Oscar 2014: '12 Years a Slave' to Reopen in Theaters; Does This Strategy Work Post-Oscars?

After winning the Best Picture award, Fox Searchlight is planning to expand "12 Years a Slave" into more theaters. The move comes as no surprise as every studio has re-released Oscar winners in theaters. However, that does not always mean more money.

The studio will release "12 Years a Slave" on DVD on March 4 and expand the film to 1,000 theaters on Friday, March 7.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, theater owners don't like to play films when they are out on DVD, but in the case of an Academy Award Best Picture winner, exhibitors often make an exception. The film has already made $50 million and is unlikely to make more than $2 million especially since it is currently out on VOD.

Recently, studios have found that putting Oscar winners back in theaters can bring them a couple of million and in some cases a lot more money. However, that all depends on the stage of the theatrical run for the film. Last year Warner Bros. made another $6 million after the Oscar win for "Argo" even though the film had been on DVD for a few weeks. The film ended its run with $136 million.

In 2011 "The Artist" had a different circumstance as the film did not get released on DVD until June. After winning the Oscar the movie was expanded to 1,756 theaters—the biggest expansion for the film—and made $12.8 million, bringing its domestic total to $44.7 million.

In 2010 "The King's Speech" also had an advantage because the film was also in the middle of its run. The movie expanded to 2,386 theaters and made an initial $7 million when it opened post-Oscars. The film was also given a PG-13 version that also helped sell tickets. By the end of its run the movie made $21 million after its Best Picture victory and made $135.4 million at the end of the run.

In 2009 "The Hurt Locker" was one of the few summer films to win the Oscar. The movie never opened in wide release and had only made $12.6 million initially. The Kathryn Bigelow war film was released on DVD in January before the Oscar nominations were announced. When the film won in February the movie reopened in 274 theaters, but was only able to make $2 million. "The Hurt Locker" ranks as the lowest-grossing Best Picture winner; it only made $17 million.

One of the most successful Best Picture winners at the box office after winning the Oscar was "Slumdog Millionaire." After its Oscar win the film expanded to 2,943 theaters and made an additional $42 million. The movie ended up with $141 million at the end of its run.

With "12 Years a Slave" having only made $50 million, and considering previous Oscar winners, it is unlikely the movie will reach the $100 million mark—it might not even make $60 million. However, it has already defeated "The Hurt Locker" and "The Artist." Additionally, it has already made $140 million worldwide and will likely continue its successful international run.

As "12 Years a Slave" reaches the home video market it will be interesting to see how successful the film will be in its post-Oscar theatrical run.