OPENINGS:  There are still several days before THOR: THE DARK WORLD (Disney) reaches these shores, and it hasn’t opened yet in other major countries like China or Japan, but it’s already looking like a blockbuster, with a huge $109.4M start in 36 territories.  The first Thor made a total of $268.3M internationally, so the […]

Based on Friday’s grosses, Weekend #44 of 2013 looks like $123 million for the top 12 films, now up 3% from the same weekend’s average in recent years. Opening at 3,407 theaters Friday, Ender’s Game from Lionsgate/Summit grossed $9.8 million Friday and $10.8 million Saturday, still on track for a $28.0 million opening weekend (very close to the $28.5 […]

  OPENINGS:  Stop me if you’ve heard this before:  an expensive action-adventure will need to overperform internationally in order to get past its red ink.  With Thor 2 opening in just a week, ENDER’S GAME (Summit/Lionsgate) had a very narrow window to make an impression, and its $9.9M Friday, probably meaning a weekend in the […]

  Not so fast, NBC. NBC:  Fridays are looking a lot less rosy than last week had suggested.  After 0.7 for the I HEART VAMPIRES special the network rushed onto the air, GRIMM had 1.5 for its 2d episode of the season, down 0.3 from last week and at the lower end of last spring’s […]

Based on Friday’s grosses, Weekend #44 of 2013 looks like $116 million for the top 12 films, down 3% from the same weekend’s average in recent years. Opening at 3,407 theaters Friday, Ender’s Game from Lionsgate/Summit grossed $9.9 million Friday and is on track for a $28.0 million opening weekend (very close to the $28.5 million ShowbuzzDaily forecast). The […]

  Lifetime’s cancellation of THE CLIENT LIST after two seasons is unusual enough to be worthy of some note. Here’s the thing:  Client List was still, despite some ratings dip in Season 2, a clear success for Lifetime, running at about 2M viewers and 0.7 in 18-49s.  Bidding it adieu was hardly an obvious move, […]

  It was high time for ABC to make decisions about its new sitcoms, and now it has.  Both THE GOLDBERGS and TROPHY WIFE have received full 9-episode back orders, and SUPER FUN NIGHT a more half-hearted order of 4 additional episodes, while BACK IN THE GAME will not extend beyond its 13-episode initial order […]

  It’s never good news for the networks when the calendar brings typically low-rated Halloween–lots of parents and others with other plans–into November sweeps. ABC:  By 8PM most kiddies were back from treat or treating, so the nine zillionth run of IT’S THE GREAT PUMPKIN, CHARLIE BROWN doubled last week’s Once Upon A Time In Wonderland number with 2.2, which […]