Streaming is loosely fulfilling a role that home video once had — to rescue box office bombs from complete and utter failure. Granted, streaming numbers mean nothing, the platforms don't necessarily report accurate viewership numbers, and even if they do, they no longer provide the second financial life that can save movies from total ruin like DVD once did. With how quickly movies are hitting streaming after their initial theatrical release these days, a lot of people just wait for a new movie to hit Netflix or another platform to view it rather than bet their money on it being good and watch it in theaters

Case in point, the strange, confounding case of "Kraven the Hunter" being a big success on Netflix after being a horrendous box office flop in theaters. The movie somehow had an even worse opening weekend than "Madame Web," which tells you everything you need to...