Latest The Fall Guy Update Is A Devastating Blow To Ryan Gosling's $127 Million Blockbuster

Summary The Fall Guy's quick digital release spells trouble for its box office future, as Universal seeks alternative revenue streams.

Audiences are learning to expect quick digital releases after a film's theatrical debut, impacting box office performance.

Hollywood's shift towards rapid digital releases diminishes the importance of theatrical exclusivity for movies like The Fall Guy.

The Fall Guy had hopes of being a major box office success in the 2024 summer season, but the latest update for Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt's movie is more bad news. Universal Pictures brought the action blockbuster with a $130 million budget to theaters in early May 2024 after plenty of anticipation, acclaim, and clever marketing. The added bonus of having two Barbenheimer stars headlining was only thought to be another point in The Fall Guy's favor of becoming one of 2024's big box office hits.

Expectations began to change after the opening weekend numbers were lower than projected, as The Fall Guy's box office opened to only $27.7 million domestically. This was below projections between $30-$40 million, with there also being hope it would go higher based on the great reviews. Word of mouth from audiences has not helped much either, as the film has only managed to make $127 million worldwide after over two weeks in theaters. Now, Universal's announcement that The Fall Guy is now available digitally makes the film's box office prospects look even worse.

2:02 Related The Fall Guy's Box Office Confirms A Harsh Reality After $2.4 Billion Phenomenon The Fall Guy has received positive reviews following its debut, but its box office reveals a harsh reality after a $2.4 billion phenomenon.

The Fall Guy's Quick Digital Release Is Bad News For Its Box Office Future

The Fall Guy Released On Digital Only 18 Days After Its Premiere

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Universal's decision to give The Fall Guy a digital release so quickly after the film's theatrical debut is devastating for any hope of the box office performance improving. The studio has now given audiences an alternative option for where to watch The Fall Guy that's not in theaters. Interested parties now have the opportunity to buy or rent the movie on most major PVOD platforms and watch the film from the comfort of their own home. Considering the cost to watch The Fall Guy digitally could be cheaper or on par with ticket prices, PVOD becomes a more convenient option.

Universal released The Fall Guy on digital on May 21, 2024.

This is bad news for The Fall Guy's box office because audiences no longer have to go to a theater to see the movie right now. There are plenty of reasons why someone who wanted to see the film might not have gone to theaters yet. Those who desire to see The Fall Guy's stunts on the biggest screen possible can still do so, but anyone who has a more casual interest does not have to. Since Universal has already seen the film suffer sizable drops and lose theaters (including IMAX), the outlook for the box office improving gets worse.

The Fall Guy's Digital Release Plan Is Due To Its Unfortunate Performance

Universal Has Waited Longer With Bigger Hits Before

The disappointing performance of The Fall Guy at the box office is directly connected to Universal's decision for such a quick turnaround on its digital release. The studio had expectations that Gosling's action movie could overperform financially and be one of the biggest films of the summer. Once it became clear that The Fall Guy's box office was lagging behind and might struggle to break even, the studio elected to find another way to make money off the film and make it available to more people. The digital release 18 days after premiering in theaters was the answer.

The reality is that Universal would not have released The Fall Guy digitally this quickly if the film had performed better in theaters. There is proof based on how the studio has handled other releases. Oppenheimer didn't hit PVOD services until 123 days after its theatrical debut. M3GAN, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and The Book Club 2 all had over 40 days of theatrical exclusivity too. Even Friday Night at Freddy's, Trolls Band Together, and Migration took 32 days to go to digital. That puts The Fall Guy alongside other Universal movies that weren't box office hits.

Recent Universal Movies With Digital Releases After 18 Days Movie Box Office Total Knock at the Cabin (2023) $54.7 Million Cocaine Bear (2023) $88.3 Million Renfield (2023) $26.4 Million Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kracken (2023) $45.5 Million The Last Voyage of the Demeter (2023) $21.7 Million Strays (2023) $36 Million The Exorcist: Believer (2023) $136.2 Million Night Swim (2024) $54 Million The Fall Guy (2024) $127.4 Million

The Fall Guy Shows Hollywood Isn't Learning From Continued Box Office Struggles

Audiences Have Been Taught To Expect Quick Digital Releases

The Fall Guy's struggles at the box office and the quick digital release that has followed are part of the same problem that Hollywood keeps making. Over the last several years, studios have made it clear to audiences that theatrical exclusivity is no longer that important nor something that will last for months. It has become more common for films to move to digital and then to a popular streaming service within a few months of them premiering in theaters.

This tells audiences that there is no need to rush out to theaters to see most movies, including titles like The Fall Guy. Unless a film is marketed as a major pop culture event - such as Barbie, Oppenheimer, and still the occasional Marvel or superhero movie - studios have effectively told viewers that new releases will be available to watch at their homes within a month. This is deflating for films like The Fall Guy hoping to catch on with audiences through great word of mouth.

The biggest point in the favor of theaters is the exclusive availability of movies playing there.

The price of watching movies at home with PVOD continues to compare favorably to going to theaters. The biggest point in the favor of theaters is the exclusive availability of movies playing there. Since Hollywood keeps making that window smaller and less important, the chances for movies like The Fall Guy becoming box office successes before they get a digital release becomes even tougher.