Only one new opener (Oblivion) and only one decent holdover (42) mean it’s pretty slim pickings at the box office this weekend: less than $100 million for the top 12 films, down 11-22% from the same weekend in recent years. Opening at around 3,800 theaters Friday (a very high number), Oblivion from Universal should average a […]

  Mothers Day made for a happy holiday at the multiplex. OPENINGS:  The Marketing department did its job extremely well, and THE GREAT GATSBY (Warners) overperformed to the tune of $51.1M for the weekend.  However, the 9% Saturday drop suggests the film may not hold up so well in the long-term.  The first sign will […]

  OPENINGS:  THE PURGE (Universal) will be instantly profitable by the end of its high $30Ms weekend, and while a great deal of that is due to the $3M production budget, a US marketing spend of only $20M (less than half the normal big-studio amount) is a big help.  The key:  minimal expensive TV advertising.  […]

The 27th weekend of the year is looking like an excellent $218 million for the top 12 films, up 20-35% from the comparable weekend the last few years. Opening at around 3,900 theaters Wednesday (well above the top 10% theater count for opening weekend wide releases of 3,690 theaters), Despicable Me 2 from Universal should average $20,000 per theater for the three-day weekend […]

Updated international box office chart:

  All four of this weekend’s wide releases began with Thursday night screenings last night, but only KICK-ASS 2 (Universal) reported the results.  Kick Ass 2 started with a $1.3M Thursday (screenings started at 8PM), below last week’s Elysium ($1.7M) but in the same range as White House Down ($1.35M) and 2 Guns ($1.2M).  Both […]

Updated international box office chart:  

  OPENINGS:  We spent all summer hearing that it was impossible to sell audiences on big-budget non-franchise titles, as spectacles like White House Down, Pacific Rim, After Earth and The Lone Ranger went splat.  In one fantastic swoop, GRAVITY proved the lie to that with an October-record $55.6M weekend–and with two middle-aged stars.  (What a […]