Dvd Sales

Getting comedies onto the big screen has become a sobering business in Hollywood. Once one of the movie industry's most successful genres, with stars such as Eddie Murphy and Will Ferrell boasting $20-million paychecks, comedy is now among the most challenging propositions for the studios that bankroll them. The fact that they typically aren't popular overseas — where culturally specific humor can be difficult to translate — has become a larger obstacle in an increasingly global film business.

The epic miniseries “The Bible” booked the top spot once again in DVD and Blu-ray sales last week, while the just-arriving “Life of Pi,” until now not available in all retail outlets, took the top rental spot. Here are the top-selling and renting discs for the weeks ending April 13 and 14, respectively, according to Rentrak. TOP 10 DVD & BLU-RAY SALES 1. “The Bible (The Epic Miniseries)” | Fox | Week 2 2. “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” | Warner Bros | Week 4 3. “Lincoln” | Disney | Week 3 4. “Les Miserables” | Universal | Week 4 5. “Wreck-It Ralph” | Disney | Week 6 6. “Marvel Cinematic Universe: Phase One - Avengers” | Disney | Week 2 7. “Life of Pi” | Fox | Week 5 8. “Rise of the Guardians” | Paramount | Week 5 9. “Parental Guidance” | Fox | Week 3 10. “Game of Thrones: The Complete Second Season” | Warner Bros | Week 8 TOP 10 D VD & BLU-RAY RENTALS 1. “Life of Pi” | Fox | Week 5 2. “Zero Dark Thirty” | Sony | Week 4 3. “Lincoln” | Buena Vista/Disney | Week 3 4. “Argo” | | Warner Bros | Week 8 5. “Red Dawn” | MGM | Week 6 6. “Killing Them Softly” | Anchor Bay/Starz | Week 3 7. “Wreck-It Ralph” | Disney | | Week 6 8. “Rise Of The Guardians” | DreamWorks Week 5 9. “Skyfall” | Fox | Week 9 10. “The Collection” | Lionsgate | Week 3 ALSO : Zach Braff tries to Kickstart...

The Tim Burton-directed animated feature "Frankenweenie" debuted at the top of the DVD sales charts, while "Looper" remained the most popular rental in the U.S. in the second week of January. The horror movie "House at the End of the Street," meanwhile, was the most popular video-on-demand rental. Walt Disney Studios' animated films have remained relatively popular purchases amid a long-running DVD slump, and "Frankenweenie" continued that trend, despite not having performed well at the box office.

New releases ruled the sales market, with "The Hobbit," "Les Miserables" and "Zero Dark Thirty" knocking last week's "Rise of the Guardians" off its roost. But holdover “Argo” claimed top spot on the rental chart. Here are the top-selling and top-renting titles for the week ending March 23 and March 24, respectively, according to Rentrak. TOP 10 DVD & BLU-RAY SALES 1.          "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"   Warner Bros.    Week 1 2.          "Les Miserables"           Universal.

No new movies dared challenge "The Lorax" on DVD, and Universal Pictures' animated family film topped the sales and rental charts for the week. In its first week, the box office hit based on the classic Dr. Seuss book was the most-bought and most-rented DVD and Blu-ray disc in the U.S., according toRentrak Corp. The No. 2 top seller wasn't a movie at all, but the History channel's "Hatfields & McCoys" mini-series, which was released on disc by Sony Pictures. The second-most-rented disc was "Lockout," the Luc Besson-produced action film starring Guy Pearce, which came out on disc four weeks ago. Below are the 10 most bought and rented DVDs and Blu-ray discs for the week ended Aug. 12, according to Rentrak Corp.

Cost-cutting and robust holiday-season sales of "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" and "Star Trek" DVDs propelled Viacom Inc. to a fourfold increase in fourth-quarter profit. Viacom reported Thursday that it earned $694 million, or $1.14 a share, compared with $172 million, or 28 cents, a year earlier. The jump in earnings was, in large part, because of a $454-million restructuring charge taken in the period in 2008. Revenue, however, fell 3% to $4.1 billion for the quarter, reflecting continued weakness in the TV advertising market.

