The Tom Hanks World War II film, “Greyhound” saw the largest opening weekend release ever for an Apple TV+ offering.
“Sources close to Apple,” told Deadline that “Greyhound” saw more viewers than any other movie released on Apple TV+ to date during its launch weekend, racking up numbers that equaled a “viewing audience commensurate with a summer theatrical box office big hit.”
While “Greyhound” was intended to be a theatrical release, many movie theaters in the United States and around the globe remain closed, causing many film studios to either delay theatrical releases or immediately offer films on-demand.
This led Sony Pictures to sell the rights to the film to Apple for $70 million. The deal marked the first time a Tom Hanks film went directly to streaming without first making an appearance in theaters.
In addition to the film’s position as the number one movie release on Apple TV+, “Greyhound” also appears to be drawing new eyes to the Apple TV+ service, as 30% of the film’s viewers were new to the service.
In “Greyhound,” Hanks plays George Krause, a career officer given command of a Navy destroyer Greyhound during the Battle of the Atlantic. Krause must fight both his own self-doubts and the enemy as he tries to prove he deserves the command.