Blu-ray Sales, Feb. 1-7: Snow White Runs From Witch Hunter

Posted February 11, 2016 08:53 PM by Josh Katz

For the week that ended on February 7th, Walt Disney Home Entertainment's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs went to the top of the Blu-ray-only sales list. A perennial favorite since its release, this animated adventure received a new "Signature Edition" on North American Blu-ray platforms. In 1937, Walt Disney and his team of animators were entering largely uncharted terrain. While other countries had produced full-length animated features, in America animators were crafting far shorter pictures, and given the movie's then-exorbitant production costs (about $1.5 million), a commercial failure could have bankrupted Disney. However, Disney cemented his legacy, and Snow White became, even when adjusted for inflation, one of the top ten highest-grossing films of all time. This week, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs had a Blu-ray market share of 100%. On the overall package-media chart, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs came in third place, where it sold 64% as many total units as Lionsgate/Summit Home Entertainment's The Last Witch Hunter.

Speaking of which, The Last Witch Hunter came up next on the Blu-ray-only chart. Star/producer Vin Diesel's fantasy actioner struggled to connect with both audiences and critics following its October release. In addition to its poor critical notices (the film scored a 34% Metacritic ranking), The Last Witch Hunter went on to gross only $27 million domestically, a figure well below its estimated $90-million production budget (that said, the picture performed much stronger overseas, earning an additional $113 million). On the Blu-ray-only list, The Last Witch Hunter had a Blu-ray market share of 42% and sold 66% as many Blu-rays as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs while on the overall package-media list, the music docudrama came in first place.

Finally, Touchstone and DreamWorks Home Entertainment's Bridge of Spies rounded out the top three positions on the Blu-ray-only and overall package-media charts. Director Steven Spielberg's gripping Cold War drama proved itself a favorite with both audiences and critics following its October release. In addition to grossing over $163 million worldwide (on top of an estimated $40 million production budget), Bridge of Spies received numerous critical accolades (it currently has an 81% score on Metacritic) which resulted in six Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Original Score. On the Blu-ray-only list, Bridge of Spies had a Blu-ray market share of 47% and sold 48% as many Blu-rays as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. However, on the overall package-media list, the Tom Hanks-starring docudrama came in second place and sold 65% as many total units as The Last Witch Hunter.

Top Ten Blu-ray Sellers for Week Ending 02/07/15:

Top Five Home Media Sellers for Week Ending 02/07/15 (% of Blu-ray's Market Share Noted):

The Last Witch Hunter (42%)
Bridge of Spies (47%)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (100%)
Goosebumps (52%)
The Martian (49%)

Top Five Blu-ray 3D Sellers for Week Ending 02/07/15 (Per % of Total Unit Sales):

Source: Home Media Magazine | Permalink |

News comments (5 comments)

richmurphy

Feb 11, 2016

"Snow White became, even when adjusted for inflation, one of the top ten highest-grossing films of all time."

"EVEN when adjusted for inflation"? ONLY when adjusted for inflation does it become one of the all-time top ten highest grossers. And it currently sits at #10, with the new Star Wars film right behind it. http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/adjusted.htm

Top reviewer

Top contributor

cricepng

Feb 12, 2016

@richmurphy - my thoughts exactly. The discourse level implied with the word 'even' would be that adjusted for inflation would be a more difficult way to be in the top grossing movies list, which if obviously not true. It doesn't take anything away from a great movie (which I added to my collection with this release), just makes the writeup seem less educated.

Top contributor

grrrarg

Feb 12, 2016

"On the Blu-ray-only list, The Last Witch Hunter had a Blu-ray market share of 42% and sold 66% as many Blu-rays as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs while on the overall package-media list, the music docudrama came in first place."

I was not that interested in The Last Witch Hunter, but now that I know it is a musical docudrama I will probably check it out.