#hit character from the worldwide popular monster show stranger things

[scarlyrubies]

saw a very mike looking guy today. he was playing guitar for his music school concert but he was trying real hard to be chill about it. he kept looking away and pretended like he didn’t care about anything happening but then as soon as someone who was presenting wasn’t talking loud enough, he got really annoyed and anxiously tapped his finger on his guitar while subtly rolling his eyes. he also had shaggy hair that seemed like it hadn’t been brushed for centuries and had very limp wrists.

had to refrain myself from asking whether or not he was in love with his best friend

[recentanimenews]

Licensing of the Monsters: How Pokémon Ignited An Anime Arms Race

  "Hey, what do ya' got there? A rabbit?" Batman asks his mentor, staring at a video of Pikachu on a massive underground computer screen.

  "It's a Pokémon," Bruce Wayne replies.

  Five seconds later, Batman is shocked so hard by the tiny yellow creature that he ends up flying headfirst through another computer monitor (Using a clip from the "Blackout" episode of Batman Beyond, an episode that would've aired for the first time just days earlier.) It doesn't make much physical sense, but this bizarre 1999 crossover promo did establish two things: 1) Pokémon was coming to Kids' WB, and 2) Pokémon was important. So important that Batman actually took time away from obsessing over crime and vengeance to care about it.

  Echoing a 1997 promo where the comedic Bugs Bunny let us in on the "secret" that the serious, dark Batman was coming to Kids' WB, it almost seems like a passing of the torch. Kids' WB, up until then, was a programming service chock full of classic Warner Bros. cartoon properties like Bugs, Daffy, Pinky, Brain, and various members of the Justice League — all animated Americana. 

Pokémon wasn't a huge risk as the 4Kids Entertainment dub of the show had done well in broadcast syndication, they had plenty of episodes to work with (sometimes airing three in a row), and it was based on a game series that was already a worldwide smash hit.

  But the show was ... different.

  And it would end up changing cartoons as we knew them.

  Part 1: Batman Jumps Ship

  It's hard to think of a better scenario when it comes to appealing to kids than the one Fox Kids had with Batman: The Animated Series. Debuting in September 1992 and airing on weekdays just after school let out, it received immediate acclaim due to its moody, beautiful animation and storytelling that didn't talk down to anyone. Little kids could get into Batman throwing crooks around and adults could marvel at plots like the one where a former child actress with a medical condition that keeps her from aging takes her former co-stars hostage and ends up holding a gun, hallucinating, and sobbing into Batman's arms.

  It did so well that Fox tried to air it on prime-time Sundays and though this was short-lived — turns out, Batman was no match for Ed Bradley on CBS's 60 Minutes — it solidified the show as "cool." This was a show that could hang with the big boys. You couldn't say the same of something like Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends.

  And then, in 1997, it was gone. A five-year contract ran out and Batman leapt completely to Kids' WB, where a continuation of the show (the often even grimmer The New Batman Adventures) aired later that year. There, it joined Superman: The Animated Series in a one-two punch of programming called The New Batman/Superman Adventures. When it came to Kids' WB, competitors not only had to deal with the Merry Melodies crowd, they now had to face the World's Finest Heroes.

  This, along with a departing Animaniacs, left Fox Kids with a gap in flagship programming. Sure it had various incarnations of the Power Rangers (which was still holding strong) and Spider-Man, but if you look back on 1998 programming, little of it would survive the year. Silver Surfer? Gone by May. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation? Out by December. Casper? Dead in October. By May of 1999, Warner Media would announce record ratings thanks to Pokémon, while its competitors, including the Disney-led ABC, Fox, and even Nickelodeon, would suffer losses in the Saturday morning area. Pokemon would have the best ever series premiere numbers for Kids' WB at the time.

    A chunk of that has to do with 4Kids Entertainment's (or to be more specific, 4Kids Productions) handling of the show. Again, Pokémon was a proven concept. If you love monsters, adventure, and collecting things, you'll probably find something to enjoy in the franchise. But the dub was particularly strong. For years, dubbing was seen as an inherently laughable thing in America, full of exasperated voice actors trying desperately to convince you that they weren't portraying three different characters, and lips that didn't match the dialogue. Entire Japanese series were reduced to laughing stocks in the U.S. because why focus on the lovingly created miniatures and top-notch tokusatsu action in Godzilla if one of the actors sounds weird?

  But while Pokémon wasn't the first great dub, it was a remarkably underrated one. Veronica Taylor's work as Ash Ketchum was relatable, funny, and consistent. And Racheal Lillis, Eric Stuart, and Maddie Blaustein's turns as Team Rocket's Jessie, James, and Meowth gave us villains that could've easily been the most repetitive parts of the show  — you can only try to capture Pikachu so many times before you should logically find a second hobby — but instead were one of the most entertaining aspects.

  Aside from some easily meme-able bits — Brock's drying pan and jelly donuts, for example — Pokemon became a seamless addition to the Kids' WB lineup and would end up giving many fans a lifelong love of anime. And it was great for 4Kids, too, as in 2000, they would be number one on Fortune's 100 Fastest-Growing Companies.

  Fox Kids wanted an answer to this. And it would soon find one.

  Well, two.

  Part 2: Monsters Rule

  Saban Entertainment was no stranger to Fox Kids. They'd been the one to adapt Toei's Super Sentai into The Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers for American and international audiences, creating an unexpected sensation that combined monsters and martial arts. And in 1999, they nabbed Digimon Adventure, a series about kids that gain "digital" monster partners when transported to a "digital world," which had begun airing earlier that year in Japan. Based on a fighting virtual pet that had already been around for a few years, Digimon was a natural fit for an anime series and also a natural fit for a climate that was desperately trying to find the next Pokémon.

  Renamed Digimon: Digital Monsters, it premiered in August of 1999. Of course, accusations followed that it was a Pokémon rip-off, considering that they were both about befriending terrifying laser critters, but they offered fairly different things. While Pokémon was more episodic, Digimon gave viewers a more Dragon Ball Z-esque experience (they were both Toei productions, too) with the titular monsters evolving and gaining "power-ups" due to fighting increasingly powerful villains.

  Almost two months later, Monster Rancher would join the Fox Kids lineup, airing on Saturdays at 8:30 AM after Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century (a Fox Kids lost relic if there ever was one). Together, Monster Rancher and Digimon would cover the programming block with monster action, sometimes airing twice each. Meanwhile, Pokémon would do the same for Kids' WB, and if you look at their Saturday morning schedules from 1999 and 2000, it appears they just shoved Pikachu in whenever possible.

