OPENINGS:  After last week’s Barbenheimer fireworks, the box office for new movies returned to earth–with a thud in the case of HAUNTED MANSION (Disney), which was at the bottom of projections at $24.2M.  With the exception of Guardians 3, it’s been a tepid summer for Disney, and Haunted Mansion carries production/marketing costs in the […]

  OPENINGS:   Two smart studio decisions bailed out what could have been a scary opening weekend for THE WOLVERINE (20th).  Fox kept the budget relatively low for its expensive genre, just $250M or so including worldwide marketing, and it boosted international appeal with an Asian setting.  Both paid off, as the movie had the robust […]

>Four new movies join the worldwide box office chart this weekend, with Journey 2: The Mysterious Island being the early standout.  Released overseas a week before this weekend’s North American opening, Journey 2 already has an overseas total of $75 million to date, nearly matching our total domestic projection of $79 million.  The first in […]

> X-Men: First Class added to the Worldwide gross list in the top 10, while Pirates 4 continues to dominate. X-Men: First Class enters the 2011 Worldwide gross list at #8, while Hangover Part II is closing in on Thor and should take fourth place as early as next week.  Kung Fu Panda 2 jumped […]

WORLDWIDE STUDIO SCORECARD.  Year to date, Warner Brothers is closing in on $800 million worldwide, while Sony and Universal remain a second tier with about $500 million worldwide.  Fox and Paramount are now in the third tier (with a little over $400 million worldwide each), thanks to Grand Budapest Hotel and Noah.  Lionsgate/Summit and Disney form the […]

WORLDWIDE STUDIO SCORECARD.  Here is an updated look at the 2018 film slates by studio. The studio totals also include 2018 dollars for films released in late 2017. YEAR TO DATE BOX OFFICE. Looking at North American box office, 2018 to date is now +10% above last year and still +14% above the average for this point […]

Updated international box office chart:

  OPENINGS:  BULLET TRAIN (Columbia/Sony) opened in line with general predictions at $30.1M, but that’s not the same as a good result.  The film carries around $175M in production/marketing costs, and faces a long track to profitability.  Nor does it appear to be showing particular strength internationally, despite Brad Pitt’s star power and the international […]