OPENINGS:  With a $10M production budget (and tens of millions in marketing on top), the $10.6M weekend for SINISTER 2 (Blumhouse/Gramercy/Focus/Universal) will test Blumhouse’s ability to make money out of just about anything.  The opening is far below the $18M start for 2012’s Sinister, and its US total won’t be near the $48.1M gross […]

WORLDWIDE STUDIO SCORECARD.     YEAR TO DATE BOX OFFICE. Looking at North American box office, 2015 to date is still +6% above last year and still +2% above the average for this point the past four years ($6.690 billion).  Over the same period, Hollywood films have grossed over $17.7 billion worldwide when we add overseas box office (that’s […]

Based on Friday’s and Saturday’s grosses, weekend #34 of 2015 now looks like $92 million for the top 12 films Friday-Sunday, somewhat above the norm for this weekend (thanks mostly to Straight Outta Compton and definitely not the three openers) but below the same weekend last year (see track below). Opening at 2,766 theaters Friday, Sinister 2 from […]

Based on Friday’s grosses, weekend #34 of 2015 looks like $93 million for the top 12 films Friday-Sunday, somewhat above the norm for this weekend (thanks mostly to Straight Outta Compton and definitely not the three openers) but below the same weekend last year (see track below). Opening at 2,766 theaters Friday, Sinister 2 from Focus/Universal is on track […]

  There were no pleasant surprises for anyone at the Friday box office, according to preliminary numbers at Deadline.  That even included STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON (Legendary/Universal), which will easily win the weekend, but which–considering the very mild competition–fell more heavily than expected from last Friday, down 65% to $8.5M.  That drop will moderate over the […]

Weekend #34 of 2015 is looking like $105 million for the top 12 films this weekend, above the norm for this weekend (see comparisons below). Sinister 2 from Focus/Universal should open with a $15.5 million three-day weekend. Early reviews at RottenTomatoes are not going encouraging: 0% positive overall so far (with fewer than 10 reviews counted at this time…but […]

  OPENINGS:  STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON (Legendary/Universal) turned out to be somewhat frontloaded, with a 20% drop on its 2d day of release.  But no one will complain about its huge $56.1M weekend, the #6 August opening ever (and #2, behind only Signs, among non-franchise titles).  It should add plenty of gold to Universal’s 2015 pile […]

WORLDWIDE STUDIO SCORECARD.     YEAR TO DATE BOX OFFICE. Looking at North American box office, 2015 to date is still +6% above last year and now +2% above the average for this point the past four years ($6.510 billion).  Over the same period, Hollywood films have grossed almost $17.3 billion worldwide when we add overseas box […]