  Looking back on Monster Rancher is always odd, though, because it's so specifically trapped in the time period where it originated. The video games used metadata from readable discs to create new monsters for the player, meaning that as soon as people gained the ability to download or stream media online without having to travel to their local Circuit City, the game would look absolutely archaic in comparison to its peers.

  Monster Rancher is a very fun show based on some very fun games, and the dynamic array of personalities and their particular squabbles in the core group actually reminds me a lot of One Piece. But even the show itself deals with reviving monsters on giant stone discs — a prehistoric-looking adaptation of a video game gimmick that would, a decade later, appear prehistoric itself.

  The Monster War was waged across 2000 and 2001. And though it appears Pokémon was the clear winner — in 2020, it's the most popular franchise with the widest reach, even if Digimon does produce some stellar shows and movies — the ratings tell a different story. In the May sweeps of 2000, Pokémon (and Kids' WB) took the prize among kids 6-11, but in the end, Fox Kids would score a victory of a 3.1 rating to Kids' WB's 3.0 (the first sweeps win since 1997, the year that Batman left.)

    Early the following year, Fox Kids would score again, narrowly beating Pokémon on Saturday morning in the same timeslot and even coming ahead of properties like X-Men. And what would propel this February 10th victory? The first appearance of BlackWarGreymon, the Shadow the Hedgehog to WarGreymon's Sonic.

  However, Pokémon would still help create ratings records for Kids' WB, even though late 2000/early 2001 saw a slide that would often cede dominance to Nickelodeon. Jed Patrick, who was president of The WB at the time said: "I didn't think Pokémon would fall off as much as it did ... every fire cools down a little, but that doesn't mean it doesn't stay hot."

  Even though, in retrospect, claims that "Pokemania" had died seem a little ridiculous — the latest games, Pokémon Sword and Shield, just became the highest-selling entries in seventeen years — big changes were ahead.

  Part 3: It's Time To Duel ... Or Not

  In early 2001, Joel Andryc, executive VP of kids' programming and development for Fox Kids, was looking for a "Digimon companion series to create an hour-long anime block." He felt they were too reliant on Digimon, as they were airing it three times in a single morning. Likely not coincidentally, that summer Fox Kids Fridays were dubbed "anime invasion," advertising Flint The Time Detective, Dinozaurs, Escaflowne, and Digimon. In one commercial, a single quote zips across the bottom of the screen: "Anime Rocks!" Nicole, TX

  That it does, Nicole from Texas.

  Meanwhile, 4Kids Entertainment would provide Kids' WB with another monster show: Yu-Gi-Oh! Known as Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters in Japan, this anime adaptation absconded from retelling the stories found in the early chapters of the manga — which were mostly devoted to Yugi running into jerks, only to have his Egyptian spirit "alter ego" deal karmic retribution on them — and instead focused on the parts that involved the cool monster fights. So basically the parts that were the most like Pokémon.

  But how would this be received? In 2000, Canadian studio Nelvana had licensed the anime Cardcaptor Sakura and turned it simply into Cardcaptors — an extremely edited version that removed many important relationships and plotlines and tried to streamline the show into a pseudo-Pokémon story. It's gone down in history as one of the most questionable dubs ever, and never really made a splash on Kids' WB. So they wouldn't want a repeat of that.

  But would kids be into a card game? The cards did summon monsters, but in Pokémon and Digimon, the monsters are just there, moving around and not relegated to a glorified checkers board arena. It turned out, yes, kids would be REALLY into that. Yu-Gi-Oh! debuted at number one in multiple demographics in September 2001, and would remain a steady part of its lineup for years to come.

    And how did Fox Kids respond? Did the "anime invasion" work out? Well, sort of, but not in the way they were hoping.

  In 2001, due to diminishing ratings and audiences, Fox Kids Worldwide (along with Fox Family Worldwide) were sold to The Walt Disney Company. By November 7th, they'd canceled their weekly afternoon blocks, and the next year, they'd end up selling their entire Saturday morning block to a company that had provided their rivals with the very same TV shows that aided in sinking them: 4Kids Entertainment. The final show to premiere on the original Fox Kids was Galidor: Defenders of the Outer Dimension, a live action series that stood beside Alienators: Evolution Continues (a cartoon sequel to the mediocre 2001 comedy Evolution) and the underrated Medabots as the block's last gasp. 

  Renamed FoxBox in late 2002 (and later 4KidsTV in 2005), the 4Kids run schedule would, over the years, include anime like Kirby! Right Back At Ya!, Ultimate Muscle, Fighting Foodons, Sonic X, Shaman King, and eventually, in 2004, the infamous One Piece dub. The first Saturday of the new FoxBox lineup would also outdo the previous Saturday's Fox Kids lineup. Disney would acquire the rights to Digimon and it showed up on ABC Family in late 2001 (eighteen years later, a reboot of the original series would air, which can be watched on Crunchyroll).

  Eventually, in 2007, the Monster War would come full circle. 4Kids Entertainment announced they would be taking over the Kids' WB Saturday morning block entirely, renaming it the "CW4KIDS," as The CW had been born after UPN and The WB had ceased to be. Pokémon was long gone by this point, having been dropped by Kids' WB in 2006, and was now overseen by The Pokémon Company International on Cartoon Network.

  "We wish Pokémon USA much success going forward," the CEO of 4Kids Entertainment said. Later sued over "illegal agreements" regarding the Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise, the company would eventually file for bankruptcy in 2016. Pokémon Journeys, the latest installment in the franchise, launches on Netflix on June 12th. 

      Daniel Dockery is a Senior Staff Writer for Crunchyroll. Follow him on Twitter!

  Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[jobsearchtips02]

The leading 9 programs on Netflix and other streaming services today

” Tiger King”.

Netflix.

Every week, Parrot Analytics supplies Service Insider with a list of the nine most sought-after initial TELEVISION shows on streaming services in the United States.

Today’s list consists of Netflix’s “Tiger King” and “Cash Heist.”

See Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

Netflix’s hit true-crime docuseries “Tiger King: Murder, Trouble, and Madness” continues to enthrall audiences, as does its Spanish language police procedural “Money Heist,” which debuted its fourth season on April 3.

Every week, Parrot Analytics supplies Service Expert with a list of the nine most in-demand TELEVISION programs on streaming services in the United States.

