Movie fans couldn't wait until May 1 for the start of blockbuster season.

Someone, somewhere illegally downloaded a version of "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" and it hit the web this week.

It's one of the biggest leaks of its kind, but it's hardly news that new releases find their way to the web before their their theatrical run.

Was standing in line recently to buy a movie ticket when some teens behind me could be heard talking movies.

They mentioned several films currently in theaters, and it was clear they had watched them via illegal downloads. Then, they chatted up a movie that hadn't been released yet, but with the knowledge they could see it online whenever they pleased.

Shocking to an old schooler like me, but the sole piece of good news from that exchange was that they were standing in line with me to buy tickets to a movie.

Today's film consumers apparently can do both - watch movies online and then go pay for the privilege of seeing them on the big screen. But at what point do consumers do so much more of the former that it cuts into the studios' bottom lines? And what will that mean to the industry as a whole?

(Photo: Hugh Jackman reprises his role as Wolverine in "X-Men Origins: Wolverine." Photo credit: Michael Muller

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