WWE Films to go Direct-to-DVD

[frickinsweet]

WWE should hire Tarantino and Rodriguez to direct grindhouse-themed movies for them.

Triple H is "Hobo With A Sledge Hammer"

[mysterydriver]

randomranter said:

Two problems:

1) People simply don't rent movies that go straight-to-video. People usually say something along the lines of "Well, if the movie wasn't even good enough to make it into theaters, it must absolutely suck." And they pass on it.

2) Anything with the WWE logo is an albatross around its neck. No WWE project will EVER be taken seriously by the mainstream media. They'd have a better chance of (a) calling the division "Titan Films", and (b) not continuously hammering the fact that a wrestler is the lead star.

Between the "Straight to Video = crap movie" stigma and the "It's WWE, therefore it's crap" stigma, I guarantee you that you're going to see further DVD releases take an even bigger nosedive than they are already.

You think Condemned was bad? It's going to look like Spider Man 3 by comparison when you see how badly the straight-to-DVD movies do.

I...am going to disagree with you. Straight to video is a viable option for WWE.

People WILL rent Direct to DVD movies despite any "stigma" of a bad movie. If they didn't then Steven Seagal wouldn't have had a career for the last five years.

From my experiences, some people don't care whether or not a movie was in theaters, just if the movie looks good. Also, extra features help.

WWE Films does have a bit of a built in fan-base. However, those people seem to prefer waiting on the DVD. The Marine did 18.8 million in theaters...and has done over $30 Million dollars on DVD. There are many variances that could explain why that happened. Do you think that is because people knew it was in theaters?

Also, "The Condemned" isn't bad yet. It still has a chance to wait out the powerhouse movies, picking up a few hundred thousand a week, and could easily leave theaters with a domestic gross of $10 million. No, not what it cost, but the DVD will make up for that. Also, foreign markets should bring in couple more million. For all we know, it will be a big hit in Thailand!

I think going straight to video is a great idea for making profit. It may not get wrestlers in the mainstream, but it will bring in some extra cash.

You probably don't agree with me. I could understand why. However, this seems to be a "wait and see" situation.

[Action Bathturd]

demolition said:

I still want a buddy comedy with HHH and HBK, or now Colt Cabana and Punk

Or RVD and Sabu acting like Jay and Silent Bob, respectively.

[nisi]

Good decision, and the truth is Lionsgate may have said adios to more WWE Film distribution based on this last bomb anyway. But WWE can make oodles on straight-to-DVD sales.