The data is based on “ need expressions,” Parrot Analytics’ worldwide standardized TV-demand measurement unit. Audience demand shows the desire, engagement, and viewership weighted by value, so a stream or a download is a higher expression of demand than a “like” or a talk about social networks, for example.

Below are today’s nine most popular original programs on Netflix and other streaming services:

9. “Narcos: Mexico” (Netflix)

— The Brink( Season 2)

Season 2 premiered February 13 on Netflix.

8. “The Witcher” (Netflix)

Average demand expressions: 39,527,777

Description: ” Geralt of Rivia, an altered monster-hunter for hire, journeys towards his destiny in a rough world where people typically show more wicked than beasts.”

Rotten Tomatoes critic rating (Season 1): 67%

What critics said: “Who was that character? Which group do they come from once again? What timeline are we in? The whirlwind of hardly explained backstory turns you into your hopelessly lost parent who just can’t appear to determine how to DVR Wrongdoer Minds.”– Observer( Season 1)

Season 1 premiered on Netflix on December20 See more insights here

7. “Titans” (DC Universe)

Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 2): 81%

What critics said: “This compelling drama supplied much of the gifted cast with some juicy product, while likewise permitting the show to continue to go from strength-to-strength. Æ– What Culture( Season 2)

Season 2 premiered on DC Universe on September 6.

6. “Ozark” (Netflix)

Average need expressions: 46,027,258

Description: ” A financial advisor drags his family from Chicago to the Missouri Ozarks, where he must wash $500 million in 5 years to calm a drug employer.”

Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 3): 97%

What critics said: “Season 3 is the very best season of the series so far. The story line arc works quite well, with seeds planted early on that flower in the later episodes.”– Boston World(Season 3)

Season 3 premiered March 27 on Netflix. See more insights here

5. “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” (Disney Plus)

— IGN( season 7)

Season 7 premiered on February 21 on Disney Plus.

4. “The Mandalorian” (Disney Plus)

Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 1): 93%

What critics stated: “For all its sci-fi stiltedness, The Mandalorian established an engaging misconception, a world of fear, ethical dilemmas and, aah, small space kittycat things. See more insights here

3. “Cash Heist (La Casa de Papel)” (Netflix)

Typical need expressions: 56,827,117

Description: “8 thieves hijack and lock themselves in the Royal Mint of Spain as a criminal mastermind controls the authorities to carry out his plan.”

Rotten Tomatoes critic rating (Season 4): 71%

What critics stated: “The star ranking here is for the series as an entire, which is peerless escapism. But apathy is embeding in.”– Independent(Season 4)

Season 4 premiered on Netflix April 3. See more insights here

2. “Tiger King: Murder, Trouble, and Madness” (Netflix)

Typical need expressions: 64,243,830

Description: “A zoo owner spirals out of control amidst a cast of eccentric characters in this true murder-for-hire story from the underworld of big feline breeding.”

Rotten Tomatoes critic rating (Season 1): 89%

What critics stated: “A compelling series in fits and starts that does not amount to much more than a trip through an extremely odd world filled with incredibly strange individuals.”– Newsday(Season 1)

Season 1 premiered on Netflix March20 See more insights here

1. “Stranger Things” (Netflix)

Average demand expressions: 66,740,601

Description: ” When a young kid disappears, a town discovers a mystery involving secret experiments.”

Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 3): 89%

What critics said: “The rhythm of ‘Complete stranger Things’ has never been tighter, however it helps that the cast feels elevated too.”– RogerEbert.com( Season 3)

Season 3 premiered July 4 on Netflix. See more insights here

.

.

Disclosure: Mathias Döpfner, CEO of Organisation Expert’s parent company, Axel Springer, is a Netflix board member.

More:

Features Netflix Disney Plus DC Universe

%%.

from Job Search Tips https://jobsearchtips.net/the-leading-9-programs-on-netflix-and-other-streaming-services-today/

[teoriconcapital]

The top 9 shows on Netflix and other streaming services this week

"Star Wars: The Clone Wars" season 7 Disney Plus Every week, Parrot Analytics provides Business Insider with a list of the nine most in-demand original TV shows on streaming services in the US.This week's list includes Netflix's "Stranger Things" and Disney Plus' "Star Wars: The Clone Wars."Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Netflix's "Stranger Things" has surged to the top of this week's demand ranking thanks to the release last week of a season four teaser. Every week, Parrot Analytics provides Business Insider with a list of the nine most in-demand TV shows on streaming services in the US. The data is based on "demand expressions," Parrot Analytics' globally standardized TV-demand measurement unit. Audience demand reflects the desire, engagement, and viewership weighted by importance, so a stream or a download is a higher expression of demand than a "like" or a comment on social media, for instance. "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" returned to the list, as the final season premiered on Disney Plus on Friday. Parrot Analytics told Business Insider that demand for "The Clone Wars" that was 143% higher than demand for "The Mandalorian" three days ahead of their respective premieres.  Meanwhile, Netflix's hit fantasy series "The Witcher" continues to lose audience demand in the US, but it's still the biggest series worldwide. Below are this week's nine most popular original shows on Netflix and other streaming services:

9. "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina" (Netflix)

Netflix Average demand expressions: 32,945,389 Description: "Magic and mischief collide as half-human, half-witch Sabrina navigates between two worlds: mortal teen life and her family's legacy, the Church of Night." Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 3): 89% What critics said: "Woefully, Part 3 loses the sense of dread and horror that pervaded the first two seasons." — Film Inquiry (season 3) Season 3 premiered on January 24 on Netflix. See more insights here.

8. "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" (Disney Plus)

Disney Plus Average demand expressions: 37,990,043 Description: "From Dave Filoni, director and executive producer of 'The Mandalorian,' the new Clone Wars episodes will continue the storylines introduced in the original series, exploring the events leading up to 'Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith.'" Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 6): 100% What critics said: "It works to rectify the mistakes of the prequels by filling in all the gaps and adding many, many layers of nuance to the major characters. It manages to have fun while also telling serious and sometimes even tragic stories." — AV Club (season 6) Season 7 premiered on February 21 on Disney Plus. See more insights here.

7. "Star Trek: Picard" (CBS All Access)

CBS All Access Average demand expressions: 45,385,505 Description: "'Star Trek: Picard' features Sir Patrick Stewart reprising his iconic role as Jean-Luc Picard, which he played for seven seasons on 'Star Trek: The Next Generation.' The new series will follow this iconic character into the next chapter of his life." Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 2): 90% What critics said: "Picard brings the unpredictable to a series that has relied on happy endings for so long; we have grown up now, and we are able to see more of this universe, both good and bad." — Film Bunker (season 1) Season 1 premiered on January 23 on CBS All Access. See more insights here.

