Blu-ray Sales, February 16-22: Game of Thrones Conquers Competition

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Blu-ray Sales, February 16-22: Game of Thrones Conquers Competition

Posted February 26, 2015 09:40 AM by Josh Katz

For the week that ended on February 22nd, HBO Home Entertainment's Game of Thrones: The Complete Fourth Season was the top seller on the Blu-ray-only and overall package-media sales lists. The television show, an adaptation of George R. R. Martin's A Song of Fire and Ice series, is one of HBO's most-watched programs, and the network timed this Blu-ray release of its acclaimed fourth season to capitalize on the viewer interest over the Season Five-premiere in April. On the Blu-ray-only ranking, Game of Thrones: The Complete Fourth Season garnered a solid HD market share of 54%.

Next up on the Blu-ray-only and overall package-media charts was Universal Home Entertainment's release of Dumb and Dumber To. This highly anticipated comedy - its predecessor was, of course, the 1994 comedy smash Dumb and Dumber - scored with viewers despite mediocre critical notices; even with a Metacritic score of 36%, the film grossed over $169 million worldwide on top of a modest $40-million budget. On the Blu-ray-only ranking, Dumb and Dumber To sold 60% as many Blu-rays as Game of Thrones: The Complete Fourth Season (and garnered an HD market share of 41%). Regarding overall package-media totals, the film sold 78% as many units as the HBO favorite.

Finally, Sony Home Entertainment's The Interview rounded out the top three spots on the Blu-ray-only and overall package-media sales rankings. A bloody, silly buddy comedy starring Seth Rogen and James Franco, The Interview became one of 2014's most notorious features; its subject matter - that Rogen and Franco's dopey entertainment journalists would become lynchpins in the plot to kill Kim Jong-un - enraged the North Korean government and may have factored into the Sony hacking scandal that found many of the studio's internal networks compromised and released to the public online. After pulling the film from its theatrical release in December in order to avoid further security breaches (or worse), Sony eventually debuted it on VOD platforms, a strategy that proved unexpectedly lucrative - by that point, The Interview had generated so much controversy that viewers flocked to see it digitally to the tune of over $40 million in VOD revenues. On the Blu-ray-only ranking, The Interview sold 45% as many Blu-rays as Game of Thrones: The Complete Fourth Season (and garnered an HD market share of 41%). On the overall package-media chart, the film moved 59% as many units as HBO's fantasy drama.

Top Ten Blu-ray Sellers for Week Ending 02/22/14:
  1. Game of Thrones: The Complete Fourth Season
  2. Dumb and Dumber To
  3. The Interview
  4. 101 Dalmatians
  5. Birdman
  6. John Wick
  7. St. Vincent
  8. Fury
  9. The Theory of Everything
  10. Dracula Untold
Top Five Home Media Sellers for Week Ending 02/22/14 (% of Blu-ray's Market Share Noted):
  1. Game of Thrones: The Complete Fourth Season (54%)
  2. Dumb and Dumber To (41%)
  3. The Interview (41%)
  4. St. Vincent (28%)
  5. Birdman (53%)
Top Five Blu-ray 3D Sellers for Week Ending 02/22/14 (Per % of Total Unit Sales):
  1. Guardians of the Galaxy 3D (20%)
  2. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3D (5%)
  3. The Book of Life 3D (4%)
  4. The Boxtrolls 3D (3%)
  5. Despicable Me 2 3D (2%)