Wolverine, Star Trek and how piracy destroyed them both

Almost a month before Wolverine hit the movie theaters a workprint copy of the movie was “leaked” onto the Web. It was a copy that was half finished as far as the special effects were concerned with green screens and wire framed character models visible for all the world to see. The great fight scene at the top of the nuclear reactor was more stickman like drawing that anything to do with the actors. In the end it was an incomplete movie that really only left the majority of those that watched it wanting to see the real thing.

In contrast Star Trek made it to the theater without a hitch and not a single “leak” to be found on the web. There were no FBI agents busting down doors and seizing servers or freelance reviewers losing their jobs because they reviewed something that they shouldn’t have. Everything was above board and unlike Wolverine the Star Trek movie became the darling of the weekend critics; which will last until the next great movie hits.

On one hand you have a great action movie without any pretentions of greatness getting panned and making movie executives fall all over themselves crying about how piracy was going to ruin the movie. On the other side of the coin you have a movie that made it to the theater with movie executives pleased as punch that they had kept those nasty criminal pirates from ruining yet another movie.

As we make our way through the weeks following the big weekend releases of both movies we have some serious dollar figures that obviously will show that those terrible pirate must have ruin the success of Wolverine while letting Star Trek surge ahead. There is only one problem with that assumption – it’s full of crap.

On opening weekend box office dollar figures we have the following:

• Wolverine earned more than $85 million
• Star Trek netted $75 million

So there you have it folks. The movie that caused the most uproar over piracy in recent time actually earned more money than the other hot movie that garnered critic praise and not a peep about piracy. In the process an ISP data host lost millions of dollars and had their reputation severely impacted. As well a long time FOX freelance movie reviewer has lost his livelihood. All because of the pirating of an incomplete film that ended up earning more money on opening weekend box office that the golden boy movie.

Someone care to tell me exactly how piracy is hurting the movie industry?