Lionsgate was back on top with its "Hunger Games" last week, returning to the top of both the sales and rental charts. Newcomer "The Dictator," from Sasha Baron Cohen, made noise too, as did releases of Paramount TV shows "NCIS" and "Dexter" and Disney classics "Pocahontas" and "The Rescuers. " Below are the 10 most bought and rented DVDs and Blu-ray discs in the the U.S. last week, according to Rentrak Corp. Top 10 DVD and Blu-ray sales 1. "The Hunger Games" (Lionsgate)

Fox's "Skyfall" remained atop the DVD sales chart for the second consecutive week since its release, holding on to the top spot despite last week's DVD release of the Academy Award-winning "Argo. " Last week's No. 2 seller, Disney's "Hotel Transylvania," was knocked out of the top five with new releases such as "Argo," a re-release of Disney's "Monster's Inc. and the second season of HBO hit show "Game of Thrones" soaring to the top of the sales chart, during the week ending Feb. 23.  On the rentals chart, "Taken 2" claimed the top spot in its sixth week since release, edging out Denzel Washingon's "Flight," which was the previous period's most rented DVD, for the week ending Feb 24. Below are the 10 most sold and rented movie discs, according to Rentrak.

"Brave" bested three new releases to stay atop the DVD sales chart for the third consecutive week, outselling "Men in Black 3," "ParaNorman" and "Lawless. "  The animated fantasy film from Walt Disney Studios was the top-selling DVD and Blu-ray disc in the United States, according to research company Rentrak Corp., and the No. 3 most-rented. "Men in Black," "ParaNorman" and "Lawless" debuted at No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4, respectively. Lionsgate's "The Expendables 2" was the most-rented DVD and Blu-ray this week, climbing from its debut at No. 2 last week. "The Amazing Spider-Man," last week's most-rented DVD and Blu-ray, fell to No. 4. Below are the 10 most sold and rented movie discs during the week ended Dec. 1 (sales)

In its first week of release on DVD and Blue-ray, Fox's "Skyfall" - the latest James Bond installment - topped DVD and Blue-ray sales chart, knocking "Hotel Transylvania" out of the No. 1 spot. In addition to the 007 flick starring Daniel Craig , "Hotel Transylvania," "The Man With the Iron Fists," "Peter Pan" (re-release) and "Flight" rounded out the top slots on the DVD sales chart for the week ending Feb 17. Denzel Washington's action-thriller "Flight" remained atop the rentals chart for a second week, with "Here Comes the Boom," "Taken 2," "Hotel Transylvania" and "Alex Cross" completing the top five list.

The animated family film “Rise of the Guardians” has risen - and landed at the top of the DVD and Blu-ray sales chart, a surprise second chance for the DreamWorks box-office disappointment. Here are the top titles for sales (for the week ending March 16) and rentals (for the week ending March 17), according to Rentrak. TOP-10 DVD & BLU-RAY SALES 1          “Rise of the Guardians” Paramount Week 1 2          “Life of Pi”        Fox.     Week 1 3          “Wreck-It Ralph”           Disney             Week 2 4          "Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2"         Summit Entertainment  Week 3 5          “Red Dawn”      Fox     Week 2 6          “Skyfall”           Fox     Week 5 7          “Mulan/Mulan II - 2 Pack”     Disney      Week 1 8          “Argo”  Warner Bros.    Week 4 9          “Game of Thrones: The Complete Second Season”     Warner Bros.    Week 4 10        “Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away”            Paramount.       Week 1 TOP-10 DVD & BLU-RAY RENTALS 1          “Skyfall”           Fox     Week 5 2          “Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2”    Summit Entertainment  Week 2 3          “Rise of the Guardians”  ...

