People flocked to see Roland Emmerich’s latest film, "2012", despite the fate of the world in the movie. 2012 was the number one movie in the US last weekend and grossed almost $108 million this weekend and last. Add that to a foreign box office of $341 million and you’ve got a hit on your hands.
Comcast and Sony partnered to do something pretty cool before 2012 appeared in theaters: the largest broadcast, cable, online, and mobile media preview ever. This traditional push was coupled with some great On Demand content to really amp up the excitement. A two-minute scene from the movie was shown on television on October 1st, and if you wanted to see more, lots of exclusive content was available via Comcast On Demand (and much of it is still available, if you want to check it out yourself). The clip featured during the televised sneak-peek had millions of additional views On Demand, making it one of the most viewed pieces of free content On Demand that month.
This 2012 partnership is only the latest in a string of promotions using traditional channels and On Demand to increase excitement for theatrical releases. Before the opening of Spider-Man 3 we featured over 50 pieces of content including First Looks, a special trailer, and extras from the movie, plus Spider-Man 1 & 2 (in Standard Def and HD) so folks could refresh their memories before the new film. The Dark Knight, another comic book favorite, On Demand content included a series bridging the gap between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. That helped the Dark Knight break the previous record for largest opening weekend in history (it raked in about $160 million). Oh, and the previous record was held by… wait for it… Spider-man 3.
What kind of On Demand content would make you excited to see an upcoming movie? Let me know in the comments.