Blu-ray Sales, December 1-7: Apes Dawns over Home Media

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Blu-ray Sales, December 1-7: Apes Dawns over Home Media

Posted December 11, 2014 08:21 PM by Josh Katz

For the week that ended on December 7th, Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment's Dawn of the Planet of the Apes took the top spot on the Blu-ray-only and overall package-media rankings. This sequel to the 2011 surprise hit Rise of the Planet of the Apes had a very successful performance when the picture premiered last July. After receiving positive critical acclaim (it has a Metacritic score of 79%), the film grossed over $708 million worldwide on top of its estimated $170-million budget. Last week, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes had a Blu-ray market share of 47%.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes dominated home media; no other title came close to it. Illustrating this point is the number-two seller on the Blu-ray-only list, a double-feature set of Rise of the Planet of the Apes and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. This Wal-Mart exclusive sold 24% as many Blu-rays as the single-film Dawn of the Planet of the Apes package and had a Blu-ray market share of 100%. On the overall package-media rankings, this two-film set came in thirteen place: taking its spot in second place was the box-office and home-media champion Frozen. The story of Frozen's success has already been well documented - this year's Academy Award-winner for Best Animated Feature, Frozen won Disney much acclaim last year, with solid critical notices (a 74% score on Metacritic), complementing a worldwide gross of over $1 billion on top of its estimated $150 million production budget. On the overall package-media list, Frozen, which had a Blu-ray market share of 16%, sold 38% as many total units as Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.

Finally, the Sylvester Stallone-starring actioner The Expendables 3 rounded out the top three spots on the Blu-ray-only chart. This PG-13 blockbuster thriller was a bit of a disappointment for Lionsgate when it made its theatrical premiere in August. In addition to middling critical notices (its Metacritic score is 35%), The Expendables 3 only grossed just over $39 million in the domestic market (however, the picture performed much stronger overseas, earning an additional $166 million). On the Blu-ray-only ranking, The Expendables 3 sold 21% as many Blu-rays as Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (and garnered an HD market share of 39%), and on the overall package-media chart, the film moved 26% as many units as the CGI-ape extravaganza.

Top Ten Blu-ray Sellers for Week Ending 12/07/14:
  1. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
  2. Rise of the Planet of the Apes / Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
  3. The Expendables 3
  4. How to Train Your Dragon 2
  5. Maleficent
  6. X-Men: Days of Future Past
  7. Frozen
  8. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
  9. Transformers: Age of Extinction
  10. Godzilla
Top Five Home Media Sellers for Week Ending 12/07/14 (% of Blu-ray's Market Share Noted):
  1. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (47%)
  2. Frozen (16%)
  3. The Expendables 3 (39%)
  4. How to Train Your Dragon 2 (36%)
  5. Maleficent (40%)
Top Five Blu-ray 3D Sellers for Week Ending 12/07/14 (Per % of Total Unit Sales):
  1. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes 3D (13%)
  2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier 3D (12%)
  3. Gravity 3D (7%)
  4. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug 3D (7%)
  5. The LEGO Movie 3D (6%)