6. "Titans" (DC Universe)

DC Universe Average demand expressions: 47,822,259 Description: "'Titans' follows young heroes from across the DC Universe as they come of age and find belonging in a gritty take on the classic Teen Titans franchise. Dick Grayson and Rachel Roth, a special young girl possessed by a strange darkness, get embroiled in a conspiracy that could bring Hell on Earth. Joining them along the way are the hot-headed Starfire and lovable Beast Boy. Together they become a surrogate family and team of heroes." Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 2): 85% What critics said: "It's ridiculous how much better this season of Titans has been over the first year. Each episode feels like it's setting the new high mark for the series." — Lyles' Movie Files (Season 2) Season 2 premiered on DC Universe on September 6. See more insights here.

5. "Narcos: Mexico" (Netflix)

Netflix Average demand expressions: 49,651,373 Description: "Witness the birth of the Mexican drug war in the 1980s as a gritty new ‚Narcos' saga chronicles the true story of the Guadalajara cartel's ascent." Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 2): 82% What critics said: "Narcos: Mexico is still comfort food for crime-drama lovers, but there are additional spices for extra kick. Those who indulge will once again be seduced into binging rather than savoring this juiced-up course." — Uproxx (Season 2) Season 2 premiered February 13 on Netflix. See more insights here.

4. "The Witcher" (Netflix)

Netflix Average demand expressions: 56,717,594 Description: "Geralt of Rivia, a mutated monster-hunter for hire, journeys toward his destiny in a turbulent world where people often prove more wicked than beasts." Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 1): 66% What critics said: "Part GOT, LOTR and Harry Potter, The Witcher's first season is a winner. Henry Cavill is perfectly cast in this sexy, fantastical world with lots of potential." — CineXpress (Season 1) Season 1 premiered on Netflix on December 20. See more insights here.

3. "Harley Quinn" (DC Universe)

DC Universe Average demand expressions: 59,543,184 Description: "Harley Quinn has finally broken things off with the Joker and attempts to make it on her own as the criminal Queenpin of Gotham City in this adult animated action-comedy series which also features Poison Ivy and a whole cast of heroes and villains, old and new, from the DC Universe." Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 1): 89% What critics said: "The series does a great job in proving something that all us Harley fans have known since her inception: Harley Quinn is much more than her relationship with Joker." — Geeks of Color (season 1) Season 1 premiered on November 29 on DC Universe. See more insights here.

2. "The Mandalorian" (Disney Plus)

Associated Press Average demand expressions: 68,947,047 Description: "After the fall of the Empire, a lone gunfighter makes his way through the lawless galaxy." Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 1): 95% What critics said: "It seems Lucas' family-friendly combination of high stakes in deep space with a strong sense of spiritual mystery is still a winning formula." — World Magazine (Season 1) Season 1 premiered on Disney Plus on November 12. See more insights here.

1. "Stranger Things" (Netflix)

Netflix Average demand expressions: 89,405,773 Description: "When a young boy vanishes, a small town uncovers a mystery involving secret experiments." Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 3): 89% What critics said: "It was the right mixture of fun and spooks and action and good ol' fashioned friendship. It was a gory technicolour delight, and evoked the same joy from the first season, but with a more grown-up energy." — Junkee (Season 3) Season 3 premiered July 4 on Netflix. See more insights here. Disclosure: Mathias Döpfner, CEO of Business Insider's parent company, Axel Springer, is a Netflix board member. More: Features Netflix Disney Plus CBS All Access Chevron iconIt indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options. Read the full article

[businessliveme]

Netflix Hopes ‘Stranger Things’ Can Be Its Billion-Dollar Franchise

(Bloomberg) — Days before the July 4 holiday in the U.S., hundreds of fans of “Stranger Things” lined up along the beach in Santa Monica, California, to attend a fair modeled after the Netflix Inc. show.

Clad in shirts with the names of characters and the high school in fictional Indiana, they waited more than an hour to ride a Ferris wheel, eat ice cream and snap selfies in a photo booth.

Read: These Netflix Shows Should Be On Your Radar Pronto

The event, one of two in the U.S., is part of the biggest marketing campaign ever undertaken by Netflix, the world’s largest paid online TV network. Over the past few weeks, Netflix has attached “Stranger Things” to Schwinn bikes, Nike shoes and Coke soft drinks — all to hype the Independence Day arrival of the show’s third season.

Read: Netflix to Adapt Classic Novel ‘100 Years of Solitude’ as Series

On Monday, Netflix begins a long promotion with Microsoft Corp. The tech giant is bringing back Windows 1, the first version of the software that made it the most valuable company. The app includes Microsoft Paint and the word processor Write, as well as games and videos from “Stranger Things.” The show is set in 1985, the same year Windows 1 was released.

Like any campaign, this one is designed to draw in current fans and attract potential new ones. But it’s also an important test of whether Netflix can turn “Stranger Things,” already its most popular original show in the U.S., into something much bigger. The company, with worldwide subscribers approaching 160 million, is beginning to angle for a piece of the $122 billion consumers spend on entertainment-linked merchandise.

“The category is massive, and Netflix wants to play a part,” said Gene Del Vecchio, a consultant and adjunct marketing professor at the University of Southern California. “They are going to need a strategic plan if they really want to reap the benefits as they go forward.”

Pillars of Profit

The world’s largest entertainment companies are built on properties like “SpongeBob SquarePants,” “Star Wars” and “Batman” that remain in the public eye via T-shirts, games and toys long after people stop watching the latest season. “Star Wars” has generated more than $20 billion in merchandise sales — a virtuous cycle in which T-shirts and action figures drive ticket sales for each new movie.

For all of Netflix’s success, it has struggled to dispel industry criticism that it churns through projects, never giving a show more than a few weeks in the spotlight. The Los Gatos, California-based company cancels the vast majority of new series after just a couple seasons because viewership falls off. Sustaining interest is the key if Netflix wants its shows to sell toys, clothing and video games.

“Stranger Things” debuted over the July 4 weekend in 2016 with little fanfare. A quirky piece of nostalgia for the 1980s, the show was created by two brothers without a hit to their name and a cast full of kids and journeyman actors. The creators were initially concerned because they saw few billboards or traditional marketing materials.

