BLU-RAY SALES CONTINUE TO RISE

For the first time last week, all top five home-video releases sold more copies on Blu-ray Disc than they did on standard DVD, Home Media magazine observed on Wednesday. The top seller was Disney’s Maleficent, starring Angelina Jolie, one of three new releases to score strongly. Paramount’s Hercules came in at No. 2, selling 30 percent of the number of discs that Maleficent did. Another Disney release, the animated Planes: Fire & Rescue, from the company’s DisneyToons division, which ordinarily releases product straight to home video but diverted Planes to theaters in August, placed third, also selling about 30 percent of the number of discs that Maleficent did. A special, extended version of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, placed fourth, while X-Men: Days of Future Past, which had held the top position over the previous three weeks, fell to No. 5. On Home Media magazine’s rental chart, Warner’s Edge of Tomorrow took first place in its first week following its 28-day embargo on Netflix and Redbox, while Hercules, not subject to a studio embargo, came in at No. 2.