January 20th, 2013
Batman was even more dominant on the Blu-ray sales chart than it was on the DVD sales chart with two new releases earning the top two spots. The Dark Knight Rises earned first place with 2.26 million units / $42.13 million giving it an opening week Blu-ray share of 53%. Meanwhile, the Trilogy Box Set earned second place with 453,000 units / $12.68 million for an opening week Blu-ray share of 58%. The combined totals are not quite as good as The Avengers' debut was, but was still a fantastic start.
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January 20th, 2013
New releases dominated the top of the December 9th edition of the DVD sales chart with four of them placing within the top six. Unsurprisingly, The Dark Knight Rises led the way with a stunning result of 2.03 million units / $26.96 million during its first week of release.
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January 17th, 2013
Men in Black 3 led all new releases earning first place on the Blu-ray sales chart with 241,000 units / $6.75 million during its opening week of release. Its Blu-ray share was just under 40%, which is low for this type of release.
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January 17th, 2013
There were a quartet of new releases to reach the December 2nd edition of the DVD sales chart, but none of them were able to challenge for top spot. Dr. Seuss' The Lorax and Brave were in a battle for first place with the former winning if you go by units at 637,000 to 584,000. However, the latter wins in terms of revenue at $11.65 million to $8.09 million. Brave is still a little behind in terms of total units at 4.33 million to 4.75 million; however, after just three weeks of release, it has overtaken The Lorax's 17-week total revenue at $73.45 million to $72.32 million.
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January 16th, 2013
New releases did better on the Blu-ray sales chart than it did on the DVD sales chart, relatively speaking. Brave sold an additional 756,000 units generating $15.59 million more revenue for the week giving it a total of 1.80 million units / $37.33 million after just two weeks of release. This is a very strong start for a kids movie.
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November 26th, 2012
It's not a good week on the home market, but for different reasons than last week. There are five first-run releases coming out this week, which is actually very busy. However, it is a bad week, because I'm supposed to receive screeners for for four of those five films, but so far none of have arrived. At least with Men in Black 3, there's a few more days before it is officially late, as it doesn't come out till Friday. Men in Black 3 also made more at the box office than the rest of the first run releases made combined, so there will likely be a huge gap between the first and second best selling new-release of the week. As for the best releases for the week, ParaNorman is the only real contender for Pick of the Week. The Blu-ray Combo Pack is worth owning, but if you've made the leap to 3D, then the 3D Combo Pack is worth the extra money.
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July 5th, 2012
Ice Age: Continental Drift started its international run a little earlier than its domestic run, and if this is any indication, its box office chances here are fantastic. The film pulled in $80.31 million on 9,653 screens in 35 markets. This includes $12.23 million on 2,617 screens over the weekend in Mexico for a total opening there of $13.87 million, which was the third biggest opening of all time in that market. It also made $11.31 million on 841 screens in France, which was the biggest opening of the year. The film dominated Brazil with $6.56 million on 1,004. Its opening in Australia was not quite as strong with $5.02 million on 490 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $6.43 million, but that's still equivalent to $60 million here, given the relative size of the two markets. It broke the record for biggest opening in Argentina at $4.1 million on 284 screens, and did the same in a number of smaller Latin American markets ($3.2 million on 296 in Colombia, $3.1 million on 252 in Peru, etc.). I think its chances of reaching $1 billion worldwide are better than I previously thought.
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June 27th, 2012
For the third weekend in a row, Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted earned top spot on the international chart, this time pulling in $35.43 million on 9,499 screens in 43 markets for a total of $214.17 million internationally and $371.26 million worldwide. Its best market of the weekend was Mexico, where it remained in first place with $3.81 million on 1,612 screens over the weekend for a total of $20.78 million after three. Meanwhile in Russia, the film has amassed a total of $43.05 million, including $3.41 million on 1,485 screens this past weekend. The film's next major market is Spain, but it doesn't open there till the end of July. It doesn't finish its run till October when it opens in the U.K.
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June 25th, 2012
Turns out the weekend was rather predictable, with nearly every film earning roughly what they were expected to do. More films topped expectations than missed them, and this includes Brave, which earned more than last year's winner, Cars 2. This helped the overall box office grow 26% from last weekend to $164 million. Unfortunately, the other two new releases, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, were not as strong compared to the counter-programming from last year, Bad Teacher, and this meant 2012 lost to 2011 by 7%. Worse still, next weekend will be a disaster, as there are four middling releases that will have to compete with Transformers: Dark of the Moon.
