March 5th, 2013
It's a strange week for home market releases. On the one hand, there are some terrific films that should do really well. On the other hand, after the top couple of titles, the quality of the releases plummets really fast. By the time we get outside of the top ten, we start to get mostly filler. The best film coming out this week is Schindler's List, which makes its Blu-ray debut this week. It is absolutely a must have; however, the Blu-ray is shovelware, which precludes it from being the Pick of the Week. The release that gets that honor is Wreck-It Ralph on either Blu-ray or 3D. It is worth paying the extra money for 3D, but not a lot of people have made the leap to 3D just yet.
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December 13th, 2012
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced their nominations and the same list of films that have been mentioned since the beginning of Awards Season were rewarded today. Lincoln led the way with seven nods, while Argo and Django Unchained were close behind with five.
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August 29th, 2012
Sleepwalk With Me found its way on top of the per theater chart with $68,801 in one theater. This is higher than the per theater average for the opening of The Avengers, which was the goal of the filmmakers after their fake fight with Joss Whedon. Samsara opened with an average of $38,111 in two theaters. The only other film in the $10,000 club was Space Station with $14,268 in one theater.
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July 10th, 2012
Beasts of the Southern Wild remained on top of the per theater chart with an average $19,687 in 19 theaters. It is very close to its first major milestone and it has a lot of room to grow. The Amazing Spider-man opened in second place with an average of $14,360. Two IMAX films bounced into the $10,000 club. Deep Space 3-D and Space Station earned $13,069 and $11,996 respectively.
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June 26th, 2012
To Rome With Love topped the per theater chart with an outstanding average of $72,272 in five theaters. While this is an amazing start, there are some reasons to not get too excited. First of all, Moonrise Kingdom opened with more and did so in fewer theaters. Also, Sunday's estimates were a bit higher, so it fell faster than expected over the weekend. Finally, the reviews were split, so it likely won't have as strong legs as some of Woody Allen's films have in the past. The only other film to top the $10,000 mark on the per theater chart was Brave with an average of $15,928. Kumare came very close with $9,601 in one theater over the weekend, while it earned $19,972 from Wednesday through Sunday.
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June 12th, 2012
For the third weekend in a row, Moonrise Kingdom remained the top film on the per theater chart with an average of $16,247. Again, most limited releases would kill to have an opening week per theater average that high while playing in only a couple theaters. Moonrise Kingdom did it in its third weekend of release while playing in nearly 100 theaters. To call it a success is an understatement. Prometheus finished in second place with $15,032, while the overall box office leader, Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted, was right behind with an average of $14,166. Dark Horse opened with $13,551 in its lone theater. Safety Not Guaranteed opened in ninety theaters, which is a little high for a limited release, but it still earned an impressive average of $10,862.
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May 30th, 2012
To call Moonrise Kingdom's opening impressive would be an understatement. The film earned more than $500,000 in just four theaters for an average of $130,749. ... I looked up three different sources to make sure that wasn't a typo. That's the ninth best per theater average of all time, and the best for a live action film. (Disney used to release the animated tentpole releases in one or two theaters for a prestige release a week before their wide releases and these films fill the top eight spots.) Les Intouchables placed second with an average of $25,263 in four theaters, which is excellent and suggests potential for expansion. The overall box office leader, Men in Black 3, was the final film in the $10,000 club with an average of $12,851.
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May 27th, 2012
The Avengers vice-like grip on the top reaches of the box office chart will finally be loosened, according to studio estimates released on Sunday. Men in Black 3 is set for a 3-day haul of about $55 million according to Sony Pictures, which will comfortably give it the crown over Avengers' fourth weekend $37 million. The superhero pic will pass $500 million in the process and set a new record as the fastest film to reach that landmark, ahead of Avatar's 32 days.
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May 25th, 2012
It should be a strong week on the limited release front. Not only are there a number of releases, but four of them are earning overwhelmingly positive reviews. Granted, not all four of them have a great shot at mainstream success. OC87 is earning perfect reviews so far, but it is a documentary about a man with mental illnesses, and that screams art house circuit. Oslo, 31 August is earning nearly perfect reviews, but it is a Norwegian film and those movies don't have a large built in audience, not even on the art house circuit. The Intouchables has made $300 million internationally and French films do have a built in audience, at least compared to other foreign language films. Moonrise Kingdom has amazing reviews, a proven director, and an impressive ensemble cast. If I were a betting man, I would put money on this movie.
