OSCAR WINNERS LEAD DVD RENTAL CHARGE
Director Kathryn Bigelow’s explosive multi-Oscar winning The Hurt Locker has prompted an 117 per cent increase in rental demand as those that missed it at the cinema clamour to see what all the fuss is about.
Despite being the lowest grossing ‘Best Picture’ Oscar winner in history, the film is set to become one of the biggest DVDs of 2010 as rental figures have soared in the 24 hours since sweeping its six Oscars.
According to LOVEFiLM, Europe’s leading subscription-based film streaming and DVD rental company, rental figures of other winning titles have also increased following the awards, including ‘Best Costume Design’ winning The Young Victoria (up 37 per cent) and Disney Pixar’s ‘Best Animation’ Up – up 19 per cent.
With many of the big category winners yet to be released on DVD, rental pre-order demand was led by Sandra Bullock’s ‘Best Actress’ film The Blind Side (up 252 per cent), Jeff Bridges’ Crazy Heart (up 212 per cent) and Mo’Nique’s Precious (up 129 per cent) as film fans gear up to watch the winners as soon as they reach DVD & Blu-ray.
Lesser-known ‘Best Foreign Language’ film El Secreto de Sus Ojos and ‘Best Documentary’ film The Cove also did well, with pre-orders up 3115 per cent and 378 per cent respectively.
The most popular Oscar-winning DVDs are:
- The Hurt Locker – (up 117 per cent in 24 hours)
- The Young Victoria – (up 37 per cent in 24 hours)
- Up – (up 17 per cent in 24 hours)
The most popular main category Oscar-winning DVD pre-orders are:
- The Blind Side (pre-orders up 252 per cent in 24 hours)
- Crazy Heart (pre-orders up 212 per cent in 24 hours)
- Precious (pre-orders up 129 per cent in 24 hours)
Similarly BAFTA wins had the biggest 24 hour effect on rentals of:
- The Hurt Locker (up 66 per cent in 24 hours)
- A Single Man (pre-orders up 35 per cent in 24 hours)
- A Prophet (pre-orders up 34 per cent in 24 hours)
- Fish Tank (up 25 per cent in 24 hours)
- An Education (pre-orders up 13 per cent in 24 hours)
Helen Cowley, Editor of LOVEFiLM commented:
“The Hurt Locker really is the underdog story of the year. Its David vs. Goliath award success against the likes of Avatar makes for an incredible story. It is now only a matter of time before the public catches up with the film’s critical success and it’s highly likely that the DVD will dominate the rental charts for months to come.”
