Based on Friday’s grosses, weekend #19 of 2014 now looks like $129 million for the top 12 films Friday-Sunday, $2 million higher than yesterday’s estimate and now down 8% from the norm for this weekend (somewhat better than we expected due to the impressive strength of Neighbors).   Opening at 3,279 theaters, Neighbors from Universal grossed $19.6 million […]

Weekend #23 of 2014 is looking like a pretty typical $149 million for the top 12 films this weekend, within 1% of the norm for this weekend and 4% above the same weekend last year.   Opening at over 3,000 theaters Friday (well above the 2,886 average theater count for opening weekends the last two […]

WORLDWIDE STUDIO SCORECARD.  Paramount got off the mat with the release of Transformers: Age of Extinction, pushing the studio over $1.0 billion worldwide for the year to date and into 5th place and now above Universal.  Disney ($1.66 billion worldwide for 2014 to date) moved slightly above Sony ($1.65 billion) thanks to continued overseas grosses […]

  Allaying concerns about word of mouth, LUCY (Universal) held quite well in its 2d day of release, down 10% from Friday to $15M+ (better than some of the summer’s blockbusters, which fell 15% or more), according to preliminary numbers at Deadline and elsewhere.  That should give it a weekend of $43M+.  (The studios, as […]

  OPENINGS:  The question for IF I FALL (Warners/MGM), as with any movie that has a high proportion of young female appeal, is just how frontloaded it will turn out to be.  Friday’s $6.8M included $1.1M from Thursday night, about 16% of the total.  The Fault In Our Stars was much more frontloaded, earning more […]

Based on Friday’s grosses, weekend #39 of 2014 looks like $100 million for the top 12 films Friday-Sunday, 5% above the norm for this weekend ($95 million). Opening at 3,236 theaters, The Equalizer from Sony grossed $12.6 million Friday and is on track for a $36.4 million opening three-day weekend (slightly above our $34.5 million […]

Based on Friday’s and Saturday’s grosses, weekend #43 of 2014 still looks like a decent $103 million for the top 12 films Friday-Sunday, 16% above the norm for this weekend ($89 million). Opening at 2,858 theaters, Ouija from Universal grossed $8.3 million Friday and $7.6 million Saturday, still on track for a $20.0 million opening three-day weekend […]

  OPENINGS:  It’s official:  THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY PART I (Lionsgate) opened to $123M in the US, down 20% from the first Hunger Games and down 23% from Catching Fire.  That’s still the #1 opening of the year by 23% (beating Transformers: Age of Extinction), and the 15th biggest opening ever, but there’s no way […]