Report: Apple TV+ Pivoting Movie Strategy Amid Disappointing Performance

[mdatwood]

They had awesome movies CODA, Greyhound, Wolfwalkers, Tetris. Good movies finch, The Banker, Emancipation, The Greatest Beer Run Ever, Killers of the Flower Moon and ***** movies, Argyle I couldn't even finish...
Same as every other network, I would say.
50% of their series are absolutely fantastic. Slow horses and Ted lasso amongst the best on tv over the past years, IMO. I hope they continue!

I think Apple's ratio of good to terrible is better than most other streamers. They also punch way above their weight based on how much they spend in total [1]. Part of Apple's issue is they want to be a boutique streamer and not a Netflix, making a lot ride on every release. Netflix releases something new it feels like nearly every day, most of it mediocre.

I think the naming is also bad. Many people I know want to watch various shows but think they have to have an iPhone or buy an ATV to get access.


[1] https://www.filmtake.com/distribution/content-spending-slumps-in-the-post-peak-television-era/

 

[dcingie]

The film industry is struggling, especially in the United States. When big actors voice their ideological opinions, it often comes at a cost. Similarly, movies that delve into social issues don't appeal to many viewers. 🤷‍♂️

Yup. Exactly. If I see a movie with someone that’s gone out of their way to shove themselves into the spotlight I’ll intentionally not watch that movie. The number of viewers gained by spouting off always pales in comparison to the number of potential views that are put off. And they’re still not seeing it.

 

[Cirillo Gherardo]

I have instinctive, though somewhat irrational desire to avoid Apple's original content, because I don't see Apple as someone who I want choosing content for me, or even someone whose choices I'd agree with. Consequently I've only seen a small handful of Apple TV+ content. It was a much better look for Apple when they stayed out of the content business and instead focused on using the negotiating power to bringing content from others to users.

 

[mallomarx7]

How about take all that money and pump some into making some VisionPro content...either layer over a successful series like Severance or maybe start collecting immersive video for MLB or other sports deals. Apple has a blue ocean right in front of them. Expecting to dive in and compete with the creative horsepower and experience of mainstream big-picture studios was less "think different" and more "think foolish". Refocusing on immersive content would get the buzz back on for AVP, which has fallen into the shadows and really give Apple a way to repaint the possibilities of entertainment.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Pivot to a cancellation of Apple TV+

 

[KDNYC]

Apple’s best content has been their streaming series. Of those four films, Ive only seen Killers, and it’s so long and typical of Scorsese fare that ofc I watched it online. I pay for Apple and have a great oled so I don’t have to go into theaters. I do think they need to change how they are vetting projects. they keep trying for big home runs, and it’s a heavy swing and miss, when smaller indie projects might get more bang for their buck.

 

[turbineseaplane]

The "movie theater" experience is done. Just like gladiator games and vaudeville. People's habits and preferences have changed.

Agreed

I see people talking about Megalopolis ... am I'm interested

But I'll just wait until I can watch it at home on my OLED

 

[carrrrrlos]

I can’t imagine anything cinematically amazing or using the 'think different' mantra getting green lit by Tim. I mean, any one of their releases would be 'safe' fodder for grocery store aisle impulse buys.

 

[turbineseaplane]

I can’t imagine anything cinematically amazing or using the 'think different' mantra getting green lit by Tim. I mean, any one of there releases would be 'safe' fodder for grocery store aisle impulse buys.

Agreed

Tim "Milk Toast" Cook

 

[ChrisA]

Most of Hollywood these days are focused on making what people with money want made, which turns out to be mostly bad. They have gotten completely away from making what people want to watch.

So as a not-rich guy, you must know what films people like you want to see. If I am right, you could very soon because very rich.

What I'm getting at here is that you are right in that rich guys don't seem to know what will work. But also you and I don't know either. No one does.

Hollywood seems to be too conservative and likes to make sequels to hit shows, then they get blasted for not being very creative. It's hard to win.

 

[ChrisA]

Apple will NEVER be able to do well in the theater, even if they make some really good films. The problem is not the content. The problem, is that Apple is set up to fail because everyone knows that the film will be on Apple TV very soon.

The only solution is for Apple to spin off an independent studio that NEVER gets any of the profit from Apple TV.

 

[sflagel]

I feel that discovery has become more difficult since streaming became big. One used to have a really good feel whether a movie was worth watching based on the queues, the number of theatres where something was playing, how long it was playing etc. Now every movie seems to get the same exposure whether it’s good or not. Sure, we get a linear ranking on the service itself, but it’s not based on my peer group, nor does it convey relative quality - are 5 times as many people liking it or only a few more. It’s also not helped that movies stream for forever, no one brings up in a conversation the good recent releases they have watched in a cinema.
I wish technology would find a way, beyond rotten tomatoes, to facilitate natural discovery processes.

 

[ChrisA]

I feel that discovery has become more difficult since streaming became big. One used to have a really good feel whether a movie was worth watching based on the queues, the number of theatres where something was playing, how long it was playing etc. Now every movie seems to get the same exposure whether it’s good or not. Sure, we get a linear ranking on the service itself, but it’s not based on my peer group, nor does it convey relative quality - are 5 times as many people liking it or only a few more. It’s also not helped that movies stream for forever, no one brings up in a conversation the good recent releases they have watched in a cinema.
I wish technology would find a way, beyond rotten tomatoes, to facilitate natural discovery processes.