Magnet for Viewers

Viewers showed up right away. Within weeks, the cast was on magazine covers and talk shows. The show was nominated for Emmy awards, and was, by outside estimates, one of Netflix’s most-watched original series.

“Whenever we do survey work, it’s the No. 1 show in terms of customer favorites,” said Michael Nathanson, an analyst with MoffettNathanson LLC.

“Stranger Things” proved Netflix could make a hit on its own. Unlike “House of Cards,” “Orange Is the New Black” or “The Crown,” the show was produced without the help of a major studio. It is also the kind of hit media companies dream about. It appeals to all ages, and lends itself to costumes and toys. But Netflix didn’t even have a licensing department when that first season appeared.

“Stranger Things” has since served as Netflix’s marketing guinea pig. The company bought its first Super Bowl ad to promote season two, and forged deals for “Stranger Things” T-shirts, dolls and a mobile game.

In September, Netflix hired Disney veteran Christie Fleischer to lead its consumer products group. She, in turn, has beefed up the group with additional hires from Disney.

While Netflix has a huge head start on traditional media companies in streaming, Disney is still the model for a modern entertainment company. Every new TV show or movie at Disney is the start of a franchise that makes money in a multitude of ways.

Frozen Treats

“Frozen” generated $531 million in toy sales in the U.S. in 2014, according to research firm NPD Group Inc. “Star Wars” is a video game, theme-park attraction and toy juggernaut.

“Netflix stumbled into ‘Stranger Things’ merchandise,” Del Vecchio said.

It’s an open question whether Netflix can develop shows that deliver those kinds of sales. Internet TV is still in its early days, and the company debuts whole series all at once, making it harder to sustain the attention of viewers the way a weekly program might.

“The shows get big buzz and then start to fade,” said Allen Bohbot, who produces the kids’ show “Super Monsters” for Netflix. “With TV, the show is on every day and repeats every week. There is a constant in-your-face reminder to a kid that a show will be there.”

He can speak first hand. Netflix bought the underlying characters from “Super Monsters” and licensed Hasbro Inc. to produce a line of toys. The toys didn’t catch on in a big way, and a more ambitious release schedule for the show didn’t seem to help.

None of those concerns have stopped some of the world’s largest companies from working with Netflix and “Stranger Things” to reach new customers.

“We’re always out looking for things we can do to drive and build cultural relevance,” said Eli Friedman, Microsoft’s general manager of brand marketing. “There’s lots of buzz around the show.”

Shares of the streaming company have risen 41% this year, compared with a 19% gain for the S&P 500 Index.

Tech Camp

The promotion with Microsoft will last all summer. The software giant will produce a video game rooted in “Stranger Things” and offer science camps at its U.S. stores all summer, named after the “Camp Know Where” in the series. Technophiles will be able to take science and engineering classes at more than 80 stores in the U.S., and learn how to make a minigame tied to the series.

Fleischer has been laying the groundwork for the “Stranger Things” promotion for months, and, for the first time will roll out products worldwide, including Latin America, Asia and Europe.

The company is developing campaigns for “Dark Crystal,” a series based on the Jim Henson characters, “Klaus,” an animated movie, and “La Casa de Papel,” a Spanish heist show, according to people familiar with the company’s plans who asked not to be identified. In 2020, a Finnish video game company will release a mobile game based on “Stranger Things.”

Bohbot, who produces “Super Monsters,” believes Netflix will ultimately figure out how to turn its online hits into merchandising bonanzas.

“Nickelodeon was nothing until SpongeBob came along and became a hit,” Bohbot said.

The post Netflix Hopes ‘Stranger Things’ Can Be Its Billion-Dollar Franchise appeared first on Businessliveme.com.

from WordPress https://ift.tt/2Y0k23G via IFTTT

[hottytoddynews]

We’ve gotten used to the Christmas holiday season beginning around Halloween, but how often has Halloween thriller season begun the week after Labor Day? As the studios and moviemakers have learned, there’s a huge audience for horror. If you are skeptical, look at the grosses for new latest in Tyler Perry’s Madea franchise. Major record-breaking!

For the longest time, producers/studios would grind out assembly-line horror, capitalizing on mindless or copycat sequels of original hits that would make you groan, “Been there, seen it.” But even the usual suspects have come around; and there seems to be a newbie at the game: Blumhouse Productions, which this season could be crowned Prince of Horror.

You might say that horror season began way before Halloween — even in February. That’s when Get Out! (Blumhouse Productions/Universal), featuring Bradley Whitford, Catherine Keener, Allison Williams (TV’s Girls) and young Brit Daniel Kaluuya (TV’s Babylon; upcoming Watership Down mini-series based on Richard Adams novel) hit cineplexes. It wasn’t a cookie-cutter, standard-issue thriller, but smart and well made – and had a sense of humor. It also offered a thoughtful look at the race issues making headlines.

Young Anglo woman (Williams) invites Afro-American young man (Kaluuya) for a meet-the-parents getaway, where he finds the family overly accommodating — an effort to deal with their daughter’s interracial relationship. As the weekend progresses, disturbing discoveries come to a head and lead him to a truth he never could have imagined. Something different, yes? And, going even further, it was R-rated. That usually can be the death knell to a film pitched for teens, the catalyst for a film’s opening weekend. They came, whether accompanied by an adult or with fake I.D.s. A film budgeted at a minuscule $5 million has raked in over $175.5 million. 

Jeepers Creepers III (Infinity/Screen Media) quickly followed. Set between the first and second film, it was quickly obvious it was in the lesser category. Sergeant Tubbs (Brandon Smith) went about attempting to learn the secrets and identify of Creeper (Jonathan Breck), the monster terrorizes a local farming community. Lovely Trisha (Gina Phillips) was sort of pushed aside for the introduction of Gaylen Brandon (Meg Foster (TVs Pretty Little Liars and Ravenswood), stealing the film, as someone with a history with the Creeper. It didn’t help. Initial audiences were bored, word-of-mouth was a downer. Made for $18 million, it grossed a paltry $2.3 million (JC1 exploded at the box office with sales of $35.7 million). Maybe the gross will rise – a bit – with the DVDs’ December release.

