– The world’s two largest chains take the opposite position from Cinema United, which has opposed the Paramount-Warner deal
– Three years of guaranteed annual output, 45-day theatrical exclusivity and 90-day streaming holds — with penalties whose bite is in question
AMC Entertainment and Cineworld Group’s Regal Cinemas, the world’s two largest exhibition chains, have come out in favor of Paramount Skydance’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, Bloomberg reported. That puts them directly at odds with Cinema United, the main exhibitors’ trade body, which has said the merger would be bad for business.
What moved them is a contract. Bloomberg reported on Aug. 8 that Paramount CEO David Ellison has agreed to sign a commitment to put 30 movies a year in theaters if the deal goes through — wide releases that would stay exclusive to theaters for at least 45 days.
What exhibitors can actually extract from a studio is not the performance of any given film but the number of releases and the length of the exclusive window. Both had dropped off the table as studios trimmed slates and shortened windows after the pandemic. Restoring them as a three-year written commitment was enough to pull the two largest chains off their trade body’s line.
Jung Han
What the two chains secured
According to Bloomberg and TheWrap, the terms are at least 30 theatrical releases a year for three years after closing, a minimum 45-day theatrical exclusive, and a minimum 90-day hold before streaming. Financial penalties apply if Paramount falls short, though Bloomberg noted the specifics remain unclear. TheWrap reported that the U.K. chain Vue Cinemas received the same offer.