Based on Friday’s grosses, Weekend #50 of 2013 looks like $144 million for the top 12 films from Friday-Sunday, not as strong as we had forecast but still up double digits in terms of percent increase over comparable weekends the past several years.   Opening at 3,903 theaters Friday, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug from Warner Brothers […]

Based on Friday’s grosses, Weekend #4 of 2013 is pretty much a disaster: only $80 million for the top 12 films (20% behind the pace for the same weekend the last few years).   Opening at 3,372 theaters Friday, Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters grossed $6 million Friday and is on track for a $16 million opening […]

Based on Friday’s grosses, Weekend #48 is on pace to exceed the multi-year average for this weekend by 33% — the fourth weekend in a row 20% or more above the comparable weekend average.  All credit goes to strong holdovers Breaking Dawn Part 2, Skyfall, Lincoln, and even Life of Pi and Rise of the […]

  Its studio did everything in its corporate power to keep the quality of TRANSFORMERS: THE LAST KNIGHT (Huahua/Paramount) from infecting ticket sales, preventing any reviews from appearing until the projectors had started on the movie’s first paid screenings.  But audiences knew what was coming, and in the US, Transformers 5 will be by far […]

  JUSTICE LEAGUE (RatPac/DC/Warners) was supposed to be the jewel in the DC crown, the Avengers that would push its megafranchise to the next box office level.  That’s what justified spending a reported $450M on production (and then more production) and marketing, making it one of the most expensive movies in history.  But tonight it’s […]

Based on Friday’s grosses, weekend #2 of 2015 looks like $110 million for the top 12 films Friday-Sunday, down from the norm for this weekend and down from the same weekend last year.   Opening at 3,593 theaters Friday, Taken 3 from Fox is on track for a $39.5 million opening three-day weekend (above our $30.5 million ShowBuzzDaily […]

Based on Friday’s grosses, Weekend #9 of 2013 is another clunker: only $87 million for the top 12 films Friday-Sunday (down around 40% from the same weekend the last few years).  Jack the Giant Slayer opened reasonably well, but there are no others films doing significant business (weekends over $10 million).  What a mess.   […]

  After several painful weekends burdened by one high-profile flop after another, Hollywood was bailed out by two of its most venerable franchises. SPECTRE (MGM/Columbia/Sony) will be, based on preliminary numbers at Deadline, the 2d biggest opener of the Bond series.  Its $28.1M first day (which includes $5.25M from Thursday night) puts it behind only […]