The last card to fall for Apple TV+ – which was invited to cinemas three times – Argylle did not meet with the expected success. It doesn’t matter that Henry Cavill’s name is at the top of the poster, that the dad of the saga Kingsman or in the maneuver, the footage produced by the Cupertino firm got badly caught up in the carpet. The first blockbuster of the year had to deal with terrible reviews, catastrophic word of mouth and revenues well below expectations.
If it had reached the top of the box office last January, Argyle especially benefited from a particularly calm period for cinema. At the end of its first weekend, the film only grossed $18 million on American soil. This is much less than what the project costing nearly 200 million could claim. The following weeks will not be any better, with only $96.2 million raised at the end of its operation throughout the world. The loss is significant for Apple Studio, which had not really amortized its investment with Napoleon by Ridley Scott and Killers of the Flower Moon by Martin Scorsese. What if the company’s objective was elsewhere?
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A streaming box
When Apple TV+ invested in the then very closed SVoD sector, the firm did not demonstrate a rich catalog of several thousand hours of content purchased from historic studios. It focuses solely on original productions, ambitious works with a high standard that has become too rare on the small screen. But faced with tougher competition, the company must continue to invest to increase its ranks. And for that, he needs to attract the attention of a few headliners.
This cannot be done without an exclusive cinema release first. If Martin Scorsese has already proposed a film on Netflix, The Irishman had enjoyed a short run on the big screen before hitting the shelves of the American platform. Revenues were lower and it was at the heart of its own service that the operation proved successful.
The same goes for films developed by Apple Studio, Argyle a hit in streaming. According to the ranking Reelgoodthe film starring Bryce Dallas Howard and Sam Rockwell is at the top of the most viewed productions on American soil. The week of its launch, Matthew Vaughn’s proposal did better than The Area of Interest, Poor Creatures and even Oppenheimer. If its domination over the last two is less surprising—they have been available for several weeks— Argyle dethrones Jonathan Glazer’s Oscar-winning chronicle barely a week after its release.
Show of force
By establishing prestigious partnerships, Apple wanted to prove that it had its place in the very closed circle of studios that matter to the industry. The company was well surrounded for its first entry into the cinema program, it was praised for its audacity in more than one way.
Killers of the Flower Moon was applauded by critics and the public, even if the revenues did not live up to this media enthusiasm. For Napoleon, the feedback is more mixed, but Apple has above all been able to highlight the ability of its teams to see things in the big picture, to bring about ambitious historical frescoes. For his part, Argyle should be an opportunity to show that the company can also indulge in the exercise of comedy and generous blockbusters.
Since its beginnings, Apple TV+ does not seem to have embarked on a frantic race for subscribers and content. The Tech giant also cultivates mystery regarding the number of people who regularly use its service. His arrival at the cinema seems to have been thought of in the same way, in order to demonstrate force. His presence was finally moderated during the various ceremonies rewarding the 7th artthe Oscars in the first place, but the fallout for the giant’s streaming activities is rather positive.
It remains to be seen whether this will recoup the billion spent on this charming operation, and whether Apple Studio will be inclined to try the experiment again. Matthew Vaughn has the ambition to create a cinematic universe of espionage, and to continue the adventures of his fictional spy. It may be exclusively on Apple TV+ that this will happen.
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