> The 2011 box office slump continues in full force.  The top 12 films this Christmas weekend should total an anemic $112 million, down 15% from the comparable weekend last year and not even close to the previous three years.  Of course, weekend comparisons are tricky because the calendar is particularly cruel this year, putting […]

WORLDWIDE STUDIO SCORECARD.  Updated look at 2016 by studio.   YEAR TO DATE BOX OFFICE. Looking at North American box office, 2016 to date is now -1% below last year and now +1% above the average for this point the past four years ($5.137 billion).  Over the same period, Hollywood films have grossed almost $13.5 billion worldwide […]

  OPENINGS:  GODZILLA VS KONG (Warners, also on HBO Max) had the biggest US theatrical debut since the onset of pandemic closings with $48.5M over 5 days ($32.2M for the 3-day weekend).  It will clearly roar past Tenet‘s $57.9M to become the highest-grossing title in over a year, and could pass $100M in the US.  […]

> According to preliminary numbers at Deadline, THE PIRATES!  BAND OF MISFITS (Sony) will pull ahead of THE FIVE-YEAR ENGAGEMENT (Universal) for the weekend thanks to Saturday and Sunday matinee business, although Engagement is still ahead as of Saturday and the race will be close.  (Both, however, will be behind Think Like A Man and […]

  We’re in the 2-week void between Thanksgiving and the Awakening of the Force, and the low-budget KRAMPUS (Legendary/Universal) is the weekend’s only major studio arrival.  According to preliminary numbers at Deadline, it’s performing a tad beyond expectations with $6.25M on Friday.  Given the quick burn-out for horror movies, that should mean a $13-15M weekend, […]

> As detailed in Mitch Metcalf’s Weekend Boxoffice Report, New Year’s Day wasn’t the bonanza the studios were expecting it to be. PARAMOUNT:  MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – GHOST PROTOCOL‘s Sunday increase was less than half of the 33% projected, and it’s likely to fall another 15-20% today, giving it a bit over $140M in total and […]

  In shows that started at 9PM last night, Will Ferrell and his ANCHORMAN 2: THE LEGEND CONTINUES (Paramount) crew pulled in $2.3M.  That’s ahead of the $2.2M earned by This Is the End and $1.7M for We’re the Millers, two recent midweek hit comedies that had the benefit of summer openings.  As a sequel […]

> Let’s take a look at just how remarkably THE HELP is performing so far.   The most obvious points of comparison are the literary-sourced, female-skewing hits of the last 2 Augusts:  Julie & Julia in 2009, and last year’s Eat Pray Love.  Julia had a $20M opening that led to a $94M domestic gross; Eat […]