Lucrative OTT rights, deadlines and loopholes: Why producers ‘dump’ unfinished films to theaters | Bollywood News
If you checked into a movie theater recently and found that the movie you were watching was strangely unfinished, don’t be confused. You’ve just happened to witness an open secret in the movie industry: producers secretly release movies in theaters.
On October 29, the trailer of ‘Ladykiller’ starring Arjun Kapoor-Bhumi Pednekar was released on the internet. There was no drum roll, the actors’ Instagrams remained silent about their big screen appearances, and the promotion never ended. The film was released in theaters five days later, but many felt the film was released unfinished.
Director Ajay Bahl initially admitted that the film was released in theaters even though “30 pages of the 117-page script were not shot” and many important scenes were missing. He said this is why viewers find the film “jittery and disjointed.” Within 24 hours, however, the director recanted his statement, stating that his own “humor and sarcasm” had been misunderstood, and that Ladykiller was indeed a “perfect movie.”
Although the filmmaker has retracted his earlier explanation, multiple industry insiders have said that multiple new releases in the past were released in theaters without being fully prepared thanks to lucrative OTT deals. He confirmed this to indianexpress.com.
OTT contract
According to an industry source, some Hindi filmmakers now get most of their funding through OTT, satellite and music rights, so they blindly start working with the “lowest risk”. It is said that there is. As a result, makers no longer care about the ideal release date of their films. With the rise of the OTT market, some producers have become content knowing that they will earn a certain amount of money regardless of box office receipts.
“Everyone today is bound by OTT contracts and they have to deliver their films by a certain date, otherwise the contract expires and they have to look for a new partner,” the source said. added.
After the reopening of theaters post-pandemic, Bollywood films are running on an eight-week window on OTT. This means that a Hindi movie will be available for streaming only after eight weeks have been completed from its theatrical release.
This is why many films in the past were rushed into theatrical release to ensure that OTT contracts were honored and not defaulted. “There are a lot of movies that are released on a certain date, even if they’re unfinished, just because if you push back the release date, you miss out on the OTT deal.”
The source claims that the action actor, who made a huge splash at the box office last month, was “released in a hurry” even though he wasn’t completely ready. Hawkish users on Reddit were also quick to spot and criticize his unfinished VFX for the film.
“The film in question was also unfinished, but based on the eight-week grace period, any further delay in theatrical release would invalidate the contract, so it had to be released that Friday,” the source said. insisted.
What happens if an OTT deal fails?
Most of the films released this year were conceived in 2021-22, when the OTT market was at its peak. This was also a time when streaming platforms were buying “everything,” according to industry insiders.
“All the films released this year have sold OTT and satellite rights in 2022,” another source added. So if you have a contract, you cannot change the contract, but there is a loophole.
“There are pitfalls if a film gets delayed and the producers miss the release date. OTT players are now hoping that some of these films will be postponed so they can back out of the deal and save money. If the original contract expires, a new contract will need to be entered into, and the amount at that time will be determined based on current market value, which is clearly higher than the range at the peak of the pandemic. It’s probably too small!”
OTT pricing
There is no average price at which OTT buys movies. This depends on several factors like star cast and genre. According to industry sources, high-profile films like Shah Rukh Khan’s “Jawan” are expected to be acquired by Netflix for about 150 rupees, the same amount as “Danki” released in December.
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“On the digital front, the consumption of Shah Rukh Khan’s films has always been the highest and even when he did poorly in theaters, his films have done well on digital. Now that he is back to his peak, His market value in the world is far higher than any other actor.
“The average price of his films is around Rs 150, while ‘Tiger 3’ starring Salman Khan is around Rs 125. OMG 2 is being sold for Rs 80-90 digitally due to franchise value. Also, although it was ready in 2022, it was sold in 2021 when the market is different and Akshay Kumar’s positioning is also different,” the source added. .
Some producers have managed to release their films in theaters even though they remain unfinished, but this case may not be the same in the future as even OTT players are seeing through . “Movies that are launching now are finding it difficult to get the same amount of money from OTT and satellite channels. This was inevitable. It’s time to start paying,” the source added.
(Tag Translate) Ajay Bahl
