King Richard’s HBO streaming numbers are solid despite soft box office opening

Last Updated on November 25, 2021

King Richard entered the box office marketplace with a rather soft $5.4 million debut but given the fact the film is also available on HBO Max, the streamer is reporting that the movie is doing solid business on the platform.

HBO Max told “Deadline” that a majority of subscribers watched the biopic about Venus and Serena Williams’ father from start to finish without pausing that movie. That’s a 100% completion rate and it’s something that all streamers pay close attention to. King Richard has a running time of 2 hours and 24 minutes which makes its completion wait even more impressive. Older moviegoers are still reluctant to head to the theater during the pandemic and that’s definitely the target demo here but they definitely supported the film on the streaming platform. HBO Max Head Andy Forsell said, “There are a lot of reasons in an on-demand world you’d have interruptions, and that clearly didn’t happen with this movie. There’s a strong output here with this movie that distinctive verse other day-and-date event titles, which are effects driven.”

Samba TV reported that 707,000 U.S. households watched King Richard over the weekend and that’s not even the full picture. Samba TV measures analytics from about $3 million U.S. households and you have to opt-in on your smart TV to have your view counted. They also don’t include mobile phones, tablets, or computer viewership. Samba TV also measures viewership over a small set of minutes, usually over a five-minute increment. The HBO Max completion rate is the bigger picture and it could have the film be deemed a success in the long run.

King Richard has steller reviews at 92% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and it’s more than likely that Will Smith will receive a Best Actor Oscar nomination. Exits were also very strong for the film with the biopic scoring an “A” CinemaScore from opening day audiences. HBO Max expects King Richard to be a top choice for families to watch at home over the Thanksgiving holiday given the positive word of mouth.

Do YOU think word of mouth will allow King Richard to have a stellar run on HBO Max?