UPDATE: We have been alerted by Amazon Prime that Hellboy won't be streaming for free on July 23. But the movie is available on Prime Video for purchase starting July 9. And then it will be available for rental on July 23.
ORIGINAL STORY: Those who opted not to check out the new Hellboy in theaters will have the chance to see it from the comfort of their living rooms very soon, as the movie is being dumped to Amazon Prime Video starting next month. Lionsgate released the reboot in theaters just a couple of months ago and it arrived with a hellishly ugly thud. Following a disastrous and short run, it appears the studio has decided to just cut their losses on this one, as it will be hitting a very popular streaming service in the coming weeks, which could possibly limit physical media sales. Then again, those prospects might be pretty low on this one anyway.
Amazon recently released an overview of the titles being made available in July via Amazon Prime Video instant streaming. On July 23, the very same day that Hellboy makes its way to Blu-ray/DVD and digital platforms for purchase, it will also be available to stream for free for subscribers. Given that many movie lovers already have an active Prime account, this seems like the safest, and cheapest way to satiate one's morbid curiosity when it comes to one of the biggest bombs of 2019.
Lionsgate was trying to get into the comic book movie game without access to any Marvel or DC titles. Instead of allowing Guillermo del Toro to finally make his version of Hellboy 3, the studio decided an R-rated reboot was the better way to go. Stranger Things star David Harbour was brought on board to portray the titular hero, Neal Marshall of the The Descent and Game of Thrones fame landed in the director's chair and Mila Jovovich signed on to play the movie's main villain, the Blood Queen. Everything, at least on paper, seemed solid.
Released on April 12, the movie was lambasted by critics upon arrival. Hellboy currently holds a meager 17 percent approval rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, to go against a better (but still very poor) 58 percent audience score. That, coupled with heavy competition at the box office, made for a catastrophic mixture. Working from a reported $50 million budget, the adaptation of Mike Mignola's heralded comic book series brought in just $21 million domestically, and just shy of $19 million from international markets, bringing its total to $40 million worldwide. Not even enough to cover the budget, let alone the marketing.
Another couple of 2019 bombs will be hitting Amazon Prime next month as well. On July 1, Under the Silver Lake, David Robert Mitchell's follow-up to his acclaimed horror hit It Follows, is being made available on Amazon Prime, after being dumped to VOD and Blu-ray by A24 following an extremely limited theatrical run. Serenity, the disastrous thriller starring Anne Hathaway and Matthew McConaughey, is also being made available on July 23. Those who are already subscribed to Amazon can look forward to adding these to their queue very soon.