In news that’s going to rankle supporters of Zack Snyder’s Justice League, Warner Bros. are celebrating Godzilla vs. Kong as having scored the biggest HBO Max debut ever in terms of viewership numbers. Not only has the latest chapter in the MonsterVerse decimated all pandemic-era records at the box office, but it also looks to have been a huge hit for the studio’s streaming service as well.
Of course, we should point out that no official data or numbers have been provided, other than WB releasing a statement claiming that Adam Wingard’s epic smackdown had a “larger viewing audience than any other film or show on HBO Max since launch.” While this will inevitably lend credence to the theories that WarnerMedia are actively trying to bury the Snyder Cut, we haven’t seen any concrete figures regarding the four-hour DCEU epic, either, so it’s impossible to get a handle on how large or small the respective audiences were for both movies.
Fans have been streaming both Justice League and the Justice Is Gray Edition on repeat in order to continue the #RestoreTheSnyderVerse movement, so Godzilla vs. Kong must have caused a huge uptick in terms of both subscriber numbers and total viewership in order to draw in more eyeballs throughout its first five days on the platform, especially when it opened in over 3000 theaters and hauled in close to $50 million during the same time frame.
All of the major streaming services are highly reticent to provide actual data to back up their bold claims, such as Amazon touting Coming 2 America as the biggest digital premiere of the COVID-19 era without showing any evidence, but regardless of how Justice League fans feel, it’s got to be viewed as a huge win for Godzilla vs. Kong.