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April 11th, 2012
Wrath of the Titans is really struggling domestically, but it could mitigate some of the losses here with its box office numbers internationally. This weekend it added $42.1 million on 13,070 screens in 61 markets for a total of $151.6 million. Its best market of the weekend was Russia, where it earned $4.09 million on 1,116 screens over the weekend for a total of $19.55 million after two. It has yet to open in Japan, and if it can get to $300 million worldwide, it should break even very early in the film's home market run.
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March 28th, 2012
The Hunger Games opened in first place internationally, but it wasn't as dominant as it was domestically. The film earned $59.25 million on 7,700 screens in 67 markets. That's a strong start for a film that cost $80 million to make, but it is a weak start for a film that opened with $152 million domestically. It open in first place in a number of major markets and did very well in Australia with $9.48 million on 471 screens. By comparison, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 made more than $12 million when it opened there last year. In the U.K. it made $7.77 million on 511 screens, compared to nearly $22 million for Breaking Dawn. It also opened in first place in Russia with $6.62 million on 1,165 screens, in Germany with $4.24 million on 613, in Mexico with $3.57 million on 1,362, in France with $3.55 million on 706, and in Brazil with $2.98 million on 636. These results are all good, but nowhere near as potent as its domestic opening. The film has yet to open in South Korea, Spain, Italy, and a few other markets, so it should earn about $200 million internationally and about $500 million worldwide.
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March 14th, 2012
John Carter absolutely dominated the international box office; however, this is because of how wide it opened, not how strong its opening was. Over the weekend, it earned $66.12 million on 18,890 screens in 51 markets for a total opening of $68.93 million. Its per screen average was a mere $3,500, which is low for this type of release. There were some highlights, led by a first place, $16.55 million opening on 939 screens in Russia. It also opened in first place in Mexico with $3.42 million on 1,144, which is better than Journey 2: The Mysterious Island opened with earlier in the year. On the other hand, it's first place opening in the U.K. was more subdued at $3.07 million on 456 screens.
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February 29th, 2012
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance rose to first place with $21.44 million on 4,889 screens in 28 markets for a two-week total of $45.74 million. This week it opened in a trio of major markets, starting with Russia where it debuted in first place with $8.18 million on 913 screens. By comparison, Ghost Rider made $7.77 million in total in that market, so this is a great start. On the other hand, it had to settle for second place in Germany with $2.32 million on 428, which is roughly on par with its predecessor's opening. But it only managed third place in Spain with $1.16 million on 439. By comparison, the film made $3.12 million during its opening there. Mixed results make it difficult to predict the film's final box office number, but I think it is safe to say there won't be a Ghost Rider 3 any time soon.
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February 8th, 2012
Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol has reached two milestones since last week, reaching $400 million internationally and $600 million worldwide. It added $24.31 million on 6,259 screens in 51 markets over the weekend and now has $420.83 million internationally and $626.03 million worldwide. Of its weekend haul, $20 million came from China, which was $7 million more than last week's opening.
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February 1st, 2012
It was a good weekend for Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol. It crossed $200 million domestically and jumped back to first place on the international chart with $25.23 million on 6,411 screens in 56 markets. It now has $369.37 million internationally and $571.93 million worldwide, which is the best in the franchise. The film earned first place with $12.7 million on 3000 screens in China, but had to settle for second place in Italy with $3.01 million on 575. It will quickly cross $600 million worldwide, even though it has no more major markets left to open in.
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January 25th, 2012
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows was again the top film on the international box office, even though it fell significantly from last week. It generated an additional $18.3 million on 7,505 screens in 57 markets for totals of $261.3 million internationally and $439.6 million worldwide. Getting to $400 million worldwide is more than enough to show a profit, unless it cost a ridiculous amount for global prints and advertising. There were no major new markets to report on last weekend, but it did add $2.38 million on 422 screens over the weekend in Brazil, giving the film a total of $8.08 million after two. Up next is France this weekend, while it opens in Japan in March. $300 million internationally is pretty much a given, unless it bombs in those two markets, while if it does well, it could reach $500 million worldwide.
