October 26, 2009 – Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino continues its appeal with movie watchers who drove the film to become the number one worldwide Video on Demand (VOD) title this year*. The film has enthralled audiences and spent four weeks at the top of Rentrak’s domestic VOD charts. Worldwide, Gran Torino has generated nearly six million VOD transactions since its June 2009 release and $30 million in consumer spend.
The film has also been a major success in packaged media sales with over three million DVD and Blu-ray Discs sold domestically alone. Gran Torino gained instant momentum from its Day-and-Date release and has maintained a high level of consumer interest as a result of the extraordinary storytelling in the film. Warner Bros. leads the industry in VOD with its Day-and-Date offerings, an ongoing strategy that continues to show the complementary relationship between the Studio’s packaged goods and digital businesses.
“We knew Gran Torino was a special project and it’s wonderful to see movie fans connect to the film across so many different platforms,” said Bill Gerber, producer of Gran Torino.
“Gran Torino is classic Clint Eastwood and the film clearly resonates with fans,” said Andy Mellett, senior vice president, Warner Bros. Digital Distribution. “Recognized by AFI as one of the ‘Ten Best Films of 2008’ it was one of our key Day and Date titles this year and it has far exceeded our expectations.”
Gran Torino has received widespread praise with Golden Globe nominations this year for Best Original Song, Best Actor (Clint Eastwood) and Best Original Screenplay (Nick Schenk) honors from the National Board of Review. Clint Eastwood was also honored with a Best Actor nomination from Chicago Film Critics Association and the Broadcast Film Critics Association.
“Gran Torino was our most viewed movie On Demand so far this year,” said Diana Kerekes, vice president of Video Content for Comcast. “Clint Eastwood’s work in this film has made it an ‘instant’ classic for our On Demand Library and we are thrilled that customers continue to view Gran Torino On Demand at their convenience.”
*Source: Rentrak / Warner Bros. Internal Research