cinema release and some of which were yet to debut—straight to Video on Demand (VOD), enabling audiences to pay a rental fee and stream the movies at home.����

With parents stuck at home with their kids, it’s really no wonder that, of all films released to VOD thus far (in the U.S., that is)��Trolls 2: World Tour��dominated. Since its release on the 10^th��of April, the film has earned over $100 million dollars, matching the profits of the first���հ��DZ�������film in approximately one month.

These results came as a shock to all, including Universal Pictures, who distributed the film. Indeed, NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell , and intimated that, due to the apparent viability of VOD-exclusive releases, Universal would be releasing more direct-to-consumer films in the future.

Unfortunately for Shell, his comments ruffled some feathers, and Adam Aron, CEO of AMC (a major American theatre chain), ��that,��“[e]ffective immediately,��AMC will no longer play any Universal movies in any of our theatres in the United States, Europe or the Middle East.”

The problem, though, is that, like many theatre chains, AMC is in no position to play hardball. And while it would be foolish to think that the recent changes are merely in reaction to COVID-19, there’s no doubt that the pandemic has escalated pre-existing tensions, as audiences drift further from theatres in favour of at-home streaming services. What’s more, the newfound success of VOD signifies that even the industry players who stand to gain the most monetary success from theatre releases, like Disney and Universal, can potentially match, if not surpass, cinema profits under the new VOD model. These companies are already making more money despite making fewer films, simply due to the myriad of ways to monetise content outside of a theatrical context (think Disney+). The success of��Trolls 2��has only emphasised that bypassing theatres is a viable, if not the optimal, strategy.��

Now, I don’t want to overstate things. Theatres will be around in the future, at least while the industry landscape remains in flux. This partly comes down to the fact that most prominent actors and filmmakers have terms in their contracts stipulating that their films must��play in cinemas. As long as that remains true, there will be a reason to keep films in theatres. Acclaimed director Christopher��Nolan, for example, has��significant influence over when and how his films are��released. Nolan's upcoming film,��Tenet,��was set for a July 17^th��release, but was recently delayed —��by a mere two weeks��—��until July 31st.��According to��, Warner Bros. would prefer to delay the release of��Tenet��even further to��maximise to box office numbers, but conceded to Nolan’s desire that��Tenet��be the film that revives the post-pandemic theatrical experience.

Politics aside, let’s not forget that there are other reasons to see films in cinemas, too; reasons which transcend legal liability or directorial clout. As Shell himself acknowledged, theatres are deeply ingrained in the fabric of our society: “it's how people make their movies and how they expect their movies to be seen." We go to the cinema to experience something we cannot experience at home, or anywhere else, for that matter. Theatres aren’t yet lost to antiquity, and while the fight rages on, the end result remains unclear.��