DC's The Flash Garners 1.1 Million Households in Live+2 Day Streaming Debut on HBO Max

DC's "The Flash", starring Ezra Miller, has reached the 1.1 million household mark in its Live+2 Day window on Max. The film debuted on the streamer on August 25. The figures are according to Samba TV's research panel. The numbers for "The Flash" are down 8% from the debut of "Black Adam" for its  Live+2 Day figures, which totaled 1.2 million.

In the lead-up to its release, "The Flash", with a production cost of $200 million excluding advertising expenses, faced significant PR challenges. Star actor Ezra Miller's involvement in various tabloid controversies, public altercations, and arrests in the year prior to the movie's premiere overshadowed its marketing efforts. The film's cast, including Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck, also had limited opportunities for press engagements due to the early stages of the Writers Guild of America strike, further hindering promotion. Also, "The Flash" struggled at the box office, debuting with a disappointing $55 million domestically, falling short of the anticipated high $60 million projections. Ultimately, the film concluded its theatrical run with $108.1 million domestically and $268.5 million globally, spanning a 71-day window before its streaming release, in contrast to Black Adam's 57 days.

Recent movie offerings on streaming platforms have recorded lower viewership compared to figures during the pandemic period of late 2020 to 2021. This shift can be attributed to the boost in viewership arising from Warner Media's strategy of simultaneous release in theaters and on HBO Max. This approach gained traction during the pandemic when more individuals opted to stay home due to COVID-19 concerns. For instance, James Gunn's "Suicide Squad" attracted 2.8 million U.S. households in its opening weekend on HBO Max, while "Wonder Woman 1984" managed 2.2 million households.

Warner Bros. adopted a contrasting approach with "The Batman", releasing it exclusively in theaters in March 2022. The film's debut week on HBO Max saw an impressive 4.1 million households, surpassing the first-week figures of day-and-date releases like "The Suicide Squad" (3.5 million), "Wonder Woman 1984" (3.2 million), "The Matrix Resurrections" (3.2 million), and "Dune" (2.3 million).

Analyzing viewer demographics, "The Flash" appealed significantly to the A45-54 age group, over-indexing by 10%. Hispanic households also displayed strong performance, exceeding expectations by 21%. Among the top 25 DMAs, Pittsburgh, PA stood out with a 57% over-index, followed by Sacramento, CA (32%) and Phoenix, AZ (20%). In contrast, Black Adam resonated most with Gen Z (A20-24) and millennial (A25-34) households, over-indexing at 6% and 3% respectively. The film performed well with Black and Hispanic households, over-indexing by 23% and 6% respectively. The biggest domestic box office debut of Dwayne Johnson's career was attributed to "Black Adam", earning $67 million, and the movie concluded its run with $168.1 million domestically and $393.2 million globally.