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June 20th, 2012
Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted held firm on top of the international chart with $52.82 million on 11,633 screens in 43 markets for a total of $158.43 million internationally and $277.44 million worldwide. It fell just 36% in Russia for a weekend haul of $10.09 million on 1,830 screens over the weekend and a total of $36.00 million after two. Quite frankly, this is a stunning hold. Russia is known for steep declines (drop-offs greater than 60% are the norm). At this pace, the film could top The Avengers as the biggest hit in the market this year by this time next week. In Mexico, it made $5.03 million on 572 screens over the weekend for a total of $14.82 million after two, while in Brazil it managed $4.19 million on 870 screens over the weekend for a total of $17.53 million after two. In both of those markets the film remained in top spot. On the other hand, it slipped to second place during its second weekend in France down 45% to $4.41 million on 685 screens over the weekend for a total of $13.17 million so far. This is about on par with its run here. With many, many major markets left ahead of it, the film should have little trouble reaching more major milestones, while it should break even before it reaches the lucrative home market.
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June 13th, 2012
Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted led the way on the international chart with $77.28 million on 10,877 screens in 28 markets. Its best single market was Russia, where it pulled in $9.80 million on 1,670 screens, which was easily enough for first place. It was also dominant in France with $7.96 million on 685 screens. A pair of Latin American markets also contributed to its overall success with it earning $7.53 million on 890 screens over the weekend in Brazil, for a total opening in that market of $10.85 million. In Mexico, it earned $6.98 million on 1,965. The studio is going with a spread out release schedule, so it doesn't have a whole lot of major markets in the coming weeks, while it doesn't end its international run till October when it debuts in the U.K.
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June 12th, 2012
In just two weeks, the box office went from slump to soaring. Both Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted and Prometheus were box office hits and for first time in nearly four years and for only the second time ever, two films opened with more than $50 million at the box office. The overall box office reached $182 million, which shows the holdovers were also an important part of the overall picture. This was an increase of 27% from last weekend and a 32% increase from last year. A 32% increase would be amazing under normal circumstances, but just two weeks ago, we saw a 30% decrease in the year-over-year comparison, which makes this turnaround even more stunning. Year-to-date, 2012 remains ahead of 2011 by just shy of 10% at $4.70 billion to $4.28 billion and things look pretty good next weekend as well. Not as good as they were this weekend, but pretty good.
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June 7th, 2012
There is an actual race for top spot on the box office chart between two new releases. We haven't seen that since early February. This week we have Aliens, represented by Prometheus, and we have Predators, represented by Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted. Okay, technically only Alex is a predator, but that's close enough. Both films are expected to top last year's number one film, Super 8, and with Snow White and the Huntsman opening better than expected last weekend, the holdovers should be stronger as well. 2012 should finally end the slump that began three weeks ago.
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June 7th, 2012
Men in Black 3 held on extremely well during its second weekend of release on the international scene earning an easy first place with $78.67 million on 20,554 screens in 90 markets for a total of $275.17 million internationally. This is already more than Men in Black 2 made during its entire run. Worldwide the film has $386.25 million, which is higher than the high end of the film's reported budgets. It's on track to reach between $500 million and $600 million worldwide, which is enough to put it on track to earn a profit sometime on the film's home market run. Amazingly, the film actually held on well in China, where it was down less than 30% to $15.4 million on 5,200 screens over the weekend for a total of $51 million after two. Perhaps it will reach the century mark there. In Germany, it grew by 3% to $5.32 million on 742 screens over the weekend for a total of $13.44 million. It also grew by 3% in the U.K., but fell to third place with $4.69 million on 533 screens over the weekend for a total of $12.30 million after two. In Britain, it was the Jubilee Holiday, so that explains the growth.
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June 4th, 2012
Snow White and the Huntsman not only earned first place on the weekend box office chart, it did so with ease, topping all but the most bullish predictions. In fact, it even topped last year's opening of X-men: First Class, which means the film nearly helped 2012 back in the winning circle. The overall box office did fall 7% when compared to last weekend, but it was the post-Memorial Day weekend, so that's a very strong finish. The year-over-year decline was 11%, which normally would be really disappointing, but the previous weekend, the decline was over 30%, so this represents a huge recovery and bodes well for the next few weeks. 2012's lead over 2011 has shrunk to just under 10% at $4.47 billion to $4.07 billion, but even if the overall box office is flat for the rest of the year, a $400 million increase over the full year would be worth celebrating.
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June 3rd, 2012
After a disastrous start for Battleship a few weeks ago, Universal execs will be breathing a lot easier this morning thanks to an impressive debut for Snow White and the Huntsman. The fantasy adventure is projected to earn $56.26 million, according to the studio's Sunday estimate, which will give it a good shot at matching its production budget (which reportedly ended up at more than $170 million).
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May 31st, 2012
Snow White and the Huntsman is the only new wide release of the weekend and it is looking to overthrow Men in Black 3 on the top of the chart. It should have a pretty easy time winning, if not, the box office is in serious trouble. It is more important to compare its opening to that of X-men: First Class, which opened this weekend last year. Asking Snow White to make $55 million is probably asking too much, while the holdovers won't be able to match last year's crop, so June will likely start off on a low note when compared to last year. After an amazing start to the year, 2012 is starting to really struggle. Hopefully it is just a minor bump in the road.
