The 83 press show was held yesterday, and it was a huge success. The press’s opinion has confirmed that the film will be well-received by spectators. Unfortunately, the screen sharing concerns have yet to be rectified, leading many in the business to fear that this excellent film may suffer as a result of a poor distribution plan.
(Also read: 83 makers paid THIS whopping amount to Ranveer Singh as his fees)
Here’s a rundown for those who aren’t familiar with the situation. The film’s distributor, Reliance Entertainment, has urged exhibitors to show just their film in theatres for the next two weeks, or until January 6, 2022. If exhibitors agree to this demand, they will be forced to stop showing last week’s Spider-Man: No Way Home and Pushpa: The Rise, which are both doing exceptionally well. They will also be unable to play Jersey, which will be released on December 31. PEN Marudhar is distributing the Shahid Kapoor-starrer, as well as the much-anticipated RRR, which will be released on January 7. There’s a risk that if Jersey isn’t screened, the exhibitor will miss out on RRR as well. As a result, an exhibitor who wants to risk playing ’83 will have to give up Spider-Man: No Way Home and Pushpa: The Rise – Part 01 from week 2 and Jersey and RRR from day 1 in order to play ’83.
As a result, the exhibitors are willing to forego ’83. A source told Bollywood Hungama, “The Monday collections of both Spider-Man: No Way Home and Pushpa: The Rise – Part 01 are excellent and proves that the film will have long legs and that it’ll also sustain well in the second week. So many exhibitors are ready to not play ’83 as it will not affect their ticket sales.”
The source explained, “The single screens have been asked to pay 70% of revenue for 83. It’s way higher as compared to the terms of the other films. Also, Reliance had rubbed the exhibitors the wrong way during Sooryavanshi’s release on Diwali. Then, many were compelled to play not even one show of Marvel’s biggie, Eternals. During that time, Reliance had an upper hand as exhibitors were dying to show Sooryavanshi. In the case of 83, the exhibitors have several options. On top of that, with such terms, the cinema owners are in no mood to bow down. Not to forget, PEN Marudhar is going to release Jersey, RRR, Attack, Gangubai Kathiawadi etc. Pushpa: The Rise – Part 01 is being distributed by AA Films and they, too, have several films coming up, starting with Radhe Shyam in January. Why should we get into their bad books just for one film and thus risk getting such potential grossers from them in the near future?”
The multiplexes, however, will be releasing 83 with 55% revenue sharing in the first week. As a result, several multiplexes have already begun the advance booking of 83 since Sunday. The source revealed at this point, “The advance ticket sales of 83 till now have been decent but not record-breaking, as it happened during Sooryavanshi. This factor has further made Reliance’s case weak.”
As of now, 83 hasn’t been able to get sufficient single screens. “A little more than 50 single screens have been booked for 83 till now across the country. It’s woefully inadequate and it’s important it gets many other single screen theatres to play their film.”
(Also read: Whispers are being heard that cupid has struck Vijay Deverakonda and Rashmika Mandanna, here’s how netizens react!)
An industry insider also told the portal, “The exhibitors have an upper hand this time. Reliance will have to agree to share shows with Spider-Man: No Way Home and Pushpa: The Rise – Part 01 in Week 1 and Jersey on December 31. There’s no other option. I am sure the issue will be resolved by Thursday evening and the film will be released widely. ’83 is said to be a mind-blowing film and deserves to be played in all parts of the country in sufficient numbers of shows.”
