>Summer always ends with a whimper.  While Memorial Day and Independence Day weekends are among the strongest of the box office year, Labor Day weekend is usually the lowest of the year in terms of movie-going.  This weekend features the opening of three more duds: a “found footage” space thriller, a shark bloodfest, and a […]

Weekend #6 of 2016 is looking like $94 million for the top 12 films this weekend, below the norm for this time of year (see comparisons below). Hail, Caesar! from Universal should open with $12.5 million Friday-Sunday. The film is on track for around $41 million domestic in its run. Overseas the film could bring in $32 million, giving it a worldwide box […]

> To commemorate Green Lantern‘s arrival, 10 superhero movies that couldn’t fly: 10. WATCHMAN (2009):  Not a total disaster, but Zack Snyder’s failed epic earns its place by providing definitive proof that monk-like faithfulness in adapting a comic to the screen is doomed to failure:  endlessly long (more than 3 hours on DVD!), impenetrably plotted, […]

> Click below for a quick summary of some notable numbers from this past weekend overseas: THE SMURFS reached $141M overseas with the help of a tremendous $60M weekend.  Like other recent 3D animated films, it has a good chance of doubling its US gross overseas.   RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, still […]

Weekend #27 of 2016 forecasts for films opening wide and major returning films: NEW FILMS THIS WEEKEND July 1-3, 2016 Critics Positive ($ millions) Opening Weekend Forecast Four Day Fri-Sun Domestic Total Projection Overseas Total Projection Worldwide Total Projection Purge: Election Year Uni R 67% 23.0 28.5 65 45 110 The BFG Dis PG 71% […]

> 2012 is off to a solid start with $135 million in business for the top 12 films — up 12% from a typical performance for the first weekend of the year but up sharply from the disaster that was 2011’s opening frame.  The Devil Inside exceeded our forecast and will be the #1 movie […]

> X-Men: First Class opens in first place but below expectations.  Weekend on pace to be up 24% over last year’s comparable weekend.X-Men: First Class opened with $20 million on Friday, and it looks like the prequel will gross about $53 million from Friday-Sunday.  The film is headed for $160 million in North America when […]

>The weekend studio estimates (based on Friday and Saturday actuals and projections for Sunday) are coming in somewhat stronger than the weekend numbers posted yesterday (based on Friday actuals only).  The box office volume for the top 12 films is now looking like $96 million for the weekend, up a very strong 31% from last […]