Disney (and others) at the Box Office - Current State of Affairs

[MagicMouseFan]

The highest-rated Oscars telecast ever was the 70th Academy Awards ceremony held on March 23, 1998. This broadcast drew an average of 57.25 million viewers in the United States, making it the most-watched Oscars in history. Hosted by Billy Crystal, the ceremony saw Titanic win 11 awards, including Best Picture. This remains the peak viewership for any Academy Awards broadcast since Nielsen began tracking figures in 1974.

 

[Willmark]

Congratulations! You've discovered the one television event that has managed to maintain/grow its audience over the last 50 years. The fact that it's tantamount to a religion in this country may have something to do with its status as an extreme outlier.

Assuming you're talking about the Super Bowl, that is an outlier?

 

[Disney Irish]

Assuming you're talking about the Super Bowl, that is an outlier?

Compared to other linear TV events yes, even the Olympics has seen a decline over the decades.

Modern audiences, outside of certain events, are just not glued to the television as they used to be in previous decades. Blame social media, blame streaming, blame current events, blame whatever you want but overall viewership is down especially for linear and only continues to get worse as time goes on.

 

[DKampy]

Compared to other linear TV events yes, even the Olympics has seen a decline over the decades.

Modern audiences, outside of certain events, are just not glued to the television as they used to be in previous decades. Blame social media, blame streaming, blame current events, blame whatever you want but overall viewership is down especially for linear and only continues to get worse as time goes on.

Blame there only being 3 channels….

 

[Farerb]

The Oscars should be for the “mainstream popularity”. It’s the biggest awards show of the year for film so the winners should reflect that. 20 years ago Best Picture would have been WICKED (the epic big budget musical) or even DUNE but the Academy is so determined to be “edgy” now that they are missing the point of their own existence.

For better or worse, the Oscars are not the place to pluck obscure films from the film festival circuit and put them on THE biggest pedestal in Hollywood. In a few years, ANORA will be forgotten. Who still remembers or talks about CODA? Or MOONLIGHT? Or NOMADLAND? Or even EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE?

You know what people DO remember? TITANIC, GLADIATOR, THE LORD OF THE RINGS, CHICAGO, SCHINDLER’S LIST, FORREST GUMP, DANCES WITH WOLVES, SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, THE GODFATHER, THE SOUND OF MUSIC, CASABLANCA, etc...

Movies that have a wider social & cultural impact are the ones that stand the test of time, and those are the movies the Oscars should be recognizing. Who out there is quoting lines from ANORA or NOMADLAND?

 

[Disney Irish]

Blame there only being 3 channels….

That too, but even by the late 90s (when peak viewership happened for the Oscars) there was already starting to be a glut of channels with the major 3 (4 if you include Fox which just started) and all the basic cable and premium cable channels and video-on-demand starting to be offered nationwide. So it was already going to hit a downward trend by that point as people realized they weren't stuck to watching one of three things.

 

[Disney Irish]

The Oscars should be for the “mainstream popularity”. It’s the biggest awards show of the year for film so the winners should reflect that. 20 years ago Best Picture would have been WICKED (the epic big budget musical) or even DUNE but the Academy is so determined to be “edgy” now that they are missing the point of their own existence.

For better or worse, the Oscars are not the place to pluck obscure films from the film festival circuit and put them on THE biggest pedestal in Hollywood. In a few years, ANORA will be forgotten. Who still remembers or talks about CODA? Or MOONLIGHT? Or NOMADLAND? Or even EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE?

You know what people DO remember? TITANIC, GLADIATOR, THE LORD OF THE RINGS, CHICAGO, SCHINDLER’S LIST, FORREST GUMP, DANCES WITH WOLVES, SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, THE GODFATHER, THE SOUND OF MUSIC, CASABLANCA, etc...

Movies that have a wider social & cultural impact are the ones that stand the test of time, and those are the movies the Oscars should be recognizing. Who out there is quoting lines from ANORA or NOMADLAND?

