Weekend #18 of 2015 is looking like $263 million for the top 12 films this weekend, well above the norm for this weekend, as the next Avengers film kicks off summer early and gets Disney into the game for 2015 in a big way. Opening at around 4,200 theaters Friday (well above to the 2,886 average theater count […]

> Watch It At Home: As Long and Uneven As a Real-Life Wedding. Few recent movies have arrived bearing such a bouquet of goodwill as the new comedy BRIDESMAIDS.  It marks the movie starring and screenwriting (with Annie Mumolo) debut of Kristen Wiig, generally considered one of the shining lights of this generation’s “Saturday Night […]

  This week, as the clock ticks toward the start of the summer movie season, we’re taking a studio-by-studio look at each company’s line-up and prospects.  Last time we covered Sony, and today we’ll examine Universal. LAST SUMMER:  Universal’s 2013 summer was anchored by two gigantic sequels:  Fast & Furious 6 ($239M US/$789M worldwide) and […]

Weekend #18 of 2014 is looking like a relatively soft $139 million for the top 12 films, 28% below the typical volume for this weekend the past few years ($192 million). Opening at over 4,000 theaters Friday (well above the 2,886 average theater count for opening weekends the last two years), The Amazing Spider-Man 2 from Sony should average $21,400 per […]

> No doubt the enormous success of THE LION KING hasn’t been lost on anyone at Disney, and we can expect to see 3D reissues of more classic animation over the next few years, leading into yet more homevideo editions. If not for Lion King being in the market, DOLPHIN TALE would almost certainly have […]

WORLDWIDE STUDIO SCORECARD.  Here is an updated look at the 2017 film slates by studio.   YEAR TO DATE BOX OFFICE. Looking at North American box office, 2017 to date is now +5% above last year and now +15% above the average for this point the past four years ($1.543 billion).  Over the same period, Hollywood films have […]

Through 17 days of the Holiday Season (December 16-January 1), the top 10 films in North America each day have totaled $664 million, up 10.6% from last year ($600 million) and up 8.5% from the multi-year average since 2002 ($612 million). New Year’s Day added up to $47.6 million, slightly under the overall average for […]

> The 13th weekend of 2012 is looking like $146 million for the Top 12 films, up 28% from this weekend last year and up 14% from the four-year average for the first weekend in April.  The Hunger Games had a sizable drop in its second weekend but not unlike other huge openers, and the […]