Lionsgate to release Robert DeNiro’s ‘About My Father’ on 26 May

Hollywood studio Lionsgate will release Robert De Niro-starrer About My Father, in cinemas on 26 May. Based on the life of the popular comedian Sebastian Maniscalco, the film also features Maniscalco himself along with Kim Cattrall and Leslie Bibb.

Helmed by Laura Terruso and written by Austen Earl and Sebastian Maniscalco, the movie will be released by Lionsgate and PVR Pictures.

With discerning cinema audiences having moved online for entertainment during covid pandemic, smaller, niche films in several international languages are struggling to find takers in cinemas. These include small scale Hollywood films or movies from Korea and Iran that were originally popular in the big metros like Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru and could make up to Rs. 1 crore from their release in theatres.

Theatre chains and distribution companies said while films such as Ticket to Paradise, Elvis, Don’t Worry Darling and Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris haven’t attracted viewers in the past few weeks, they will continue to bring these small, acclaimed foreign films to India.

People are willing to come to theatres for large-scale spectacles and not performance-oriented dramas, say trade experts. That wouldn’t have been the case pre-covid. Millennials are watching content from across the world and are open to films from different genres. While superhero films have a loyal audience, people are open to watching non superhero content too.

Increase in the number of DCI (digital cinema initiative) cinemas has hugely improved the prospects of Hollywood in India, helping films manage wider releases. Plus, the target audience, which is the 15-40 year old, is updated with reviews and feedback on social media. DCI is a joint venture of several film studios, including Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, 20th Century Fox, Universal Studios, Walt Disney Co. and Warner Bros, to set up a common set of requirements that ensure a high and uniform standard of digital cinema viewing.