US BO: After OTT, Will This Be Death Knell?

That OTT’s were creating a problem for Telugu movies in the US is a known thing for everyone. In fact, such was the impact that earlier in the year a trend began where it was promoted that movies won’t be available on OTT’s.

The market, especially for the small to medium budget flicks, was impacted severely over the last two years. The trade was pinning hopes on the big-budget flicks to revive the interest on the audience.

The idea behind it was that once biggies get the audience, they enjoy the euphoria and atmosphere of watching a flick in cinemas. They were expected to restart the movie-going habit among the audience. The summer of 2020 with many notable films was therefore keenly awaited.

We all know the unfortunate catastrophe that has struck the world now. The coronavirus has made people stick to their homes. It is almost four months now.

During the same period, OTT space has further boomed. A major shift in audience viewing pattern has occurred which is precisely the opposite of what Telugu film industry trade has anticipated. While they hoped to revive movie-going interest, here we have a scenario where people have grown home viewing habit.

Once that lockdown is lifted and theaters resume operation, this (home viewing habit) might prove to be a bigger challenge to overcome for the Telugu film in the US.

Already in the places where cinemas have resumed services, the collections reports suggest a seventy percent drop in numbers between pre and post COVID-19 lockdown. If the same is reflected with Telugu movies in the US, it could be a death knell to the small and medium budget flicks.

Here’s hoping that is not the case and hope the content has enough power in them to move the audience to theatres.