For the week that ended on July 14th, Universal Studios scored the top film on the Blu-ray-only sales chart with its release of
The Host. The film - director Andrew Niccol's adaptation of the Stephenie Meyer novel - received a lukewarm critical and commercial reception when it premiered theatrically last March,
grossing just over $48 million worldwide on top of its estimated $40 million budget and
scoring a Metacritic ranking of 35%. Like Meyer's
Twilight film series,
The Host seems to have connected with audiences on the small screen, and in addition to heading up the Blu-ray list, the film had an HD market share of 41%. However, when taking into consideration overall package media,
The Host came in third place, with Tyler Perry's
Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor having the highest sales.
In second place on the Blu-ray-only and overall package media rankings was another Universal title, the family-friendly hit
Despicable Me. Over the last few weeks,
Despicable Me has re-emerged on the home media charts thanks to viewer anticipation for
its most recent sequel, and its package media figures helped to pad out
an already generous worldwide box-office gross of $543 million. On the the Blu-ray-only chart, the Steve Carell-starring CGI comedy sold 85% as many copies as
The Host (and had a Blu-ray market share of 33%), and on the overall package media list, it sold 57% as many total units as
Temptation.
Finally, Sony Pictures'
Dead Man Down closed out the third spot on the Blu-ray-only media ranking. The big-screen, English-language debut of
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo director Niels Arden Oplev struggled with viewers during its theatrical run; it mustered a
worldwide box-office gross of only $18 million and barely did better with critics, averaging a
Metacritic score of 39%. Last week, this violent thriller sold 62% as many Blu-rays as
The Host and had a Blu-ray market share of 38%. On the overall package media list, it came in fifth place and sold 36% as many units as
Temptation.
Top Ten Blu-ray Sellers for Week Ending 07/14/13:
- The Host
- Despicable Me
- Dead Man Down
- Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor
- Spring Breakers
- Oz the Great and Powerful
- Admission
- Jack the Giant Slayer
- Alien Anthology
- The Legend of Korra - Book One: Air
Top Five Home Media Sellers for Week Ending 07/14/13 (% of Blu-ray's Market Share Noted):
- Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor (14%)
- Despicable Me (33%)
- The Host (41%)
- Tyler Perry's The Haves and The Have-Nots (DVD only)
- Dead Man Down (38%)
Top Five Blu-ray 3D Sellers for Week Ending 07/14/13 (Per % of Total Unit Sales):
- The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey 3D (12%)
- Jack the Giant Slayer 3D (8%)
- Monsters, Inc. 3D (8%)
- Wreck-It Ralph 3D (6%)
- Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (5%)