Oscar nominee Jennifer Jason Leigh, Bella Thorne (Boo!: A Madea Halloween; TV’s Famous in Love, Big Love), Thomas Mann (Kong: Skull Island), and Kurtwood Smith (TV’s That 70s Show) weren’t enough to turn the lack of horror in Amityville: The Awakening (Blumhouse Productions/Dimension/TWC) into a silk purse. After a two-year shelf life, it was comatose (like Belle‘s twin brother) on arrival.

Then Came September   

“When you are a kid you think the world revolves around you, that you’ll always be protected, care for. Then, one day: a friend goes missing.” The opening words of It (New Line/Warner Bros./RatPac-Dune Entertainment), the cinema adaptation of the 1990 three-hour mini-series based on Stephen King’s terrifying best-seller, leads audiences on a thrill ride as satisfying as any on a mega coaster. The plot line involves kids of a small town, rumored to be cursed, disappearing in bloody spades. A gang of seven, led by Richie (Finn Wolfhard, Mikie on Stranger Things), united by their horrifying and strange encounters with the evil Pennywise the Clown (Bill Skarsgård), mount their bikes determined to kill “It.” Been there, seen it? But, even with parallels to Stand By Me, The Goonies, and TV’s Stranger Things, it rises to the occasion. Here, though much condensed, it’s all about bonding and the paranormal, but the paranormal’s never been quite like this: Atmosphere (that haunted house; and especially the horrific finale, which even tops David Lean’s in The Third Man), piercing score by Benjamin Wallfisch (Blade Runner 2049, Annabelle: Creation, Hidden Figures), jump-scare sound effects, and, best of all, the brotherly-love kiss to bring back the living dead. Argentine Andy Muschietti (2013 horror thriller Mama) is set to helm the 2019 sequel.

Oddly, with a cast of youngsters, the film’s R-rated for violence and, something you don’t hear often, F words cascading out of the mouths of babes. That hasn’t stopped it from blockbuster status – grossing $179 million in less than two months, ($189.5 million worldwide) on a budget of $35 million.  Reminder: whether pouring cats and dogs or not, on Jackson Street or any other, never look deep into those corner drains!

Happy Death Day (Blumhouse Productions/Universal Pictures) is a dark comedy mystery horror thriller borrowing lavishly from the classic Groundhog Day. On her birthday, teenager Tree (excellent Jessica Rothe) concludes that it will be her last one. That is, IF she can figure out who her killer is. To do that, she relives the day over and over – dying in a different way on each one. No way you’ll snooze, as you get sucked in even before the film begins [You’ll see]. Keep a keen eye on Tree. Christopher Landon (Disturbia, Paranormal Activity) knows how to keep you on the edge of your seat. Shooting in New Orleans’ Garden District, home to the streetcar and fabled mansions, adds tons of atmosphere.

In Boo 2: A Madea Halloween (Tyler Perry Company/Lionsgate) Madea, Bam, and Hattie venture to a haunted campground where they end up running for their lives from a boogeyman, goblins, and monsters, goblins, and the boogeyman are unleashed. Perry has an audience for his sometimes amateurish movies that  segue between embarrassing and somewhat funny. He comes up with great ideas and one has to be envious of his multi-talents and following. In his films, he  plays a lot of characters – some, such as Madea, much better than others. Maybe the mistake is in doing it all: writing, directing, and co-producing.  Boo! 2. But the film shot out of the gate October 20 and astonished the industry selling performances out. Budgeted at $25 milion, it has already grossed $35.5 million. Boo! 2 became an instant hit. Budgeted at $25 million, it’s close to exceeding that in just over a week.

Jigsaw (Serendipity Productions/Lionsgate) is the eighth title in the Saw franchise, which became a popular slasher series with face-cringing, spine tingling twists to the serial killer saga and a look at the day’s social mores. Then it ended, until this past weekend when it’s been reborn in hopes of bringing in more moola. As bodies drop everywhere – each with gruesome demise that fit Jigsaw’s style, police find themselves chasing the ghost of a man presumed dead for over a decade (Tobin Bell), and become embroiled in a new cat and mouse game. Is Jiggy/John Kramer back? Is this a copy cat? Or  are they falling into a trap set by another monster? The story is told in such a fast pace that there’s little time for character development. However, it gets props for the show-stopping, head-rolling finale. The film got a knife in its back from critics and moviegoers. One reviewer’s assessment: “Watching Jigsaw is a dumb, ugly waste of energy.”

There Was Another Horror at the Weekend Box Office

Suburbicon (Paramount/Dark Castle/Black Bear Pictures) – It had the cache of George Clooney as director when it premiered at the Venice Film Festival, but was received with a few boos. Conceived by Joel and Ethan Coen (remember their 2016 misfire Hail, Caesar!, about a tough Hollywood studio “fixer”), Clooney (a Hail, Caesar! co-star), and Grant Heslov (co-writer, Matt Damon’s Best Picture Argo), is a racially-charged farce that “draws parallels between the U.S.’ ugly past and the situation today.” Damon, Julianne Moore, and Oscar Isaac, Summer of 1959, are in an Eden to raise a family: an idyllic community with affordable homes and manicured lawns. However, tranquility changes to disturbing reality in the town’s s dark underbelly of betrayal, deceit, and violence [including flaming Confederate flags]. Come critics went “Huh?” and “Huh!” The often kind Rotten Tomatoes wrote: “It’s A Raisin in the Sun Meets The Donna Reed Show. Only occasionally does an image strike a lyrical blow and yield the creepy effect Clooney is aiming for.” Worse, audiences weren’t camping overnight to be the first at box offices. Maybe it will develop a cult following.

At Home 24/7 Horror and Halloween Fright Fest  

Is this not the best time of year to revisit famous Halloween spook with everything from zombies and slashers to séances and lots of screams? There’s so much horror to enjoy spread on the couch with a beer or soda and chips and dip. Can anything top the original Frankenstein, Dracula, The Mummy, Hitch’s Psycho, Kubrick’s The Shining [Where’s Jack? Bring him back!]? Maybe a bit of Poltergeist; or some Stephen King? How about Halloween, The Fog, Christine or anything by John Carpenter, because he knows how to scare your pants off? There’s Wes Craven’s bad ole Freddy in  Nightmare on Elm Street; or the original Saw; contemporary grand guignol of Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?; and any season of American Horror Story – because Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuck know how to creep you out. Then, there’s family-friendly “horror” in Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein/Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde/The Invisible Man.

