Pete Davidson's The King Of Staten Island Pulled From Theaters

Speaking on the basis of anonymity, Universal studio insiders confirmed to Variety that the company's original release intentions were focused exclusively on a VOD release. It was an "internal misunderstanding" among executives that led to the film wrongly being sold to around 100 theaters nationwide before studio leadership had to reach out to theater owners and request they not screen the film. 

The move angered some, with one Twitter user sarcastically tweeting, "Real class act, Universal," in response to Apatow's tweets. An unnamed screen operator shared that disgruntled ticket-holders had passed along similar sentiments to them. "This caused a considerable amount of ill will with customers who bought tickets online showing up for the Thursday 7 p.m. show," the source told Variety.  

That wasn't the only misstep Universal made around the release of The King of Staten Island, either. Another anonymous theater owner revealed that before Universal abruptly yanked one of its latest films from playing on the big screen, the studio negotiated questionable ticket sales terms with theaters. Reports indicate that the studio pushed for profit-sharing terms that split ticket earnings evenly with the cinemas, something that's traditionally only done with major releases. In a time when theaters are being hit particularly hard due to industry-wide closures, some viewed the ask as too demanding. Especially as the film, which would have mostly screened at drive-ins, would have also been available to rent at similar ticket costs online. "They wanted 2019 terms in 2020 conditions," an independent theater owner said. "This is a new landscape."