In light of the shooting and deaths in Colorado during a late-night screening of Warner Bros. big summer movie "The Dark Knight Rises," TV networks and Web sites pulled video and display advertising over the weekend.
But not all media platforms pulled marketing.
A Warner Bros. spokeswoman had no comment concerning such
activity. The movie studio did cancel its Paris premiere of "Dark Knight Rises." Some sites, such as Fandango.com, were running "Dark Knight" display ads on Sunday. Also on Sunday, Movietickets.com
was offering up a free music download and trivia games in connection with the movie.
Reports suggest media/marketing costs for the movie could be in the $100 million to $125 million arena
-- including all branded partnership arrangements with consumer product companies. Production costs for the movie have been estimated at $250 million to $300 million.
Typically, the bulk of
any media campaign for a movie comes six to eight weeks before its opening. "Dark Knight Rises" officially debuts in 4,404 U.S. cinemas on Friday, with some industry experts predicting a
record-breaking opening weekend.
Estimates have been that "Dark Knight Rises" was looking at a $200 million opening weekend in the U.S., and $1 billion or more revenues from ticket sales
globally.
At least 12 people were killed and nearly 40 was injured at the screening in the Century 16 multiplex in Aurora, Colorado, at a midnight showing on Thursday night.
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The story has been updated.