Summit Entertainment's “Twilight Saga” vampire series landed two titles on the most recent top 10 DVD sales charts, while the tense dramas “Taken 2” and “Flight” retained their top positions on the rental charts. Here are the top selling and renting titles for the week ending March 2 (sales) and March 3 (rentals), according to Rentrak. TOP 10 DVD and BLU-RAY SALES 1. “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2” Summit Entertainment. Week 1 2. “Argo” Warner Bros.

Fox's "Skyfall" remained atop the DVD sales chart for the second consecutive week since its release, holding on to the top spot despite last week's DVD release of the Academy Award-winning "Argo. " Last week's No. 2 seller, Disney's "Hotel Transylvania," was knocked out of the top five with new releases such as "Argo," a re-release of Disney's "Monster's Inc. and the second season of HBO hit show "Game of Thrones" soaring to the top of the sales chart, during the week ending Feb. 23.  On the rentals chart, "Taken 2" claimed the top spot in its sixth week since release, edging out Denzel Washingon's "Flight," which was the previous period's most rented DVD, for the week ending Feb 24. Below are the 10 most sold and rented movie discs, according to Rentrak.

DVD shoppers can't get enough of “Twilight.” In its first weekend of release, “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2” sold an estimated 3.85 million DVDs, better than the home entertainment debut of the first “Breaking Dawn” movie last year, Lionsgate said Tuesday. The studio also said electronic sell-through transactions for the final “Twilight” movie were running about 20% ahead of the previous vampire film. PHOTOS: 'Breaking Dawn' premiere Lionsgate's “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1” and its “Hunger Games” were two of the top DVD releases last year, with “Hunger Games” at No. 1 among all 2012 titles and “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1” finishing fourth.

In its first week of release on DVD and Blue-ray, Fox's "Skyfall" - the latest James Bond installment - topped DVD and Blue-ray sales chart, knocking "Hotel Transylvania" out of the No. 1 spot. In addition to the 007 flick starring Daniel Craig , "Hotel Transylvania," "The Man With the Iron Fists," "Peter Pan" (re-release) and "Flight" rounded out the top slots on the DVD sales chart for the week ending Feb 17. Denzel Washington's action-thriller "Flight" remained atop the rentals chart for a second week, with "Here Comes the Boom," "Taken 2," "Hotel Transylvania" and "Alex Cross" completing the top five list.

In its first week of release on DVD and Blue-ray, Denzel Washington's action-thriller “Flight” soared to the top of the rental chart but failed to knock "Hotel Transylvania" out of its No. 1 spot in the sales rankings. Paramount's “Flight,” which earned Washington an Oscar nomination, was the most-rented disc in the U.S. during the week ending Feb. 10, but came in second in sales. “Hotel Transylvania,” the computer-animated comedy produced by Sony, was the top seller in its second week since being released on disc.

In its first week of release on DVD and Blue-ray, Denzel Washington's action-thriller “Flight” soared to the top of the rental chart but failed to knock "Hotel Transylvania" out of its No. 1 spot in the sales rankings. Paramount's “Flight,” which earned Washington an Oscar nomination, was the most-rented disc in the U.S. during the week ending Feb. 10, but came in second in sales. “Hotel Transylvania,” the computer-animated comedy produced by Sony, was the top seller in its second week since being released on disc.

The Tim Burton-directed animated feature "Frankenweenie" debuted at the top of the DVD sales charts, while "Looper" remained the most popular rental in the U.S. in the second week of January. The horror movie "House at the End of the Street," meanwhile, was the most popular video-on-demand rental. Walt Disney Studios' animated films have remained relatively popular purchases amid a long-running DVD slump, and "Frankenweenie" continued that trend, despite not having performed well at the box office.

Hollywood's era of plummeting home entertainment revenue is finally over. After seven straight years of falling returns driven by the collapse of DVD sales, Americans in 2012 spent more money watching movies at home than they did the previous year, according to data to be released Tuesday. The 0.23% rise, to just over $18 billion, is tiny, and it's a sign more that the business is “stabilizing” than that it's booming again, in the words of Craig Kornblau, Universal Studios' home entertainment president.