When a high-quality, full-length work print of X-Men Origins: Wolverine surfaced on Internet bittorrent sites last night, early speculation was that this was a doomsday scenario for Fox and the filmmakers behind the tentpole, which is not due to be released until May 1. The response today from competing producers and studio execs, however, has been more measured. One producer behind another major summer franchise insists that while piracy is a serious problem that needs a “focused and visionary response” from the movie industry, a leak like this may not actually cut that deeply into Wolverine’s ticket sales.
“People who are going to download and watch it on their computer were either never going to pay to see it anyway or they’re the type of super-fan who was going to go 10 times in the first week,” he says, citing a leaked version of Iron Man that circulated a week before its blockbuster opening. “Seeing a spectacle movie like this one on your computer is not the same as seeing with a communal audience, and I don’t think this is going to hurt them that much.”
On the other hand, a high-ranking theater exhibitor sees much more dire consequences for the franchise. “This is a disaster,” he says, referring both to the free downloads resulting from the leak and to the subsequent bad reviews making their way around the Web. “It’s tens of millions of dollars lost.”
It’s certainly a sign of our digital file swapping times, and many in Hollywood are viewing it as a chilling cautionary tale. “If there’s been a tutor in my life about this stuff, it’s Steven Spielberg,” says director Brad Silberling, whose Land of the Lost is due to hit theaters June 5. “There’s a reason why directors are control freaks. Between marketing and publicity and all the other areas that get their hands on a film, you have to monitor it. You never like hearing about something like this happening an inch away from a movie being released.”
Fox and the filmmakers have released an official response, vowing to track down whoever is behind the leak, while competing studio execs seem to be engaging in some wishful prognosticating about whether audiences will still show up for the big theater experience, regardless of other cheaper options. “That movie is a spectacle and the audience wants spectacle,” says the exec with his own tentpoles due for release this summer. “I predict it still opens with a seven in front of it.”– Additional reporting by Nicole Sperling and Josh Rottenberg
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wow, i didn’t think anyone in hollywood had the brains to figure out the truth about the irrelevance of piracy on overall numbers. even big home theater screens pale compared to the immersive movie theater. and then there’s the fact a work print is not the same movie as the final cut and the studio could play up this — “see the REAL ending”, etc.. so this works more as free pr for the film’s eventual release. “Don’t Panic!”
Not suprising. Hollywood should really consider direct digital release to PC alongside theater release. I know there’s alot of stuff that doesn’t have the same impact when watching it at home as in the threater but I’m sure they could salvage a ton of lost sales.
I’ve seen some movies in advance and if the movie stinks, I won’t go to see it. The same thing occurs when someone I know with similar tastes tells me about the movie. Their negative opinion may dissuade me from seeing it. Iron Man was a good example. I saw most of it online and this prompted me to see it in the theater and buy the DVD. In short, good movies sell well despite Internet downloads. Bad movies may lose sales because the word gets out faster.
If the movie is great, then the leak is the best thing since sliced bread. It gets the movie talked up and is free hype.
Apparently they are worried about the movie being prematurely pulled into the vortex of it’s own suckage.
If the movie sucks, people are going to hear about it. The good news is they may stop talking about how bad it sucks by the time it hits theaters, you’ll just never know.
I pay to see Hugh Jackman with his shirtoff…who cares about the leak???
He nailed it on the head when he said “people werent going to see it anyways” That sums it up, the people that Download media generally would not buy it anyways, the only reason they watch it is because its free. Also keep in mind that when these industries throw out numbers they are misleading. For example if they say 10 million people DLed a movie, that counts Asia, Europe, Mexico, Canada etc. How many of those were in the U.S? ALSO you have to take in account the economy right now, if the movie doesnt make hundreds of milliosn it might be because.. hmm.. I dont know, millions of people are out of work. So many variables..
They need to put a traceable water mark
with the letter “Sample” or “Property of…”on each screen shot and show the preview in black & white with mono sound
I’m not sure anyone in the industry really understands – I both pirate more media than the average consumer and buy more media than the average consumer. They are not mutually exclusive – I regularly buy things I do pirate, and regularly don’t buy things I don’t pirate lol
I’ve seen it. 3 times now. And I will pay to see it at least that many more.
