We absolutely love a happy ending. One of the happiest of all endings is when we share news before anyone else and it’s later confirmed.
Back in June 2024, we reported Sphere was working on two top secret projects. It was confirmed Sphere is spending $800 million to bring “The Wizard of Oz” to its high-tech screen.
Now, Sphere has confirmed the other piece of our scoop: The venue will soon debut “V-U2,” a concert film of U2’s residency at Sphere. This “Inception” moment (a Sphere movie about a Sphere residency) launches Sep. 5, 2024.
Like everything new in Las Vegas in the past five years, “V-U2” is being promoted as “immersive.” It’s the law. In this case, however, the term might actually apply. It’s the Sphere.
U2’s Sphere 40-show residency (Sep. 2023 through Mar. 2024), “U2:UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere,” was a smash. It makes sense, then, that the band and Sphere have found a way to extend the show (translation: revenue stream).
The new film’s official name is “V-U2 An Immersive Concert Film at Sphere Las Vegas,” which is way too long, so we’re using the bris version, “V-U2.”
The movie was directed by U2’s Edge and Morleigh Steinberg, Edge’s wife, who is also probably a talented dancer, choreographer, lighting designer and director. Even Variety got her name wrong.
Oh, that’s right, it’s not “The Edge,” is just “Edge.” Ditto “Sphere,” apparently. Although, “the Sphere” is acceptable, but don’t you dare capitalize it.
Directing a concert movie isn’t really directing, per se. They’re basically help edit footage of a performance directed by someone else, in this case, Willie Williams.
Here’s a teaser.
Tickets for the U2 movie will start at $100 (“all-in pricing”), about what folks are paying for “Postcard from Earth,” another film made specifically for Sphere.
Here’s more about “V-U2”: “To create this larger-than-life concert film, a number of Big Sky cameras captured the band at extraordinary scale, sharpness and clarity. ‘V-U2’ employs Sphere’s immersive technologies including the 160,000 sq. ft. display plane, which at 16k x 16k resolution is the world’s highest-resolution LED screen; Sphere Immersive Sound, powered by Holoplot, which provides crystal-clear sound to every seat in Sphere; and haptic seats, which use vibrations so guests can ‘feel’ the experience. All of these technologies, which were used to great effect in ‘U2:UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere,’ will be leveraged in this Sphere Experience in new and different ways to reinforce the feeling of ‘being there’.”
While “Postcard” is bringing lots of bodies to Sphere, even at $100 a pop, the venue is losing a massive amount of money, nearly half a billion dollars over the past fiscal year. We wrote about it a day or two ago. Please keep up.
The fact is, U2 is one of the few big bands up for competing with the stunning (and sometimes overwhelming) visuals at Sphere. To make a splash to open the venue, Sphere gave U2 $10 million and 90% of the box office.
Are movies enough to keep Sphere afloat? Unknown. Is a U2 concert film a good fit for Sphere? Definitely. Was the height of U2’s popularity in the late 1980s? Don’t make it awkward. Are we asking these questions because we can’t think of a good way to end this story without bragging about our scoop again due to our incredible modesty? You bet.
