HBO Max Chief: Don’t Blame ‘In the Heights’ Bad Box Office on Streaming Release

Andy Forssell told TheWrap they’ve seen more box office hits than misses with dual theater-streaming release strategy

HBO Max chief Andy Forssell insists that the disappointing box office returns for last month’s Warner Bros. musical “In the Heights” had nothing to do with its simultaneous release on his streaming platform.

“It’s so hard to gauge how much did COVID have to do with it, especially with the COVID situation changing week by week, people’s willingness to go to a theater,” Forssell told TheWrap after WarnerMedia parent AT&T reported its second quarter earnings (which you can read about here). “I just know ‘In the Heights’ did really well on HBO Max — it did sort of lower end of the range of our expectations at the box office.”

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Tim Baysinger

TV reporter • tim.baysinger@thewrap.com • Twitter: @tim_bays