January 13th, 2015
There was only one new release in the $10,000 club, which left American Sniper with an easy victory. It pulled in an average of $144,880 in four theaters, making it the first film ever to earn an per theater average of $100,000 or more for three weeks. Second place went to A Most Violent Year with an average of $29,135, also in four theaters. Taken 3 was the best of the new releases with an average of $10,908, just ahead of Song of the Sea with an average of $10,470.
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December 31st, 2014
American Sniper led the way on the per theater chart with an estimated average of $152,500 in four theaters. This is the second best per theater average of the year, behind just The Grand Budapest Hotel and ahead of The Imitation Game. Second place for the weekend was Selma, which earned an average of $30,076 in 19 theaters during their Oscar-qualifying run. Two Days, One Night was a surprise entry in the $10,000 club earning an average of $24,118 in two theaters. It earned amazing reviews, but it didn't have as much buzz behind it as other film's that opening on Christmas. Into the Woods was the best of the wide releases in the $10,000 club earning an average of $12,726 in 2,440 theaters. Last week's winner, Inherent Vice, was next with an estimated average of $12,500 in 16 theaters. The overall box office leader, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, earned an average of $10,689, while The Imitation Game was right behind with $10,618. The final film in the $10,000 club was Mr. Turner with an average of $10,498 in 24 theaters.
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December 30th, 2014
We are still dealing with studio estimates for the weekend numbers, but we can at least tell you what film won, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, and roughly how much it earned, $41.42 million. The new releases were much closer than expected with Into the Woods and Unbroken both earning just over $30 million over the weekend. Because we don't have enough final numbers, we really can't compare the overall box office to last weekend or last year. So far, the final weekend of 2014 pulled in $200 million and that number should grow a little bit as box office numbers filter in. This is 52% more than last weekend and 2.3% more than the same weekend last year. I'm a little more bullish about January's box office chances after this result.
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December 22nd, 2014
The $10,000 club was crowded this weekend with six films earning per theater averages of more than $10,000. This includes Inherent Vice, which led the way for the second time in a row earning an average of $29,055 in five theaters. This bodes well for its wide expansion in January. Speaking of expanding, The Imitation Game expanded from 25 theaters to 34 theaters earning an average of $25,253 in the process. It has already earned some measure of mainstream success and with room to grow, it will stay in theaters for a while. Mr. Turner was the best of the new limited releases earning an average of $21,728 in five theaters. Song of the Sea was next with $17,967 in one theater. The overall box office champ, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, earned an average of $14,122, which is lower than anticipated, but still pretty good. Finally, P.K. opened with an average of $13,108 in 272 theaters. It is rare that we get to talk about a Bollywood film in the $10,000 club.
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December 22nd, 2014
The Christmas break got off on a soft note with all three new wide releases failing to meet expectations by substantial numbers. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies got off to a good start on Wednesday, but plummeted the next day and couldn't recover. Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb failed to live up to the low end of expectations, while Annie's opening at least came close to predictions. We are still missing some numbers. Overall, the box office rose by more than 60% from last weekend to $135 million and this figure should rise a little as other numbers filter in. However, it likely won't rise by enough to match the $140 million earned the same weekend last year. I really thought 2014 would end its year-over-year slump this weekend, but alas, it was not to be. Year-to-date, 2014 has earned $9.60 billion, which is 4.6% lower than last year's pace.
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December 21st, 2014
After thirteen years (with a lengthy break in the middle), Peter Jackson’s Middle Earth Saga finally comes to an end this weekend with The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies. Tolkein/Jackson fans are giving the franchise a rousing farewell, with $50 million expected this weekend and $90 million in total after five days. Comparisons are a little difficult, because the previous Hobbit installments opened on Fridays, but Desolation of Smaug racked up $86 million in its first five days and An Unexpected Journey hit $100 million on its fifth day in release. So this outing seems set to perform similarly overall, with $250 million – $300 million domestically and around $1 billion worldwide. That will solidify the franchise as the fourth-most successful in history, and if it can top $1.079 billion in this outing, it will be the only franchise ever to average more than $1 billion globally per film.
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December 19th, 2014
It is not a super busy weekend, but that doesn't mean there's nothing worth checking out. Mr. Turner's reviews are incredible, so much so that I'm surprised it hasn't been a major player during Awards Season thus far. It isn't the only film earning great reviews, as both Song of the Sea and Winter's Sleep could find audiences in theaters.
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