The real world, in the form of terrible reviews and dim word of mouth, caught up with BATMAN V. SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE (DC/RatPac/Warners) on Friday.  Actually, the signs had been there since midweek, although Warners and its box office pets had obscured the fact for a few days by comparing the daily results […]

  Despite a trio of new arrivals, MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FALLOUT (Skydance/Alibaba/Paramount) will ride strong reviews and word of mouth to an easy second consecutive weekend crown.  Preliminary numbers at Deadline have Friday at $9.8M, down 57% from last week, and better than the 60% drop for the 2nd Friday of Rogue Nation.  With that […]

  The failure of ALLEGIANT (Summit/Lionsgate) puts its studio in an unusually awkward position.  Even though Lionsgate may be able to put the 3rd Divergent movie on its books as a profit (most of the international rights were pre-sold, providing revenues that can off-set the oncoming US losses), the economics are going to get much […]

This is a well-designed weekend for Hollywood, with a trio of sensibly-budgeted franchise titles all drawing audiences from their mostly separate target demos.  The Friday winner, according to preliminary numbers at Deadline, was FIFTY SHADES DARKER (Universal), with $20M ($5.7M of it from Thursday night).  That’s about 2/3 of the $30.3M opening day for Fifty […]

  THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN (Village Roadshow/MGM/Columbia/Sony), an expensive action movie in a month that doesn’t often feature them, and toplining the potent combo of Denzel Washington and Chris Pratt, is starting off moderately well but not exceptionally.  Preliminary numbers at Deadline have its opening day at $13M (including $1.75M from Thursday night), slightly ahead of […]

  Preliminary numbers at Deadline suggest that more adults showed up at the multiplexes for the Saturday of this holiday weekend, boosting some of the less family-centric attractions.  THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG (Warners/MGM) appears to have unseated FROZEN (Disney) for the day and possibly the 3-day weekend, with Hobbit up slightly to $10.5M […]

  Things didn’t improve for AFTER EARTH (Sony) on Saturday.  According to preliminary numbers at Deadline, Will Smith’s gift to his son Jaden (and, some say, to the Church of Scientology) increased only a miniscule 3% in its second day of release, and probably won’t top $27M for the weekend.  The caper sleeper NOW YOU […]

  It’s beginning to look like a long, dark summer for Hollywood, which is adding two more box office disappointments to a growing list over this Memorial Day weekend.  PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES (Disney) had a $23M Friday (including $5.3M from Thursday night) according to preliminary numbers at Deadline, and […]