3-D is having a much-longer shelf life than expected. For a great at-home theatrical experience, check out the Blu-ray 3-D edition of the edge-of-your-cushioned-seat 1953 blockbuster House of Wax [Warner Home Entertainment, SRP $40]. Vincent Price, so fantastic playing madmen, is perfect casting for demented Professor Henry Jarrod. The Technicolor, pre-digital 3-D two-projector image realignment, and sound track have been meticulously remastered with a 4K scan. Don’t spill your popcorn as you experience one of the most incredible horror flick finales. Beware: You can’t escape the flames!

If your dream is a near lifetime of at-home horror, get 50 Horror  Classics (Mill Creek Entertainment; 3,743 minutes/12 discs; $15.65 on Amazon). The massive set contains some classics – keep in mind the majority are from the 30s and 40s and most, if not all, fall into Public Domain, so they haven’t been remastered: The Ape (Boris Karloff), Bluebeard (John Carradine), Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (John Barrymore, Silent), Allan Dwan’s comic romp The Gorilla (Ritz Brothers, Bela Lugosi), William Castle’s The House on Haunted Hill (Vincent Price),

The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Lon Chaney, Silent), Roger Corman’s  Little Shop of Horrors (Jack Nicholson),  Fritz Lang’s Metropolis, Murnau’s Nosferatu (Max Schreck, Silent), The Phantom of the Opera (Lon Chaney, Silent), and, among numerous others, White Zombie (Lugosi).

Universal Studios’ horror period produced first-rate thrillers. Six have been remastered for Blu-ray for Classic Monsters: The Essential Collection (Universal Home Entertainment; eight discs/710 minutes; $45 on Amazon): James Whale’s  Bride of Frankenstein (Elsa Lancaster, Karloff, Colin Clive) – many feel this sequel surpasses its predecessor, Tod Browning’s Dracula (Lugosi) – note how the mood is set with a lack of score, Whale’s Frankenstein (Karloff, Clive, Mae Clark), The Invisible Man (Claude Rains) – with humor to offset the horror, The Mummy (Karloff), and The Wolfman (Lon Chaney Jr.). There’s bonus material galore, including an alternate Dracula score by Philip Glass, performed by the Kronos Quartet.

Ellis Nassour is an Ole Miss alum and noted arts journalist and author who recently donated an ever-growing exhibition of performing arts history to the University of Mississippi. He is the author of the best-selling Patsy Cline biography, Honky Tonk Angel, as well as the hit musical revue, Always, Patsy Cline. He can be reached at ENassour@aol.com. 

The post Halloween Cinema Treats That Keep on Giving appeared first on HottyToddy.com.

[gwynnew]

Summer movies 2017: Winners and losers

Gal Gadot led ‘Wonder Woman’ to roaring summer success; Idris Elba couldn’t find box office glory in ‘The Dark Tower’

It’s been a chilly summer for the movie business. By August, the U.S. box office was reporting historic lows, with several media outlets looking back to the dark days following the September 2001 terror attacks to find comparable numbers. Blame streaming media, franchise fatigue, or a lack of decent August options, but U.S. movie-ticket sales are approaching a 25-year low. And yet, there were bright spots: The international box office is up more than 3 percent, the box office was buoyed by some surprise hits (including Dunkirk, Girls Trip, and Baby Driver), and Wonder Woman would be considered a runaway smash in any year. Here, we assess summer 2017’s box office winners and losers.

WINNER: The Continuing Reign of Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is the No. 1 film of the summer, but that’s not all it is. It’s now the third-highest-grossing Warner Bros. release ever (after The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises), the seventh highest-grossing superhero movie ever, and the highest-grossing film of all time by a female director (congrats, Patty Jenkins). The film opened on June 2 and was still tallying million-dollar weekends at the end of August; as of today, the mighty Amazon’s origin story has earned $406.8 mil domestically.

LOSER: Failure-to-Launch Franchises In these strange times, every big-budget film must contain the seed of a film universe, from which to mine an endless supply of sequels and spin-offs. Except it doesn’t always work. The Dark Tower ($46 mil), Valerian ($40 mil), Baywatch ($58 mil), and King Arthur: Legend of the Sword ($39 mil) were all potential franchises turned flops. The exception is The Mummy ($80 mil), a U.S. box-office disappointment that hasn’t dissuaded Universal from moving forward with its Dark Universe monster franchise. Bride of Frankenstein is slated for February 2019.

Christopher Nolan directs ‘Dunkirk’

WINNER: Dunkirk Christopher Nolan’s breathtaking World War II drama took off despite plenty of risks. Not only is Dunkirk a major departure from its director’s signature genre films like The Dark Knight and Inception, it’s the polar opposite of a popcorn flick. It could easily have drowned in a sea of animation and superhero films, forgotten by the start of Oscar season. Instead, Dunkirk was an unexpected sensation, taking in $174 mil so far and holding the No. 1 spot at the box office for two consecutive weeks.

LOSER: Detroit The latest true-to-life thriller from director Kathryn Bigelow and writer Mark Boal (The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty) took on the timely subject matter of police brutality in a black urban neighborhood. Perhaps it was too timely for escapism-seeking summer audiences. The film has brought in just $16 mil, despite opening in more theaters than Zero Dark Thirty (which grossed $95 mil).

WINNER: Girls Trip R-rated studio comedies had it rough this year, until Queen Latifah, Jada Pinkett Smith, Regina Hall, and breakout star Tiffany Haddish came to the rescue. Girls Trip ($109 mil) is a milestone in female ensemble comedy: the film opened bigger than Bridesmaids, is selling more tickets per week than Bad Moms, and stands as the only live-action comedy to pass the $100 million mark so far in 2017.

LOSER: Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets This ambitious sci-fi dazzler from director Luc Besson was far more expensive than his 2014 film Lucy — and with just under $40 million in receipts, it made significantly less money. The film did better overseas, particularly in China and Besson’s native France, but still hasn’t recouped its hefty production budget (estimated at $180 mil).

WINNER: Our Minion Overlords Who would have guessed that those anthropomorphized Twinkies in Gru’s basement would become one of America’s most popular exports? Thanks to the massive $975 million worldwide box office of Despicable Me 3 ($255 mil of that in the U.S.), Illumination’s four-film franchise (including three Despicable Me films and Minions) has stolen Shrek’s title as the highest-grossing animated franchise of all time worldwide. 

Will Ferrell in ‘The House’ (Photo: Warner Bros./YouTube)

LOSER: The House Though The House was stacked with beloved stars like Will Ferrell and Amy Poehler, this comedy about parents who turn their home into an illegal casino proved to be one of summer’s worst bets, taking in $25 mil against a $40 mil budget.

