Throughout 2021, WarnerMedia opted to release its full slate of films simultaneously on HBO Max the same day they premiered in theaters as part of its pandemic strategy. (Warner Bros. has since returned to exclusive theatrical commitments in 2022.) The suit characterizes Project Popcorn as WarnerMedia’s “clandestine plan to materially reduce box office and correlated ancillary revenue generated from tent pole films that Villiage Roadshow and others would be entitled to receive in exchange for driving subscription revenue for the new HBO Max service.”
Village Roadshow has been working with Warner Bros. for decades and has co-financed 91 titles, including Joker, the Ocean’s franchise, and The Matrix films. The company alleges that Warner Bros. is now pushing them away, attempting to cut them out when it comes to working on and profiting from franchise works.
These disagreements over rights extend to projects like Wonka and a series based on Edge of Tomorrow, which is a Village Roadshow film. In the case of Edge of Tomorrow, Warner Bros. “insisted that Village Roadshow relinquish its co-finance and co-ownership rights voluntarily.”
Among its allegations, Village Roadshow claims Warner Bros. knew of potential detriments to profit and piracy problems and went ahead with a hybrid release of The Matrix Resurrections anyhow, thereby not only harming the franchise’s earnings but also its legacy.
The suit states that there’s no doubt that “the abysmal theatrical box office sales figures from The Matrix Resurrections dilute the value of this tent pole franchise as a film’s lack of profitability generally prevents studios from investing in additional sequels and derivative films in the near term.”
