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July 10, 2013
 

Weekend Box Office Predictions July 12-14

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Written by: Mitch Metcalf
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The 28th weekend of the year is looking like a very good $209 million for the top 12 films, up 15% from the comparable weekend the last few years.

Opening at around 3,000 theaters Friday (somewhat above the 2,886 average theater count for opening weekends), Grown Ups 2 from Sony should average $15,300 per theater for the three-day weekend (for a $45.5 million opening weekend). [The average wide-release film the past two years has had an opening weekend of $5,300 per theater.] The early reviews at RottenTomatoes are non-existent — another Adam Sandler comedy shielded from those mean critics.  Grown Ups 2 should be on track for $135 million domestic, down from the $162.0 million domestic gross for Grown Ups in June 2010.

Opening at around 3,300 theaters Friday, Pacific Rim from Warner Brothers should average $11,900 per theater for the three-day weekend (for a $39 million opening weekend). The film is averaging a good 76% positive at RottenTomatoes so far, but the film has felt like a turkey from day one. Pacific Rim should be on course for maybe $110 million domestic. Although international should be much stronger for this film than last week’s Lone RangerPacific Rim is nonetheless headed for massive red ink.

 

NEW FILMS THIS WEEKEND

July 12-14, 2013

Critics Positive ($ millions)
Opening Weekend Forecast Domestic Total Projection
Grown Ups 2 Sony PG13 n/a 45.5 135
Pacific Rim WB PG13 76% 39.0 110
Note: Although critic reviews are not related to the size of the opening weekend, they are significantly correlated with the size of the declines in the opening weeks of a movie. The Domestic Total is a very early ShowBuzzDaily projection of the total North American gross, based on the Weekend Forecasts.

 

Despicable Me 2 will definitely be the top holdover by far and probably will remain the #1 film overall in its second weekend.

 

RETURNING FILMS

July 12-14, 2013

Change vs Last Weekend ($ millions)
Weekend Forecast Showbuzz Domestic Final Proj.
Despicable Me 2 Uni -44% 46.5 295
The Heat Fox -38% 15.5 154
The Lone Ranger Dis -53% 13.8 93
Monsters University Dis -37% 12.3 295
World War Z Par -42% 10.5 210
White House Down Sony -46% 7.4 84
Man of Steel WB -46% 6.2 301
Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain Summit -49% 5.2 36

 

Box Office Volume

For the past four years, the top 12 films in this comparable weekend have averaged $182 million total, ranking 2nd of 52 weeks. Last year, this weekend’s total was $154 million (while 2011 was $252 million and 2010 was $171 million). This Friday-Sunday is looking like a solid $209 million, up 15% from the multi-year average for the comparable weekend and up 36% from the same weekend last year.

 

This Weekend Last Two Years

7.13.2012

Ice Age: Continental Drift FOX PG
Opening Weekend — Forecast: $61 Actual: $47
Domestic Gross — Estimate: $140 Actual: $161
International — Estimate: n/a Actual: $714

7.15.2011

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 WB PG13 Daniel Radcliffe Emma Watson
Opening Weekend — Forecast: $151 Actual: $169
Domestic Gross — Estimate: $377 Actual: $381
International — Estimate: n/a Actual: $947

Winnie the Pooh DIS G
Opening Weekend — Forecast: $10 Actual: $8
Domestic Gross — Estimate: $37 Actual: $27
International — Estimate: n/a Actual: $6

 

Check back throughout the weekend for box office updates as the actual numbers come in.



About the Author

Mitch Metcalf
MITCH METCALF has been tracking every US film release of over 500 screens (over 2300 movies and counting) since the storied weekend of May 20, 1994, when Maverick and Beverly Hills Cop 3 inspired countless aficionados to devote their lives to the art of cinema. Prior to that, he studied Politics and Economics at Princeton in order to prepare for his dream of working in television. He has been Head of West Coast Research at ABC, then moved to NBC in 2000 and became Head of Scheduling for 11 years.