WORLDWIDE STUDIO SCORECARD.  Here is an updated look at the 2019 film slates by studio. BOX OFFICE. Looking at North American box office, 2019 is still -5% below last year’s comparable span and now +1% above this point the past four years ($8.047 billion).  Over the same period, Hollywood films have grossed $21.4 billion […]

  OPENINGS:  BIRDS OF PREY (DC/Warners) was supposed to be the year’s first tentpole smash, but at $33.3M in the US, it was a dismal disappointment, by far the lowest start for this generation of DC movie properties.  It was also weak overseas with $48M in all major markets except Japan and China (where of […]

  HOLDOVERS:  Once again, there were no significant openings this week.  And once again, the lack of competition didn’t help WW84 (DC/Warners, also on HBO Max), which had the worst hold of the top titles, down 46% to $3M.  It now seems unlikely to get much past $40M in the US, and it’s no longer […]

  A few notes:  this week’s newcomers opened along a range of dates, including Tuesday night, Wednesday, Friday night and Saturday, and those scheduling decisions had an affect on the totals below.  Also, the fact that Friday was Christmas Eve lowered the day’s ticket sales, probably by 30% or so.  (Something similar will apply to […]

  OPENINGS:  The box office may not have hit bottom yet (see “Next Weekend” below), but it’s getting close, with the horror movie THE INVITATION (Screen Gems/Sony) topping the weekend at a painful $7M.  Things were no better overseas, where the film opened at $1.6M in 19 markets.  Despite these numbers, The Invitation may still […]

  OPENINGS:  THE LITTLE MERMAID (Disney) began its run with $95.5M over the 3-day weekend, projected to $117.5M with the Monday holiday.  That’s within the range of pre-release projections, and if the numbers hold, it would be slightly higher than the $116.8M earned over the 2019 4-day Memorial Day weekend by Aladdin.  However, it’s a […]

  OPENINGS:  ARTHUR THE KING (Lionsgate) was clearly hoping to emulate the sleeper success of 2022’s Dog, which ran a $14.9M opening into $61.8M in the US.  However, the Mark Wahlberg vehicle came up very short with a $7.5M start.  Production/marketing costs are reportedly $60M, which will make for a tough road to profit.  Arthur […]

>The Hunger Games has moved up to $229 million overseas (up from $216 million last week).  The film is probably headed for a worldwide total of $660 million, including our newly revised forecast of $399 million domestic.  Click “read more” to see the updated weekly worldwide table.      Arriving in North America Friday, The […]