‘Spider-Man 2’ Heads for Home Video Release
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Blockbuster comic book adventure “Spider-Man 2,” one of the year’s highest-grossing movies, is headed for a home video release on Nov. 30, Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment said on Friday.
The superhero sequel with Tobey Maguire returning as the mild-mannered photographer turned web-spinning crime fighter will be issued in time for the holiday shopping season as a two-disc DVD set and double VHS cassette video, Columbia said.
“Spider-Man 2” has generated $361 million in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales since its release June 29, making it the third-highest-grossing film in North America this year after “Shrek 2” and “The Passion of the Christ.”
The critically lauded “Spidey” has grossed more than $700 million in theaters worldwide. Kirsten Dunst co-stars as Spider-Man’s love interest, Mary Jane Watson, and Alfred Molina plays his evil arch foe, Doctor Octopus.
The DVD release will contain more than 10 hours of all-new content. Bonus features include a blooper reel, a “Spidey Sense 2” trivia track, four original online featurettes, a documentary on the making of the film, and a multi-angle, behind-the-scenes look at the climatic fight sequence between Spider-Man and Doc Ock. A wide-screen version also will be available on DVD.
Columbia TriStar, a unit of Sony Corp.’s Sony Pictures Entertainment, said it expects sales of its “Spider-Man 2” DVD release to surpass home video revenues from the first film. The original 2002 movie initially shipped 6.5 million VHS tapes and 19.5 million DVD copies for gross revenues of $423 million combined, according to Adams Media Research .
DVDs in particular now constitute a key market for movie studios, generating annual revenues of more than $16 billion worldwide.
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