All Apple TV+ really needed was an exclusive Tom Hanks movie about submarines

According to Deadline, Greyhound has enjoyed the “largest opening weekend release ever” for Apple’s relatively new streaming platform, and while that may not sound like much—because what else would have had a big weekend release?—it does include everything that launched with Apple TV+. In other words, Greyhound’s release was bigger for Apple TV+ than the launch of Apple TV+, suggesting that the key to drawing subscribers to your streaming platform is… paying a lot of money for the exclusive rights to a big-budget war movie starring one of Hollywood’s most beloved actors. Alright, that’s kind of a tall order, so this particular success might be hard to replicate, but every other platform—like say… Quibi—just needs to find its equivalent of Tom Hanks’ submarine movie.

In terms of strict numbers, Deadline says that Apple refused to offer anything of that sort, but its sources say that Greyhound’s viewership numbers were “commensurate with a summer theatrical box office big hit.” If we’re talking this summer, that means literally nothing, but it sure sounds impressive.