Well, this spells trouble for "The Expendables 3."
A perfect, DVD-quality copy of the film first leaked online last Wednesday. And for obvious reasons, this will almost certainly hurt the box-office turnout for the Sylvester Stallone-starring action pic.
According to EnStars, Lionsgate (the company behind the "Expendables" franchise) is not disclosing just how the film first became pirated, but the quality of the film indicates that it has most likely come from inside Lionsgate itself.
As well, EnStars reports that the film was pirated nearly 200,000 times within a day of its leak online. That doesn't necessarily mean that 200,000 people who would have seen "The Expendables 3" will now skip it (there are certainly plenty that wouldn't pay to see the latest Stallone film, but would gladly see it for free). But it almost certainly means the film will take a hit when it releases in theaters.
Sadly, Variety recently updated the story, adding that since the film's leak last week, it has been illegally downloaded nearly two million times. "The Expendables 3" hits theaters on August 15, more than two weeks away. In those two weeks, expect many more people to download it and cost "The Expendables 3" precious box-office dollars.
However, one dissenting voice claims that the leak may actually help the film. An article on The Verge claims that the only people who'd download "The Expendables 3" are those who are obsessive fans of the franchise, and the film's quality would drive people to pay to see it again, after they've already seen it for free:
"The people who have downloaded a leaked torrent of the movie are, almost certainly, the series' most fervent fans. They're the ones most likely to go see it in theaters, the ones who turned the two previous films into a $600 million franchise. And sure, maybe some of them won't pay $13 to see it again. But many of them will, because they'll realize how much they missed the first time. Many of them will also spend the next three weeks telling everyone they know how awesome this movie is, how Rotten Tomatoes is full of it and that really 'The Expendables 3' is two-plus hours of near-flawless action porn. They'll tell their friends to go back and watch the other two movies before this one comes out. They'll get all their best bros together and go to the theater to watch a movie that is basically '300' with way more guns and way fewer visible abs."
Does that sound a little ridiculous? Probably. But we'll find out on August 15.
Join the Conversation