Block booking refers to which practice?

• A. Packaging films; if you want the best movie, you have to buy the meh stuff too
• B. Exclusive licensing of a single title
• C. Licensing content to streaming platforms only
• D. Bundling theaters with studios' production commitments

Answer: (A)

Block booking is the practice of bundling several films into a single package offered to movie theaters. The theater must take the entire slate to get access to the most desirable film(s), so they end up agreeing to show titles they might not have chosen on their own. This packaging method gives studios leverage over exhibitors by controlling which titles are available and how many, often surfacing with less popular films alongside the hits. The idea behind the described choice—packaging the lineup so you must take the whole bundle to get the best movie—captures this dynamic of forced acceptance of a package. The other licensing ideas describe different approaches that don’t involve forcing theaters to accept a bundled slate of films.