Hotel Transylvania 4 in talks with Amazon for a $100 million deal to skip theatres

After facing a major setback over the growing concerns with the Coronavirus and its new variants, Sony Pictures is now nearing a hefty deal with a streaming giant. Gearing up for the release of the fourth instalment of the monster family franchise titled Hotel Transylvania 4, the entertainment conglomerate is currently cracking a deal with Amazon. The movie was slated to be released on October 1 this year.

Hotel Transylvania 4 to skip theatres

According to a report from Variety, Sony Pictures Animation is in talks with Amazon to release and stream Hotel Transylvania: Transformania globally on Amazon Prime Video in a deal amounting to over $100 million. Following the successful theatrical release of the first three movies of The Hotel Transylvania franchise, grossing over $1.3 billion collectively, Sony planned to follow the suit with the final instalment. However, the plan fell through with major cities like New York enacting a vaccine mandate for indoors. 

The new guidelines came after the new delta variant of the novel coronavirus started predominantly infecting the unvaccinated population with children under the age of 12 remain at high risk. This led Sony Pictures to skip the theatres to look for an alternative option and strike a deal with a leading streaming platform. Sony Pictures is the only major studio without dedicated streaming service. 

This would not be the first time for the entertainment conglomerate to strike a major deal for a digital release. Throughout 2020 and 2021, Sony teamed up across the streaming ecosystem. Sony's Greyhound was paired with Apple TV Plus, An American Pickle with HBO, and The Mitchells vs. the Machines and Wish Dragon with Netflix. Sony Pictures Animation also cracked a deal with Amazon Prime Video this year with the digital release of the highly anticipated romantic action movie Cinderella to be released on September 3. 

More on Hotel Transylvania 4 release

Touted as the concluding chapter of the highly appreciated animated franchise, the movie is helmed by Derek Drymon and Jennifer Kluska. The script is written by Amos Vernon, and Nunzio Randazzo. The original cast like Selena Gomez, Andy Samberg, David Spade, Steve Buscemi, Kathryn Hahn, Jim Gaffigan, Molly Shannon, Keegan-Michael Key and Fran Drescher will be reprising their role while Brian Hull and Brad Abrell will voice Dracula and Frankenstein, respectively. Genndy Tartakovsky, originator of the series, along with Selena Gomez and Michelle Murdocca will executive produce the movie. 

IMAGE- SONY PICTURES' INSTAGRAM