WINNER: Big-Screen Events Why should people go out to the movies when they can stream them at home? That question has the industry doing some heavy soul-searching — but one clear draw in summer 2017 were movies that felt like events. Dunkirk was promoted as a film that needed to be seen on the big screen, and sure enough, people came. Wonder Woman’s end-of-summer IMAX re-release boosted the film’s already robust numbers. And one of August’s biggest audience draws in theaters was an actual live sporting event: the Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor boxing match on August 26 brought in enough money ($2.6 mil) to crack that weekend’s box office top 10.

LOSER: Colin Trevorrow Between its meager $4 mil box office take and the embarrassingly bad reviews, Trevorrow’s original drama The Book of Henry put the director’s reputation on the line — to the point where fans wondered if he would keep his Star Wars: Episode IX job. So far, the Force is still with him.

WINNER: Returning Marvel Heroes They don’t call him amazing for nothing. Spider-Man: Homecoming marked the character’s third franchise reboot in 15 years, yet Spidey came out swinging, earning $320 mil at home and $418 mil internationally. The Guardians of the Galaxy also had a stellar season, with May’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 drawing in summer audiences to the tune of $389 mil (plus $473 mil internationally).

LOSER: Sequels to the Point of Exhaustion Diminishing returns were the name of the game for many once-reliable summer franchises back this year for at least their third time. The fifth Pirates of the Caribbean ($172 mil) and Transformers films ($130 mil), the third Cars movie ($149 mil), and the eighth Alien ($74 mil) all came in below projections — though Despicable Me 3 ($254 mil) and Spider-Man: Homecoming ($318 mil) bucked the trend.

Edgar Wright arrives ahead of the ‘Baby Driver’ Australian Premiere in Sydney on July 12, 2017 (Photo: Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)

WINNER: Edgar Wright A reliable creator of cult favorite comedies like Scott Pilgrim vs. the World and Hot Fuzz, British writer-director Wright had never had a major box-office hit in the U.S. — until now. Wright’s high-speed, music-driven crime film Baby Driver has made $104 mil domestically, nearly quadrupling the box office of his previous film, The World’s End.  

LOSER: Logan Lucky Director Steven Soderbergh emerged from his previously announced retirement to make this racecar heist flick, starring Daniel Craig, Channing Tatum, Adam Driver, Katherine Waterston, and Riley Keough. Alas, Soderbergh’s ambitious scheme to market the film on a shoestring backfired; Logan Lucky received rave reviews but has earned only $16.5 mil.

WINNER: Annabelle: Creation Insiders who never expected 2013’s The Conjuring to become a major horror franchise were in for another shock in summer 2017. The fourth installment, an origin story starring the namesake creepy doll, opened at No. 1 and has generated $81 mil on a $15 mil budget, plus $138 mil overseas.

LOSER: Open Road Films Still smarting from April’s huge box-office fail with Armenian genocide drama The Promise, Open Road was no doubt counting on a rebound with the animated The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature. Instead, the abysmally reviewed sequel chalked up the worst opening ever for a film playing in 4,000 theaters. So far it’s made $23.5 mil against a $40 mil budget.

WINNER: Lionsgate The studio behind The Hunger Games took an anti-tentpole approach to summer, stocking its lineup with smaller-budgeted films — and It paid off. The limited-release romantic comedy The Big Sick ($39 mil), the Tupac Shakur biopic All Eyez on Me ($45 mil), and the Ryan Reynolds–Samuel L. Jackson action-comedy The Hitman’s Bodyguard ($44 mil) all had strong summers. Lionsgate’s one stumble was the under-performing memoir adaptation The Glass Castle ($13 mil).

LOSER: Transformers: The Last Knight The fifth Transformers movie showed that the power may be draining out of Michael Bay’s giant robots, beloved by audiences and mocked by critics for a decade. The Last Knight brought in the lowest box office of the five films, making $130 mil domestically on a $217 mil budget. A substantial foreign box office ($473 mil) made the movie profitable, but it’s still a steep decline from the previous installment, Age of Extinction (which made over $1 billion worldwide in 2014).

’47 Meters Down’ (Photo: Entertainment Studios/YouTube)

WINNER: 47 Meters Down Like last summer’s The Shallows, this shark-based thriller chomped enough money to swim ahead of its low production costs. With a $44 million gross, 47 Meters Down proved that the Jaws formula still works more than 40 years later: summer audiences flock to a beach vacation gone terrifyingly wrong.

LOSER: Netflix’s Blockbuster Ambitions The emergence of Netflix as a movie studio has generated significant controversy in Hollywood this year, with detractors like James Cameron and Christopher Nolan expressing concern that streaming media will kill the moviegoing experience. But it didn’t happen this summer. Though Netflix released some excellent films, including Bong Joon-ho’s critically acclaimed Okja, none generated the kind of pop-culture buzz Netflix has achieved with original TV series like Stranger Things. But don’t count them out; upcoming Netflix films include the Will Smith fantasy-noir Bright and Martin Scorsese’s star-packed gangster film The Irishman.

WINNER: Atomic Blonde This low-budget, super-violent spy thriller faced stiff competition at the box office, but managed to register a stronger opening weekend — and with $49 million, bigger total box office receipts — than director David Leitch’s previous bloodbath John Wick. Will this one get a sequel too? Charlize Theron might want to keep those shades handy.

WINNER: Matt Reeves War for the Planet of the Apes made a respectable $143 mil domestically and $216 mil internationally. Though it was actually the least profitable installment of the reboot trilogy, it was also the best-reviewed, positioning director Matt Reeves for a bright post-Apes future — beginning with plum DC assignment, The Batman.

LOSER: Popcorn Sales Movie theater owners no doubt bore the brunt of this sluggish movie season. According to The Hollywood Reporter, summer box-office revenue in North America is down 16% over last year, and will fail to clear $4 billion for the first time since 2006. Movie buffs might want to start buying extra boxes of Junior Mints to support their local cinema.

Hollywood’s big summer movies were all filmed elsewhere:

Read more from Yahoo Movies:

The biggest box-office winners and losers of 2017 (so far)

‘E.T.’ at 35: Older bro Robert MacNaughton tells what ‘D and D’ at Harrison Ford’s, ‘Weird Al,’ Elvis Costello had to do with it

‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’: The best new photos of Luke, Leia, Rey, Finn, Poe, and Kylo