Hollywood Keeps Films In Russian Theaters Despite Ukraine Invasion

While U.S. President Joe Biden is creating sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, Hollywood studios are maintaining a business-as-usual routine by continuing to provide Russian theaters with their latest films.

What Happened: This week, Russian moviegoers are enjoying the local premieres of MGM/United Artist Releasing’s Channing Tatum film “Dog” (released under the title “Lulu and Briggs”) and the independently-produced Liam Neeson thriller “Blacklight” (released under the title “Shadow Game”). These films are competing against Sony Pictures’ SONY “Uncharted” starring Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg and Walt Disney Co.’s DIS all-star murder mystery “Death on the Nile.”

Next week, “The Batman” from AT&T’s T Warner Bros. is the major U.S. film arriving in Russia for a March 2 premiere, two days before it opens in the U.S. The following week, Disney’s Pixar feature “Turning Red” is playing in Russian theaters under the title “I Blush” — in the U.S., the film is bypassing cinematic distribution and going straight to the Disney+ streaming service.  Paramount PARAA is bringing its 50th anniversary re-release of "The Godfather" to Russia, too.

Related Link: Analysis: Are US Sanctions Against Putin Too Weak? Or Does Biden Have A Secret Cyber Plan In Waiting?

Why It Happened: The Biden administration has not sought to impose a boycott on U.S. films to Russia, so the Hollywood studios are free to distribute their productions to that market. No studio has volunteered to withdraw its films from the Russian market to protest the Ukraine invasion.

U.S. films are extremely popular with Russian audiences. Last year, eight of the top 10 grossing films were Hollywood products, with Sony Pictures’ “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” as the most commercially successful title with more than $32 million in ticket sales.

And the two Russian films on the top 10 list had U.S. influences: fifth-ranked “Upon the Magic Roads” was distributed by Sony Pictures and co-produced by its Columbia Pictures unit while seventh-ranked “The Last Warrior: Root of Evil” was co-produced and distributed by The Walt Disney Company CIS, Disney’s Russian subsidiary.

Photo: Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg in "Uncharted," courtesy of Sony Pictures.