I downloaded it and watched it. It was woeful and I’m glad I didn’t have to pay fro that tripe. It was butchery.
I honestly don’t think a summer film like Wolverine gets hurt that badly by piracy. Although if its a great copy maybe a little. I think smaller films like “The Wrestler” really get hurt as people don’t need to see that kind of film on the bigscreen and will gladly watch a quality bootleg if they get access to it.
http://www.entertainmenttodayandbeyond.com/
chuck
Cyberian: The movie might be great when it’s released, but this is the WORKPRINT…it’s an incomplete version, so all reviews are moot… it will hurt the movie if reviews of this workprint are bad but the actual finished product might be vastly different – who knows when this workprint was made – they could have done weeks worth of editing since. It sucks for the filmmakers that people are reviewing something that was never intended to be judged. As an indie filmmaker, I’ve had working edits that ended up being vastly different from the finished product…
I love how no one is actually concerned about if the movie is good or not. All they’re worried about is their (read: OUR)money
All this proves is that the leaks aren’t coming out of the theatres, they are directly coming from the Studios themselves, so STOP PENALIZING the people who download these. The people barely afford going to the movies. And go after the top paid guy who leaked the movie onto the web!
why do they fear the leak?
because the movie is awful. if the movie was good the leak would just be free hype.
Can you please stop using the term “tentpole” or “tentpoles”? It sounds ridiculous.
“tentpoles”
I watched it; it was horrible. No amount of reworking can save this film. What really kills me is that this article is solely about the revenue this rubbish is supposed to rake in. DO NOT SEE THIS FILM. Save your money. If you hated what Fox did with X3, your brain will boil in it’s juices and you may vomit blood. Honest.
“The people barely afford going to the movies.” Osheen C.
Are you trying to imply that these nerds can afford computers and internet service, but they can’t afford movie tickets, or am I reading you wrong?
this was one movie Which i had no interest in seen in a cinema. there nothing special about. transformers on the other hand is one that needs the big screen to enjoy the most out of it.
I’m still upset Bryan Singer didn’t finish the X-Men trilogy. Mr. Singer, please come back to the X-Men franchise! We need you.
Hey there if you want to check out a spot on review of this rough cut version of wolverine, go to http://www.myspace.com/martinjunior84 it is a good review, and if you got myspace add the lad!
to “I Did It”:
Obviously this article had a point, then, as they mentioned “the bad reviews making its way around the web” People like you may convince others who were originally interested in seeing it, into changing their minds. If it’s a great movie, then a leak wouldn’t matter. I doubt the 7th Harry Potter books lost anything more than a few dollars off the much-publicized leak. I read the book online and brought it anyway, I was just tired of waiting. It’s different for this kind of film.
this industry must learn that their content will leak and integrate it into the way they do business. we can’t go backward in time and stop it from happening. they can sponsor as many witch hunts as they like but the conclusion will be the same. i do appreciate that empires were built on a certain model but (generally speaking) history shows that old technology is overtaken by new and ultimately the spanish armada sinks. witches, i am told, float.
this is also an industry that has to stop using the term “tentpole” out of it’s more obvious context.
It’s odd that the world’s sexiest man would be called Jackman.Women don’t find me sexy and I jack all the time.
jonas
or they could just, you know, pay attention to their staff? the only way this leak could have happened is if:
1. they had it on a computer that was connected to the internet, and said computer was hacked.
2. someone from the staff leaked it.
all they need to do is not have it on a computer connected to the internet, or have way of monitoring who is in possession of a copy of the movie so that, if it leaks, they know exactly who leaked it.
I don’t understand how this could be so difficult. The leak almost seems intentional, because the quality of the video is practically ready for mass DVD production.
jonas mohnk and Jimmy, this is for you: “Tentpole!” ha, ha ha!
Seriously, the film was probably leaked by the studio because it creates buzz, positive or negative. This gives it a marketing edge over the summer movie competition. The fact that we are discussing it keeps it in the news and on the minds of the moviegoer. “Wolverine” has a built in audience, so regardless of how many armchair critics “review” it, people will go see it.
Hm…I saw the movie and it wasn’t fully edited yet. There were wires being used o-o
why?! ! !
i’m soo angry for people who do this kind of stupid things!!!
At first I actually thought this was an April Fools’ Day joke, and was more surprised to find out that it actually happened