'Argo' tops list of 2013's hottest digital movie sales

‘Argo’ tops list of 2013’s hottest digital movie sales

Ben Affleck, who directed and starred in best picture winner "Argo," speaks during The Times' Directors Round Table in December 2012.

By Saba Hamedy

Feb. 14, 2014 12:51 PM PT

Ben Affleck’s CIA thriller “Argo” topped the digital movie purchases and rentals charts in 2013, outselling “World War Z” and “Star Trek: Into Darkness.”

According to research company Rentrak Corp., the 2013 Academy Award-winning film from Warner Bros., which is based on a true story about a phony movie production set up to help six Americans escape Iran in 1979, nabbed the No. 1 spot.

Paramount’s “World War Z” and “Star Trek: Into Darkness” were No. 2 and No. 3, respectively.

Warner Bros.’ “We’re the Millers” and “Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” also made the list at No. 4 and No. 5, respectively. The Burbank studio’s “Man of Steel” also landed on the list, at No. 9.

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With four films in the Top 10, Rentrak ranked Warner Bros. as the No. 1 studio for movies purchased and rented digitally in 2013. Paramount was not far behind, with three films on the list.

Chris Roberts, Rentrak’s senior vice president of sales of OnDemand, said electronic sell-through (EST) and Internet video-on-demand (iVOD) “saw significant growth in 2013.”

The growth “was largely driven by the terrific films made available by the studios; the growth of Ultraviolet (UV); the addition of more retailers making content available digitally; and studios making more titles available early for purchase on EST,” Roberts said in a news release.

Below are the 10 most sold and rented movie titles, per data collected from the week ending Jan. 6, 2013, through Dec. 29, 2013.

Rentrak Top Ten Digital Movie Purchases and Rentals

1. “Argo” (Warner Bros.)

2. “World War Z” (Paramount)

3. “Star Trek: Into Darkness” (Paramount)

4. “We’re The Millers” (Warner Bros.)

5. “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” (Warner Bros.)

6. “Now You See Me” (Lionsgate)

7. “The Heat” (Fox)

8. “Flight” (Paramount)

9. “Man of Steel” (Warner Bros.)

10. “Zero Dark Thirty” (Sony)