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May 30th, 2012
After Men in Black 3 missed expectations domestically, its international numbers became a lot more important. I have good news and bad news. The good news is, it opened in first place with $126.31 million on 22,195 screens in 103 markets over the weekend for a total opening of $135.29 million earning first place in 101 of those markets. The bad news is, it has nowhere else to go. It's going to need to rely on strong legs to keep going. In a lot of international markets, films tends to have better legs than they have here. For instance, Japan. But the opposite is true in places like Russia and China, where pump and dumps rule. Speaking of which, the film's best single market was China where it made $20.6 million on 6,073 screens, which was just ahead of The Avengers' opening there, but that film had to deal with a massive local hit. MiB3's second biggest market was Russia, with $16.92 million on 1,549 screens, which was also more than The Avengers managed. Unfortunately, those were the only two major markets where that was true.
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May 30th, 2012
The winners of our Three for Three contest were determined and they are...
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May 30th, 2012
Men in Black 3 broke the Memorial Day IMAX record with $5.3 million on 278 IMAX screens domestically and $7.4 million on 196 IMAX screens internationally. The worldwide opening on $12.7 million on 474 screens topped the record previously held by Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Up next is Prometheous on the 8th of June, while there are a number of major releases throughout the summer.
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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 29th, 2012
While the latest installment of the Men in Black franchise topped the box office over the Memorial Day long weekend, it was The Avengers that continued to be the big story of the year. Men in Black 3's opening was merely average given the release date, and well below average given the film's production budget. On the other hand, The Avengers continued to break records. Overall, the box office was up by 7% from last weekend reaching $153 million over the three day portion of the weekend. However, that's 31% lower than Memorial Day last year. Ouch. Over four days, the weekend pulled in $194 million, which was 30% lower than last year. Again, ouch. Year-to-date, 2012 is still ahead of 2011, but the lead is down to 12.5% at $4.28 billion to $3.85 billion.
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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 24th, 2012
It looks like The Avengers run on top will finally come to an end this weekend with the release of Men in Black 3. It better. If The Avengers earns more during its fourth weekend of release than MiB3 opens with, then the overall box office will be in such serious trouble that I don't even want to talk about it. So the number one film shouldn't be in doubt, but there are still some questions to ask. Will Men in Black 3 live up to the previous two installments in the franchise? I am quite confident it will. However, in order for 2012 to earn the win on the year-over-year comparison, it will need to match The Hangover 2, which opened this weekend last year. I'm not very confident it will do that, to be very generous. Even if it manages the minor miracle needed to reach that level, there's still Kung Fu Panda 2 to deal with and the only other new release, Chernobyl Diaries, won't come anywhere close to that film's debut. It's probably going to be a really bad weekend at the box office.
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May 18th, 2012
Next week Men in Black 3 opens up in an estimated 4000 theaters. There are some reporting that this film is the most expensive movie in the history of movies costing an incredible $375 million to get to theaters (the breakdown is $250 million to make and $125 million in global prints and advertising). Will it earn enough to pay for that? The consensus is no. However, it could still open with $100 million over the long weekend and should have no trouble finishing in first place. (Although, we are only interested in the Friday through Sunday weekend.) Regardless of whether or not it breaks even or costs Sony a ton of money, it is the target film in this week's box office prediction contest and to celebrate Men in Black 3, we have three $25 coupons for Shirts.com. In order to win, one must simply predict the opening weekend box office number for Men in Black 3.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going over, will win the first $25 coupon for T-Shirts.com.
Meanwhile, whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going under, will win the second $25 coupon for T-Shirts.com.
And finally, one additional entrant will be chosen and they will win the final $25 coupon for T-Shirts.com.
Entries must be received by 10 a.m., Pacific Time on Friday to be eligible, so don't delay!
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May 1st, 2012
There's good news / bad news going forward into May. First the bad news, April was really weak. It was weak compared to the previous month and weak compared to last year. For the first time all year, we had losses for a month on the year-over-year comparison. As for the good news... it could have been worse? Maybe there wasn't good news with regards to April, but there is certainly good news going forward. Every weekend in May has at least one film with the potential to hit $100 million, while there are a couple that could hit $200 million, and one that, pie in the sky, could reach $400 million. That one film is The Avengers, or as it is officially called, Marvel's The Avengers. I guess they don't want people reminded of the 1998 TV adaptation. While there are four films that should reach $100 million, there are only three other films opening wide, maybe two, maybe four. (More sources have Chernobyl Diaries opening wide than in limited release, but it is not a sure thing either way. Meanwhile, the opposite is true for LOL.) Additionally, there are a couple films opening in limited release this month with a real potential to expand wide: The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and God Bless America. By comparison, last year had no film reach $300 million, but it had five films reach $100 million. If we are going to earn the win this year, we need strength from the top.
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