The enduring respect and admiration for Get Out, and its own enthusiastic reviews, are pushing Jordan Peele’s US (Blumhouse/Perfect World/Universal) way past expectations.  According to preliminary numbers at Deadline, opening day was $28.6M (including $7.4M from Thursday night), which means that in one day, Us has already earned more than 85% of Get Out‘s […]

> Now that HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS (PART 2) has obliterated the single-day US boxoffice record, and is poised to have the all-time US weekend, what other records lie ahead?  The all-time Saturday is held by Spiderman 3, with $51.3M.  If Harry can stay under a 45% drop today, it’ll surpass that one […]

> There are good movies and there are hits, and given the choice, there’s never been any doubt which Hollywood prefers. OPENINGS:  A March filled to the brim with wannabe blockbusters is off to a big start.  THE LORAX (Universal) may be a bad movie (spoiler alert–it is), but the studio sold the hell out […]

  OPENINGS:  PLAYING FOR KEEPS (FilmDistrict) cratered as expected, in 6th place on its opening day with a sad $2.1M start.  It’s on its way to a $6M weekend and perhaps $15M in total, which won’t even pay off its marketing costs. HOLDOVERS:  With essentially nothing new at the multiplexes, the longrunning hits mostly held […]

  OPENINGS:  The production budget for 2 GUNS (Universal) was funded by producers Emmett/Furla and Foresight Entertainment, with Universal just on the hook for marketing and distribution.  In addition, the overseas distribution is being handled by other studios.  All of this limits Universal’s risk and also its upside, and since the movie had a $10M […]

  OPENINGS:  NOAH (Paramount/Regency) got the start it wanted and needed with $15.2M on Friday ($1.6M of that from Thursday night), which–unless word of mouth sinks the ark–should mean a $40M weekend.  The darkly revisionist biblical spectacle also has $28.3M overseas, where it’s still in just 21 markets, so for now it’s on track to […]

  JURASSIC WORLD (Legendary/Universal) is stomping past even the the highest expectations for its opening.  According to preliminary numbers at Deadline, its opening day was a stupendous $78.6M (including $18.5M from Thursday night), giving it the biggest June box office day ever by far, easily passing the $68.5M for Twilight: Eclipse, and in line for […]

  After a summer of fizzled franchise movies, audiences were–pardon the expression–hungry for something new, and the unquestionably unique, hard-R existential talking food cartoon SAUSAGE PARTY (Annapurna/Columbia/Sony) is satisfying that appetite.  According to preliminary numbers at Deadline, Sausage is going to win Friday with $13.3M ($3.3M from Thursday night shows), although it’s likely to be […]