Disney has released its fifth installment in the Indiana Jones franchise, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, in a bid to draw audiences back to cinemas. The movie stars Harrison Ford, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Mads Mikkelsen, Thomas Kretschmann, Toby Jones, and Antonio Banderas, and was written by someone other than George Lucas, who sold his company Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012.
Due to the pandemic, the global box office was 35% down on the pre-2020 average, with revenue from streaming subscriptions rising 17.6% to £3.8 billion in the UK. Netflix recently announced 7.7 million net new subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2022, bringing its total to 230.8 million worldwide.
The production behind the movie, PLT Productions (UK), was given a total tax credit of £46 million by the UK government and spent a total of £244.8 million. Production was delayed due to covid, but 433 production staff were paid £16.9 million.
The success of streaming services has raised questions over whether taxpayers' money should be spent on local companies instead of international studios. Disney's first quarter earnings will be released today, with investors having to wait until the company's annual shareholder meeting on April 3 to find out if activist investor Nelson Peltz of Trian will be granted a board seat.