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December 15th, 2011
For the first time in four weeks, we had a new number one film on the international chart, as Puss In Boots continued its climb reaching top spot. It expanded into 16 additional markets, including a handful of major ones. This propelled it into first place with $47.06 million on 6,749 screens in 40 markets for a total of $143.72 million, which is just over what it has made domestically. The film's biggest debuted was Germany, where it earned top spot with $6.88 million on 680 screens, including previews. It was even more impressive in Brazil with $5.56 million on 738 screens, also including previews. Brazil is more of an emerging market than a major market, so the fact that it generated more revenue than its openings in either Australia ($4.03 million on 507 screens, including previews) or in the U.K. ($3.07 million on 510) is quite stunning. With debuts in Italy, Japan, and other markets ahead of it, not to mention the Christmas holiday, it could double what it currently has internationally, which would lift its worldwide total over $400 million.
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December 7th, 2011
For the third weekend in a row, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 1 earned top spot on the international chart, this time with $40.2 million on 9,000 screens in 73 markets. It now has totals of $341 million internationally and $588 million worldwide. Its biggest opening of the weekend came from South Korea, where it made $3.22 million on 706 screens for a total opening of $5.12 million. Its biggest running tally comes from the U.K. where it has made $42.76 million, including $2.61 million on 523 screens this past weekend.
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November 30th, 2011
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 1 remained in top spot on the international chart with $76 million on 10,500 screens in 68 markets for a total of $268 million internationally and $489 million worldwide. It has already topped the first film in the franchise and by the end it should improve upon the franchise's international average. Its best new market was Germany, at $10.89 million on 789 screens over the weekend, for a total opening of $13.70 million. Meanwhile, its best holdover was the U.K., where it added $7.11 million on 546 screens to its two-week total, which sits at $36.24 million.
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November 23rd, 2011
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 1 wasn't the only film playing internationally, but it might as well have been with how much it dominated the box office. It opened with $152.9 million on 9,950 screens in 54 markets for a global opening of $291.0 million. This was the best opening for the franchise so far, although Part 2 will likely top it. Its biggest opening came from the U.K. where it managed $21.84 million on 543 screens, while it also topped the chart in Russia with $15.85 million on 1,268. It earned nearly identical results in Italy ($12.10 million on 719) and in Australia ($12.01 million on 618). Other first place results include Spain ($11.73 million on 957); Brazil ($10.29 million on 1,008); and Mexico ($10.12 million on 2,176). On the other hand, it had to settle for second place in France, but still managed a very strong $14.85 million on 759 screens. The film opens in Germany this weekend, while it doesn't finish its run till February when it debuts in Japan.
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November 16th, 2011
Immortals opened in first place internationally with an estimated $38 million in three dozen theaters. (Because the film's international run is being handled by multiple studios, getting exact numbers was delayed.) Its biggest market was Russia, where it earned first place with $8.68 million on 1,236 screens, while it earned $5.5 million in China. The film also debuted in first place in South Korea with $3.99 million on 633 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $4.95 million. It took top spot in the U.K. with $3.45 million on 428 screens and in Germany with $2.63 million on 440. On the other hand, it bombed in Japan earning just $1.26 million on 462 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $1.69 million.
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November 9th, 2011
The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn remained on top of the international chart during its second weekend of release, while it crossed the $100 million milestone over the weekend. It expanded into more than two dozen new markets, but most were of the smaller variety. Overall, it made $38.98 million on 7,103 screens in 45 markets, for a total of $123.55 million so far. Russia was the only real exception, where it opened in second place with $4.81 million on 788 screens. It plummeted 74% in France, but still added $6.99 million on 850 screens for a two-week total of $33.44 million. On the other hand, it remained in first place in Spain with $5.19 million on 819 screens over the weekend, for a total of $16.62 million after two. At this point, $200 million internationally is a given, which is likely close to the film's total budget. If it can close close to that figure here, it will break even before the lucrative home market.
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