I think you're confusing the Oscars with the People's Choice Awards which actually is about mainstream popularity.

 

[Farerb]

I think you're confusing the Oscars with the People's Choice Awards which actually is about mainstream popularity.

I am not. No one expects Deadpool to win the Oscars. There's a middle ground between Deadpool and Anora.

 

[Disney Irish]

I am not. No one expects Deadpool to win the Oscars. There's a middle ground between Deadpool and Anora.

Except the Oscars (not even the official name) is literally the awards handed out by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, not the "Academy of Mainstream Popular Movies". Its an award to celebrate the art and science of motion picture, not to award the most popular movie of the year.

In addition in order to allow more popular movies into the awards they have expanded the Best Picture (and maybe a few other categories) to something like 10 nominees. So they recognize that they need to include some popular movies, but its not about popular movies exclusively, that is the People's Choice Awards.

 

[Farerb]

Except the Oscars (not even the official name) is literally the awards handed out by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, not the "Academy of Mainstream Popular Movies". Its an award to celebrate the art and science of motion picture, not to award the most popular movie of the year.

In addition in order to allow more popular movies into the awards they have expanded the Best Picture (and maybe a few other categories) to something like 10 nominees. So they recognize that they need to include some popular movies, but its not about popular movies exclusively, that is the People's Choice Awards.

30 years ago the nominees would have been Wicked, Dune, Conclave, Challengers and one of the obscure movies that were nominated this year (sure even Anora perhaps, though The Brutalist is more likely). Then Wicked would have won. Are you implying that Wicked isn't a good movie or didn't deserve to win just because it's popular? Come on...

And do you honestly believe that Anora is the best of the year? That movie is a thinly disguised softcore p*rn for the first 45 minutes.

 

[Disney Irish]

30 years ago the nominees would have been Wicked, Dune, Conclave, Challengers and one of the obscure movies that were nominated this year (sure even Anora perhaps, though The Brutalist is more likely). Then Wicked would have won. Are you implying that Wicked isn't a good movie or didn't deserve to win just because it's popular? Come on...

Movies have changed in the last 30 years, not only are more movies released into the market but also more independent movies are being released.

Also I have doubts that Wicked would have won even 30 years ago. While a good film I don't see it being stellar over any of the others in the field, especially the list you made up here. I would have said Conclave or Challengers from that list.

And do you honestly believe that Anora is the best of the year? That movie is a thinly disguised softcore p*rn for the first 45 minutes.

Midnight Cowboy, an X rated movie at the time for a variety of reasons, won a bunch of awards including Best Picture and Best Director in 1969.

And in 1988 Last Temptation of Christ won Best Director, and Dangerous Liaisons was nominated as Best Picture, both of which weren't popular films and both were considered softcore at the time.

So this isn't some new phenomenon, so don't see your point here.

 

[Phroobar]

The Oscars should be for the “mainstream popularity”. It’s the biggest awards show of the year for film so the winners should reflect that. 20 years ago Best Picture would have been WICKED (the epic big budget musical) or even DUNE but the Academy is so determined to be “edgy” now that they are missing the point of their own existence.

For better or worse, the Oscars are not the place to pluck obscure films from the film festival circuit and put them on THE biggest pedestal in Hollywood. In a few years, ANORA will be forgotten. Who still remembers or talks about CODA? Or MOONLIGHT? Or NOMADLAND? Or even EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE?

You know what people DO remember? TITANIC, GLADIATOR, THE LORD OF THE RINGS, CHICAGO, SCHINDLER’S LIST, FORREST GUMP, DANCES WITH WOLVES, SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, THE GODFATHER, THE SOUND OF MUSIC, CASABLANCA, etc...

Movies that have a wider social & cultural impact are the ones that stand the test of time, and those are the movies the Oscars should be recognizing. Who out there is quoting lines from ANORA or NOMADLAND?

This site...

 

[Farerb]

Fine. All of you are right.

