Electronic word of mouth (eWOM) is a way of communication on the internet, which can be diffused across online platforms, such as forums, blogs, reviews sites, and social networks. It is an important source of product information that influences consumers' behavior (Goldsmith, 2006). Consumers often share their experiences regarding products and services with eWOM. A previous study found that eWOM is one of the most influential resources of information transmission (Banerjee et al., 2017). Potential consumers often rely on the information provided by others to make their decisions (Chen & Xie, 2008;Chevalier & Mayzlin, 2006;Jing & Chao, 2021). A survey showed that 83% of consumers agree that eWOM affects their final decisions (Channel Advisor, 2011). eWOM communication was suggested to be a more efficient communication channel with less investments than traditional advertising (Milakovi c et al., 2020) and has been recognized as a process of personal influence that affects consumers' attitudes, decision-making, and purchases (Ansary & Hashim, 2018;Lee & Choeh, 2018;Bucko & Kakalej c ık, 2018). Kim et al. (2019) believe that eWOM volume have a very important impact on DVD sales. Kim et al. (2019) believes that the convenience of the platform is the key to drive eWOM's behavior, and the eWOM valence is more conducive to product sales. With the demand for cultural consumption and the number of movie theaters and screens, China's film industry has registered rapid growth. Films, however, are a high-investment and high-risk industry. During the COVID-19 period in particular, understanding consumer preferences and adjusting the number of film screenings to obtain better returns have had a substantial impact on the film industry. In this context, businesses should understand how eWOM affects consumers' decision-making processes that in turn play a very important role in the company's product marketing, supply chain, and competitive advantages (Akar & Dalgic, 2018;Ahmed et al., 2017;Kou et al., 2021).Although the relationship between eWOM and product sales have been investigated intensively, and they are very useful in marketing strategy, there still exist shortcomings that must be addressed because of the following reasons:First, prior studies usually focus on the influence of eWOM volume on box office sales (Duan et al., 2008;Liu, 2006). Recognizing that eWOM valence, which refers to the daily user average rating, may have a large impact on the movie market, the dynamic effect of user ratings should be investigated on movie sales and supplies. This plays an important role in predicting the economic performance of the movie at the box office.Secondly, the prior research on the eWOM effect focuses only on the end consumers (i.e., the viewers), which overlooks the exhibitors' decisions regarding whether or not to keep a movie on screen. eWOM is generated by consumers and significantly affects the potential viewing behavior of consumers (Chen et al., 2020). While making their programming choices, exhibitors may refer to th...