This could be a great use of AI. The system could read thousands of reviews and get questions of each reviewer such as "what other films do you like or not like and why.

Then later you are the AI "What would I like?" and then it questions you and what films you liked in the past and what you did not like and then describes the top five matches. The description is customized for you based on what it knows about you.

This is very different from a static website because the results you see have been filtered be an AI who knows about both you and the people who posted reviews. To help the AI in the future you could post a critique (after you watched the film) about how good it was at matching you to the films.

Building this would be a lot of work but it is not outside of what is possible.

 

[tennisproha]

The Wolfs trailer is probably the worst movie trailer I've ever seen. Apple has no clue what they're doing.

 

[Chungry]

I gotta hand it to Apple and the movie studios- they’ve finally found a way to stop piracy dead in its tracks: produce slop that no one even wants to download

 

[TallManNY]

I know the movie business is in a weird place right now but its not so weird and unpredictable that "Brad Pitt $300m F1 movie" isn't an obvious bomb. Who the hell is the audience for this?

Ridley Scott is infamously hit-or-miss with more misses than hits as he's gotten older. Funding that Napoleon project was ridiculously irresponsible.

The people green lighting these movies must just be Gen-X types excited to work with the auteurs and stars of their youth and they should just not be allowed to make these decisions.

That last part has always been the risk of this strategy. Apple has basically unlimited money. And working with celebrities is more fun than working with engineers. So temptation to take some of nearly unlimited money and deploy it into this space and have some fun and glamour must be very high.

 

[Chungry]

That last part has always been the risk of this strategy. Apple has basically unlimited money. And working with celebrities is more fun than working with engineers. So temptation to take some of nearly unlimited money and deploy it into this space and have some fun and glamour must be very high.

So they chose to do the easy thing instead of the hard thing. Modern Apple is such a mess

 

[webkit]

In Europe they’re cheaper and Apple was priced at € 4,99 a month and they upped the price to 9,99. A steep increase so I quit using it and now I’m streaming from Amazon Prime.

TV+ increased significantly in the U.S. as well. It launched in 2019 at $4.99/month and is now $9.99/month. Still cheap compared to others like Max, Netflix, Disney+, etc. which have also seen price increases.

 

[DunedinD]

Good. Wolfs perhaps shouldn’t even have been released on TV+, it’s such a painfully dull couple of hours to witness.

 

[webkit]

Apple will NEVER be able to do well in the theater, even if they make some really good films. The problem is not the content. The problem, is that Apple is set up to fail because everyone knows that the film will be on Apple TV very soon.

While Apple theater releases may end up on TV+ faster than other movies end up on streaming services, most end up there fairly quickly these days. I don't think Apple (or other) movies are being affected by this the way they might have been years ago. It's a different entertainment landscape today.

 

[Lynxpoint]

The 70’s; the most political decade in history, also was the golden age of movies. And they also had the reactionaries complaining. Same old same old.

Still, most movies today are pretty bad. Agree.

I feel like the movie 'problem' is the same problem with music today. For better or worse, it used to be harder to produce a movie, much like music. Now there is so much content being generated, BUT, there is little floodgate management to control the feed to the populace. As a result, we get 'everything', and have to filter through it all, and often discover there is quite a bit that maybe should not have been created in the first place.

 

[Lynxpoint]

Good. Wolfs perhaps shouldn’t even have been released on TV+, it’s such a painfully dull couple of hours to witness.

I am curious why there is so much negativity for Wolfs. I watched it and did not mind it at all. This coming from someone that does not like may of the movies I do watch, for example, 'Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes' left me wondering what was the purpose of this movie (the third-last movie I saw in the theatre. Second-last was Deadpool-Wolverine which I would say was on par for me with Wolfs for mindless action/banter entertainment).

 

[lovehateapple]

Before the Avatar sequel, I would have said apple should try to collaborate with James Cameron, but not now. I thought the Way of Water was a huge letdown and I am not looking forward to the third installment.

I know a lot of people will disagree with me, but I wish apple would focus more resources on creating more content for the Vision Pro including sporting events and concerts, even if they're not broadcast live.

 

[amartinez1660]

I know the movie business is in a weird place right now but its not so weird and unpredictable that "Brad Pitt $300m F1 movie" isn't an obvious bomb. Who the hell is the audience for this?

Ridley Scott is infamously hit-or-miss with more misses than hits as he's gotten older. Funding that Napoleon project was ridiculously irresponsible.

The people green lighting these movies must just be Gen-X types excited to work with the auteurs and stars of their youth and they should just not be allowed to make these decisions.

This is such a solid take, I don’t know if there was a reply between all the ongoing pages. Pardon me the repetitiveness…
But goodness, I do have to get off my chest that I can’t believe that the same guy that directed the very first Alien, Blade Runner, Gladiator, Prometheus (I liked it, nobody is perfect alright?) and so many others, is also the guy behind Napoleon (and several other sub par movies for me). Do these creators just get lucky or what, or lost the drive or lately there’s so much red tape and bureaucracy that they just can’t fly high anymore?

I guess on Apple’s side: they couldn’t have really predicted the outcome and decided to take a major gamble in the hopes of catching lightning. Same with many of the promising, but ultimately disappointing movies.

 

[I7guy]

Most of what Apple produces is good. We watched wolfs over the weekend and really enjoyed it. Aside from the 10 Emmy Awards, people are right. Apple programming is terrible. /s