Stranger Things Season 5: Netflix Gets No Box Office Money from Finale, Here’s Why

The Stranger Things Season 5 finale had an impressive performance in theaters, yet despite the excellent box office outing, Netflix will not make any money from the theatrical showings.

Why won’t Netflix make any money from the theatrical showings of the Stranger Things Season 5 finale?

Deadline reported that the Stranger Things series finale cleared “well north of $25 million,” with a possibility it reached $30 million. The finale played on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day in over 600 locations across the United States and Canada. 

There is an important clarifier. The $25 million is considered “concession cash,” not box office. Due to the actors’ contracts regarding residuals, tickets could not be charged for the event. Netflix and theaters got around this by charging concession vouchers to reserve seats. For example, AMC theaters charged around $20 per seat for a concession voucher. AMC earned around $15 million in concession cash for playing the finale.

In this situation, the movie theaters that played the Stranger Things Season 5 finale get to keep all of the money generated from the sales and not share it with the studio. Netflix also doesn’t report box office grosses or concession cash. However, it’s a net positive for Netflix, which gets to capitalize on the marketing and promotion.

After five seasons, Stranger Things wrapped up the series with a two-hour finale on New Year’s Eve. Written and directed by The Duffer Brothers, the finale, “Chapter Eight: The Rightside Up,” depicted the final battle between the people of Hawkins and Vecna. The episode also covered the fallout of the showdown and the fate of each character 18 months into the future. 

All eight episodes of Stranger Things Season 5 are now streaming on Netflix. 

Originally reported by Dan Girolamo for SuperHeroHype.

Source: Comingsoon.net