NETWORK FINALS:  ABC’s COLLEGE FOOTBALL game remained at 1.9 in final numbers, while FOX’s stayed at 0.5.  Elsewhere, the final hour of AQUARIUS gained 0.1 to a still-dismal 0.3.         Broadcast Official Nationals Program Ratings Chart     CABLE HIGHLIGHTS:  As will mostly be the case every Saturday until […]

          NETWORK FINALS:  The night’s COLLEGE FOOTBALL games adjusted as follows:  3.3 on CBS, 0.8 on ABC and 0.6 on FOX.        Broadcast Official Nationals Program Ratings Chart     CABLE HIGHLIGHTS:  Typically for a fall Saturday, COLLEGE FOOTBALL dominated the day’s cable, with ESPN’s games at 0.83/0.71/0.42.  A&E’s […]

> Worth A Ticket:  Superheroes Behind the Camera, Too. The most substantial movie of the summer so far is, depending on how you calculate, the fifth in a comic book series, a prequel or a reboot.  X-MEN:  FIRST CLASS arrives with its own secret weapons, namely a smart script, a well-chosen cast, some genuine thematic […]

  OPENINGS:  FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE CRIMES OF GRINDELWALD (Warners) opened at $62.2M in the US, down 16% from the first Beasts.  In addition, it was more front-loaded, with a 16% Saturday drop compared to 12%.  Exit polls and reviews suggest that word of mouth won’t be as strong this time, so a $200M US total […]

Through 14 weeks of the year, 2013 totals $2.232 billion (for wide-release films that have played at more than 400 theaters).  This remains well behind the 2012 pace ($2.624 billion) and the very similar 2010 pace ($2.618 billion).  However, 2013 continues to pull away from the particularly slow performance in 2011 ($2.071 billion). As a […]

  AFTERNOON UPDATE:  As expected, adjusted numbers leveled much of the day’s playing field.  HART OF DIXIE and BEAUTY & THE BEAST reverted to last week’s 0.4/0.3 ratings, while at CBS, HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER ended up down 0.1 from last week at 3.0, and 2 BROKE GIRLS dropped 0.1 to 2.5.  MOM was […]

        NETWORK FINALS:  BIG BROTHER gained 0.1 in final numbres, while the post-Town Hall rerun of THE CONNERS lost the same.  TRANSPLANT held onto the 0.1 bump it had this morning.         Broadcast Official Nationals Program Ratings Chart     CABLE HIGHLIGHTS:  ESPN’s NBA PLAYOFFS games were again at […]

  OPENINGS:  We’ll see how the numbers hold up in tomorrow’s finals, but for now at least THE BOSS BABY (DreamWorks Animation/20th) is the weekend winner with $49M, considerably better than expectations.  The only dour note on the success is that it was rather frontloaded for a family non-sequel, with a 28% Saturday bump.  That […]