Disney is demanding a lot for cinemas wanting to screen the upcoming Star Wars: The Last Jedi movie, thanks to the force being strong with the re-booted Star Wars franchise.
Given how Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Rogue One were box office hit, attracting both new and old Star Wars fans alike, The Last Jedi is set to be another heavyweight film for cinemas when it screens in December.
And Disney knows that very well, so much so that it’s demanding theatres need to hand over 65% of their ticket revenue from the movie, a record high for a Hollywood studio, according to The Wall Street Journal.
But the demands don’t look to be ending there, in what appears to be an embrace of the dark side, Disney also wants The Last Jedi to be shown in the largest auditorium of the cinemas screening the movie. And they’ll need to do so for four weeks.
This could be a problem for towns with smaller cinemas and populations, as they’d be forced to show a film that many people may have already seen for a month, which could see participating theatres bleed money.
However, the cinemas are reportedly being forced to sign a contract that no only prevents them from doing any marketing around The Last Jedi unless Disney approves it, but will also see them charged if they violate the terms of the agreement and show another film in their main auditorium during the four week period.
This puts cinemas in a rather awkward position, as not screening The Last Jedi could be a costly mistake, but then again agreeing to Disney’s demands may be equally expensive,
Star Wars: The Last Jedi hits cinemas worldwide on December 15.
Related: Star Wars trailer teases epic Skywalker scene in The Last Jedi
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
