OPENINGS:  LIGHTYEAR (Pixar/Disney) was a tricky attempt to extend the hugely lucrative Toy Story franchise, both a prequel and a spinoff that featured a different version of the titular character than the one audiences have loved for decades.  Disney didn’t manage to convince fans that it was essential viewing, and the result was a […]

Based on Friday’s and Saturday’s grosses, weekend #6 of 2015 now looks like $139 million for the top 12 films Friday-Sunday, up slightly from yesterday’s estimate ($135 million) and up a bit from the norm for this weekend.   Opening at 3,641 theaters Friday, SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water from Paramount is on track for a $56.0 […]

Looking at wide-release films in North America (those that play on at least 400 screens at some point), 2013 now totals $2.37 billion, down 15% from 2012 and down 8% from the prior four-year average 2009-2012.  Each year-to-date period below is defined as the first Monday after New Year’s Day through the most recent Sunday. […]

  OPENING:  THE WOMAN IN BLACK 2:  ANGEL OF DEATH (Relativity) fell to 4th place for the weekend, as expected, after a strong opening day.  Still, a $15.1M haul for the cheap thriller isn’t at all bad, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see a Woman in Black 3 come along in a year or […]

>Deadline is reporting Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 is opening to an eye-popping $90-100 million Friday.  This estimate from Warner Brothers includes the incredible $43.5 from midnight showings.  This destroys the single-day record of $72.7 million by Twilight Saga: New Moon on Friday, November 20, 2009.  Even adjusted for inflation, this is […]

WORLDWIDE STUDIO SCORECARD.   YEAR TO DATE BOX OFFICE. Looking at North American box office, 2015 to date is now +7% above last year and now +5% above the average for this point the past four years ($9.588 billion).  Over the same period, Hollywood films have grossed almost $26.0 billion worldwide when we add overseas box office (that’s now […]

  Nothing changed very much from Friday to Saturday at the boxoffice.  OZ THE GREAT AND POWERFUL (Disney) will more than double its nearest competition, following its $11.4M Friday with, according to preliminary numbers at Deadline, a $18.8M Saturday.  If that number holds, it’ll be a 65% Saturday bump, better than the 56% Alice In […]

    So that happened. THE AVENGERS:  Whenever a Sunday estimate just barely crosses a milestone threshold, it’s subject to adjustment on Monday, but whether the final number turns out to be $196M or $202M is a matter for headline writers–in any case, anything in the neighborhood of the $200.3M estimate is staggering, not to […]