Sony’s DVD and home video release of Spider-Man broke all sales records for a home entertainment release’s first weekend, selling an ESTIMATED 7 million DVDs and videocassettes on its first day (Friday, Nov. 1), the studio announced Sunday.
With a projected 11 million DVDs and videocassettes to be sold in North America during its first weekend, Sony Pictures Entertainment chairman John Calley said the title is expected to generate more than $190 million in retail revenue in North America during its first three days in the marketplace.
Based on a record setting 26 million combined units (DVD and videocassettes) in North America having been shipped and its first day record breaking sales, Spider-Man is on track to become the biggest selling DVD title in history. It should also set an industry record for the most revenue ever generated by a studio in a single weekend for a single title.
Spider-Man will debut as the No. 1 selling DVD and VHS and it is on track to become the top-selling home entertainment release ever.
“With more than a billion dollars in worldwide revenues to date on this single title, the success of Spider-Man is simply staggering,” Calley said. “It took a true superhero to accomplish this phenomenal fete and the dividend for Sony Pictures Entertainment will be the most successful year in the studio’s history.”
Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment president Benjamin Feingold noted, “We are thrilled by the record breaking performance of Spider-Man on DVD and video. There is no question that Spider-Man‘s record-breaking home entertainment release greatly benefited from its extraordinary theatrical performance.
“But credit for Spider-Man‘s success in the home entertainment sector must also be given to CTHE’s marketing, sales and operations team who rose to the challenge by creating an impressive, strong and effective distribution strategy that insured maximum awareness and timely availability of the product for our retailers and consumers.”
Spider-Man is available as a two-disc set in both wide and full screen Special Editions on DVD. The DVD features an exclusive web of innovative interactive elements loaded with special never-before-revealed Spider-Man factoids and a first look at comic book-to-film comparisons. Also released day and date was a specially packaged Limited Edition Collector’s DVD Gift Set, loaded with collectible memorabilia extra features.
Sony said that Spider-Man‘s theatrical performance and now home entertainment release have broken virtually every major milestone, including: (1) Grossing more than $800 million worldwide; (2) The biggest opening weekend in Hollywood history; (3) The biggest single day box office; and (4) The fastest film in history ever to reach the $100 million mark (3 days), the $200 million mark (9 days), the $300 million mark (22 days) and the $350 million mark (31 days).
