If you didn’t get tickets to the October 13 premiere of the TAYLOR SWIFT | THE ERAS TOUR movie, you might have a lot more opportunity than you’d think to catch it at a theater near you.
According to Puck’s Matthew Belloni, the Taylor movie, which was filmed at one of her LA shows, is pretty unprecedented: Her camp paid for it to be made, then her parents went directly to AMC and asked the theater chain to distribute it, bypassing Hollywood studios entirely.
What’s more, Belloni cites sources as saying theaters that agree to play the Taylor film must agree to do so for a minimum of four weeks, but they have the option to play it for as many as 26 weeks. After 13 weeks, the Swifts can make it available on streaming, but so far, there haven’t been any negotiations on that front.
The film is already setting records for advance ticket sales. Belloni cites sources as saying theaters will keep 43% of the gross, while the Swifts and AMC get 57%. Plus, AMC and participating theaters get all the concession revenue, including sales from a small selection of merch that will be offered.
Compare this to the usual model for film rollouts, where a major studio can take up to 70% of the opening weekend box office. Belloni’s sources say the Swifts are settling for less, because they want to make the film a true event that’s accessible to as many fans as possible, with affordable ticket prices.
Belloni says AMC is already considering which other artists might want to follow this new Taylor Swift model, while Hollywood studios are furious that AMC is wreaking havoc on their carefully planned release schedules. Already, two major films have moved their release dates to avoid being crushed.
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