Katherine Hepburn and Vivien Leigh could only wish they could give such a stellar performance as Mikey Madison's (I would have even posted gifs and videos but that would have been inappropriate). Anora is the new Casablanca.

 

[Phroobar]

I don't think I'm ever seeing Anora and is definitely not safe for Disney forum discussion. IMDB shows severe nudity and profanity with 693 swear words, 479 f-words and 491 uses of words I can't type on this forum. Why would I want to watch that? It's like how some people here though Poor Things was a must watch movie suitable for the entire family.

 

[Disney Irish]

Fine. All of you are right.

Katherine Hepburn and Vivien Leigh could only wish they could give such a stellar performance as Mikey Madison's (I would have even posted gifs and videos but that would have been inappropriate). Anora is the new Casablanca.

I think you're being overly dramatic here. The industry is constantly changing and so are its award shows, I mean they have to after 100 years. If you don't agree with their picks for winners, so be it, it happens every year for someone. But lets not pretend like this is the first time that a non-popular and potentially controversial movie won the Oscars top awards, its not a recent phenomenon.

As I mentioned I think you're more looking for the People's Choice Awards as they seem to be more in-line with what you would consider mainstream popular picks.

 

[Farerb]

profanity with 693 swear words, 479 f-words and 491 uses of words I can't type on this forum.

It won Best Original Screenplay.

 

[easyrowrdw]

The Oscars should be for the “mainstream popularity”. It’s the biggest awards show of the year for film so the winners should reflect that. 20 years ago Best Picture would have been WICKED (the epic big budget musical) or even DUNE but the Academy is so determined to be “edgy” now that they are missing the point of their own existence.

For better or worse, the Oscars are not the place to pluck obscure films from the film festival circuit and put them on THE biggest pedestal in Hollywood. In a few years, ANORA will be forgotten. Who still remembers or talks about CODA? Or MOONLIGHT? Or NOMADLAND? Or even EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE?

You know what people DO remember? TITANIC, GLADIATOR, THE LORD OF THE RINGS, CHICAGO, SCHINDLER’S LIST, FORREST GUMP, DANCES WITH WOLVES, SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, THE GODFATHER, THE SOUND OF MUSIC, CASABLANCA, etc...

Movies that have a wider social & cultural impact are the ones that stand the test of time, and those are the movies the Oscars should be recognizing. Who out there is quoting lines from ANORA or NOMADLAND?

I won't say they should do that because I think there are plenty of small movies that are deserving of recognition. But I think your point is well-founded. There used to be a bigger overlap between quality (Oscars) and popularity (box office).

I think you're confusing the Oscars with the People's Choice Awards which actually is about mainstream popularity.

All the movies the poster listed won Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Mainstream popularity and quality are not mutually exclusive. Is it movie-goers' fault for not watching enough good movies or the studios for not making enough movies that are both good and appeal to a wide audience? I'd say it's probably a bit of both.

 

[LittleBuford]

I don't think I'm ever seeing Anora and is definitely not safe for Disney forum discussion. IMDB shows severe nudity and profanity with 693 swear words, 479 f-words and 491 uses of words I can't type on this forum. Why would I want to watch that? It's like how some people here though Poor Things was a must watch movie suitable for the entire family.

No-one said or implied the bolded. One can like a film while acknowledging it isn’t suitable for the whole family. Such films may not be up your street, but that doesn’t mean they don’t or can’t appeal to others.

 

[easyrowrdw]

I don't think I'm ever seeing Anora and is definitely not safe for Disney forum discussion. IMDB shows severe nudity and profanity with 693 swear words, 479 f-words and 491 uses of words I can't type on this forum. Why would I want to watch that? It's like how some people here though Poor Things was a must watch movie suitable for the entire family.

No way. That can't possibly be true! That would be crazy

 

[LittleBuford]

No way. That can't possibly be true! That would be crazy

It isn’t true; I was here for those discussions.