The second wave of Coronavirus has resulted in the shutting down of theatres once again and forced the movie makers to rethink their strategies.
Pinkvilla has informed that even Akshay Kumar has started conversations for a direct to the digital premiere of Bell Bottom.
A source says “The makers were all set for a theatrical release on May 28, but in current times, it’s unlikely for any film to arrive in the cinema halls at least till the month of July. The cases are on the rise every day and are showing no signs of slowing down. After multiple rounds of internal discussions, the Bell Bottom team has initiated a conversation with the digital giant, Disney+ Hotstar for a digital premiere.”
Bell Bottom team was in talks with Amazon Prime in the month of January but it was later revealed that it was just a conversation by Jackky and Vashu Bhagnani, and Nikkhil Advani, just to explore the market value of the film.
“While Amazon has made an offer of around Rs 125 crore plus to the film, the makers are expecting something in the vicinity of Rs 150 crore. They have now gone to Disney+ Hotstar and the final rounds discussions are going on at the moment. A call on the medium as also the mode of release will be taken in a fortnight. The film will premiere on OTT if and when the makers get the money that they have demanded and the inside buzz is, Hotstar is quite impressed with the rushes of the film that they watched. It wouldn’t be an issue for them to give the Bell Bottom makers the money they have demanded,” the source continued.
The makers want Bell Bottom to be a theatrical experience but tough decisions are to be taken in challenging times like these.
Bell Bottom will be the second Akshay Kumar film to take the direct to digital route, after the Diwali 2020 release, Laxmmi. The horror-comedy was settled for a digital premiere with a blanket value of Rs 140 crore approx.