Originally, the plan was for Trolls World Tour to simultaneously release on digital and in theaters. The rapid spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, however, resulted in it going straight to VOD in the U.S. Against the odds, Trolls World Tour reportedly earned $50 million in its VOD opening weekend. This figure cements the animated film's place in the history books as the biggest opening weekend of all time for a digital release, according to Universal Pictures.

With other films, such as Artemis Fowl and My Spy, now forgoing theatrical runs for digital releases, industry pundits are wondering if Trolls World Tour's success signifies the end of the movie theater business. No one can deny that theaters have suffered in the past few weeks as operations ground to a halt across the globe.

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It's true that many independent cinemas will not survive in the long run, much like other businesses that will shut their doors as well. However, this doesn't mean it's the end of the industry just yet. The bigger chains have felt the impact, too, but they will continue to operate when the dust settles. For instance, AMC Entertainment secured $500 million in new debt that offers the company enough liquidity to avoid the closure of theaters until November 2020.

This doesn't take anything away from Trolls World Tour's success, but this is an extraordinary time. No analyst would be bold enough to predict any trend in this business unusual period as the world's economy has been turned on its head. While a family stuck at home might be tempted to spend $20 to watch a premium film, it doesn't mean it's a sound business model in the future.

A film like Trolls World Tour is exactly what a family would rent to entertain the kids. It might not have the excitement levels of a Stars Wars or Avengers movie, but it's a piece of new content to keep them occupied for a while. Would it be a first-choice film on a regular opening weekend, though?

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With the lack of options in high-profile films available right now, Trolls World Tour took the gap where others failed to see it. That being said, it would've struggled to achieve similar figures under normal circumstances. Box Office Pro predicted the film's first-weekend gross to be in the range of $17-27 million in February, so the digital release exceeded all expectations.

Unquestionably, Trolls World Tour and Universal Pictures deserve credit for taking a risk that paid off. At the same time, the film's triumph doesn't signify a changing of guard for the industry. What it should do, though, is give studios something to mull about for the next few months.

With social distancing likely to continue for the foreseeable future, most people will still avoid theaters -- unless there's a big movie on show. If a film wasn't tracking to set the box office on fire in the first place, there should be some consideration to release it directly to VOD. After all, different times call for different solutions.

Trolls World Tour stars Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Rachel Bloom, Ozzy Osbourne, James Corden, Caroline Hjelt, Aino Jawo, Ron Funches, Kunal Nayyar, Mary J. Blige, George Clinton, Anderson Paak, Kelly Clarkson, Sam Rockwell, Flula Borg, J Balvin, Ester Dean, Anthony Ramos, Jamie Dornan, Gustavo Dudamel, Charlyne Yi and Kenan Thompson. It's out now on VOD.

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