Buoyant Boy Bound for Blu-ray

Expect the year’s biggest grossing theatrical release, Boy, to come out on Blu-ray in time for Christmas.

The winner of seven Qantas Film & TV Awards has been a top-selling DVD since its release three weeks ago and is still #1 on the DVD rental charts.

Given writer/director Taikai Waititi’s hit has grossed more than any other NZ movie, and is still this year’s box office champ, it was surprising DVD distributor Universal Pictures didn’t release it simultaneously on Blu-ray.

Although the Blu-ray market in NZ is developing slower than elsewhere, surely there would have been demand for a title of this significance and popularity in HD?

It turns out to have been chiefly a timing issue: Universal thought it wouldn’t be able to assemble all of the material needed for a special edition DVD or Blu-ray in time for the Father’s Day release, so went with the single disc DVD instead.

Moreover, by holding back the Blu-ray and special edition DVD until Christmas, Universal can now cash in on a bigger market: by December, Boy will have completed its theatrical release across the Tasman and be ready to make its DVD debut in Australia.

For more on Boy’s DVD success, see Onfilm.