‘Grinch’ No Cheapskate for Universal Pictures Home Entertainment
April 25, 2019
Retail revenue from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment’s The Grinch helped the studio up first-quarter (ended March 31) home entertainment revenue 7.4% to $267 million from $248 million during the previous-year period.
Released Feb. 5, The Grinch has sold more than 1 million combined DVD/Blu-ray discs for $23.6 million in revenue. The title currently ranks the third best-selling disc in 2019, according to The-Numbers.com.
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Overall, filmed entertainment revenue increased 7.4% to $1.8 billion, reflecting higher content licensing, theatrical and home entertainment revenue.
Content licensing revenue increased 11.5%, driven by the timing of when content was made available under licensing agreements. Theatrical revenue increased 5.1%, due to the performance of films in this year’s first quarter, including How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World and Us, partially offset by the performance of Fifty Shades Freed in the first quarter of 2018.
Adjusted pre-tax earnings increased 78.7% to $364 million in the quarter, reflecting higher revenue as well as lower operating costs.