Taylor Swift's Eras Tour Concert Documentary Will Release Globally in Theatres

Fans of Taylor Swift can now see the 12-time Grammy Award Winner's globally lauded The Eras Tour in cinemas all across the world.

The concert documentary starring the singer-songwriter will screen in theatres in over 100 countries on October 13, 2023, as announced on Swift's Instagram account on September 27, 2023. Previously, Swift announced that the documentary would only be shown in North America. The Eras Tour is Swift's highest-grossing concert tour to date.

Taylor's version

Titled 'Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour' documentary is a product of Swift commissioning a production team that would eventually record footage from her concerts. For the documentary, her team shot the first three shows of her Los Angeles show in SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, California. Film direction duties fell to Sam Wrench, who also directed similar concert films such as Billie Eilish: Live at the O2 and Lizzo: Live in Concert.

The documentary was independently produced by Swift's company, Taylor Swift Productions, a move that helped Swift reduce expenses. The film was notably produced during a strike from the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers for an updated MBA. The guild was approved since the production was not under any AMPTP affiliates.

SAG-AFTRA chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland stated that Swift approached the guild to release the film under the union contract.

AMC Theatres and Cinemark Theatres acquired the distribution and exhibition rights for the film, as well as global distribution to unaffiliated theatres across the world. Ticket pricing was also seen as unconventional, as Swift seemingly priced theatre admission personally. Rates for adults are priced at $19.89, which references the upcoming release of Swift's version of her Grammy Award-winning album, 1989.

Bad blood?

The announcement of the 'Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour' documentary release garnered the attention of the American film industry. Entertainment pundits such as Deadline, Hollywood and USA Today see the film's release as a saving grace from the dismal overall box office results this 2023 caused by strikes from SAG-AFTRA and the Writers Guild of America.

Theatre operators also heralded the documentary as their industry saviour for this year. Early projections from Box Office Pro suggest that Swift's concert film might earn between $95 to $145 million upon its release.

National Association of Theatre Owners president Michael O'Leary is also ecstatic about the development, saying that it might open the possibility of concert films being potential blockbusters in the future.

A few upcoming film releases have also decided to adjust their dates to make way for Swift's documentary. Universal Pictures and Blumhouse Productions were set to release the supernatural horror film 'The Exorcist: Believer' on the same date as the documentary's release but decided to release it earlier on October 6 instead. The hashtag #Exorswift trended during the announcement since the news almost replicated the double feature phenomena Barbenheimer earlier this year.

Apple Studios and Paramount Pictures also decided to cancel a limited two-week release of the Martin Scorsese picture Killers of the Flower Moon, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone. The film's wide release will be on October 20 as originally planned.

Swift is set to tour more cities in the US this October and November. The Eras Tour will also travel to Asia, Europe and Australia starting February 2024.