Hollywood
North American box office crosses $11 billion mark for first time ever
MUMBAI: The North American box office crossed the $11 billion benchmark for the year on 29 December, 2015, making 2015 the highest-earning year at the North American box office in movie history, according to Rentrak.
A wide assortment of movies brought enthusiastic patrons to movie theaters across the US throughout the year, giving the industry its biggest overall revenue in North American box office history, with a total of $11.1 billion projected for the calendar year through 31 December. The previous record was set in 2013, which brought in $10.919 billion to the North American box office at year-end.
“Hollywood built the perfect box office beast in 2015, with one hit movie after the next, week after week, exceeding expectations with a regularity that made it look easy. With records falling like dominoes, the revenues just kept building as audiences flooded multiplexes in huge numbers. A diverse and compelling selection of great titles, big and small, from every studio fuelled an extraordinary level of interest by patrons who seemingly could not get enough of the big screen experience in 2015,” said Rentrak senior media analyst Paul Dergarabedian.
Many notable records fell this year, with virtually every month posting a new benchmark for North American box office revenue. The year’s records included: the biggest January weekend gross with American Sniper, the biggest February opening weekend with Fifty Shades Of Grey, the biggest April opening weekend with Furious 7, the best June opening weekend with Jurassic World, the biggest September debut with Hotel Transylvania 2, and December’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens taking over the top spot for all-time opening weekend.
Below is a list of the top 10 highest-earning years at the North American box office:
Hollywood
WBD sets April 23 vote on $110bn Paramount Skydance merger
Investor approval key step, but regulators loom over mega media deal
NEW YORK: Warner Bros. Discovery has set April 23 as the date for shareholders to vote on its proposed $110 billion merger with Paramount Skydance, marking a crucial step in one of the biggest media deals in recent years.
The all-cash transaction offers WBD shareholders $31 per share, a hefty 147 per cent premium to its unaffected stock price, signalling strong intent to push the deal across the finish line. The company’s board has unanimously backed the merger and is urging investors to vote in favour.
Even if shareholders give the green light, the deal is far from done. Regulators in the United States and Europe are expected to scrutinise the merger closely, weighing concerns around competition and potential price impacts for consumers.
To keep investors on side, WBD has built in a safety net. If the deal is not completed by September 30, shareholders will receive a quarterly “ticking fee” of $0.25 per share until closure.
The proposed merger would significantly reshape the media landscape, combining the assets of Warner Bros. Discovery with those linked to Paramount Global and Skydance Media. It would also cement the growing influence of David Ellison, who has been steering Skydance’s aggressive expansion strategy.
“The WBD Board has been guided by the singular principle of securing a transaction that maximises the value of our iconic assets and delivers as much certainty as possible to our shareholders,” said Warner Bros. Discovery board chair Samuel A. Di Piazza Jr.. “This historic transaction will expand consumer choice and create new opportunities for creative talent.”
Warner Bros. Discovery chief executive officer David Zaslav added that the company is working closely with its counterpart to close the deal and unlock value for stakeholders.
With investor backing likely but regulatory hurdles ahead, the proposed merger is shaping up to be a defining moment for the global entertainment industry, where scale, content and competition are increasingly intertwined.
