From Sean Fennessey on The Big Picture podcast:
"Box office is a short-term analysis game. It's not a long-term analysis game because the information around how much more money a movie generates over one year 5 years 25 years is very opaque. The studios are not incentivized to release how much money they garner from licensing a film to a streaming service, what their VOD numbers are going to be, what it means when a movie wins awards and comes back into the conversation. Movies can be valuable over they're like an annuity. They they can generate revenue over long periods of time, right? And a movie like One Battle After Another is an interesting contrast to to something like like a dead stock movie."
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Pat Alexander On average, box office revenue accounts for roughly one-third of a film’s total lifetime gross. For instance, if a film earns $100 million at the box office, it might ultimately generate around $300 million from all revenue sources combined, assuming other factors remain constant. However, it’s crucial to consider the time value of money: receiving $100 million within the 2–3 month theatrical window can be more valuable than earning $200 million over several years from ancillary sources. When you discount future revenue to present value, it is not equivalent due to factors like inflation and delayed cash flow.
A similar principle applies to lottery winnings. For a $300 million jackpot, the winner could opt to take a lump-sum cash option of roughly $150–$180 million before taxes, or the full $300 million paid in 30 annual installments while hoping they don’t get offed or found dead under suspicious circumstances three years into receipt of payments.
You cannot directly compare lump cash received today with cash spread over several decades—the timing of payments dramatically affects real value.