How Batman Pushed WWE To Create In Your House
Nana-nana-nana-nana-nana-nana-nana-nana...budgets!
On the surface, this sounds like the kind of thing someone might make up on Twitter just to get attention, but it's actually 100% fact.
Bruce Prichard revealed on the latest episode of his 'Something To Wrestle With' podcast that the VHS release of 1989's Batman movie directly led to the creation of the WWF's In Your House budget pay-per-view series years later. How could that be though? Batman launched onto tape in late-1989, and IYH didn't start until May 1995.
According to Prichard, the bottom fell out Vince McMahon's VHS market when a special release of Batman started selling for the special promotional price of $9.99. Back in the late-80s, video tapes were a lucrative source of income for the company - presented as a relatively premium format, VHS copies commanded high price tags, and the WWF took full advantage.
When sales sagged in the early-90s, McMahon decided to introduce a cheaper run of pay-per-views that'd supplement income, and he eventually got round to it in '95. In theory, he reasoned, they'd offset that pesky Bat's corruption of VHS profits and replenish company coffers with some much-needed cash.
It plugged a gap, but In Your House (so says Bruce) might never have happened had Batman not changed the entire home video trade.