Less than two months after being released in theatres, SCOUTS GUIDE TO THE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE and PARANORMAL ACTIVITY: THE GHOST DIMENSION will be coming to VOD on December 8 and December 15, respectively.
The films are part of a new distribution model that Paramount Pictures is experimenting with: the studio is able to get them onto home video 17 days after the number of theatre screens showing them dips below 300. Up until now, theatres have typically had a 90 day window to offer films exclusively.
AMC Theatres, Cineplex Entertainment, National Amusements, Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, Southern Theatres, and Landmark Cinemas agreed to Paramount's VOD plans, and in return will receive a percentage of the digital profits for the remainder of the traditional 90 day window. Regal, Carmike, and Cinemark declined the offer and didn't show the movies on their screens at all.
The experiment didn't work out all that well for the movies at the box office, but maybe it will pay off in VOD rentals and purchases.
I have no interest in seeing THE GHOST DIMENSION, but the fact that the theatres around me were not among those who got in on the Paramount deal did cause me to miss out on seeing SCOUTS GUIDE, which looked like a lot of fun to me. Still, its early VOD release also doesn't mean much to me, as I'm one who still prefers to have physical copies of the movies I'm paying for on home video. It's rare that I'll make a VOD rental or purchase, but I will definitely be checking out SCOUTS GUIDE when it hits DVD/Blu.
