All Articles by Nicole Pedersen

Weekend Box Office – CHRONICLE and THE WOMAN IN BLACK Both Break $20 Million on Super Bowl Weekend

Posted: February 5th, 2012 at 9:31 am

It didn’t claim the record for highest debut or the greatest attendance, but this year’s Super Bowl weekend still caught most box office watchers by surprise with two bigger-than-expected openings. Fox’s Chronicle was first with $22 million from 2,907 locations, but CBS Films’ The Woman in Black was right on its heels with $21 million from 2,855. That’s the first time that two titles have opened to over $20 million on a Super Bowl frame since… ever.

	Title	Weekend	Total
1	Chronicle	$22,000,000	$22
2	The Woman in Black	$21,000,000	$21
3	The Grey	$9,500,000	$34.7
4	Big Miracle	$8,480,000	$8.5
5	Underworld Awakening	$5,600,000	$54.3
6	One For The Money	$5,250,000	$19.6
7	Red Tails	$5,000,000	$41.3
8	The Descendants	$4,600,000	$65.5
9	Man on a Ledge	$4,460,000	$14.7
10	Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close	$3,925,000	$26.7

Friday Box Office – CHRONICLE and THE WOMAN IN BLACK in Tight Race for Super Bowl Title

Posted: February 4th, 2012 at 8:47 am

Box office watchers were not expecting much from this year’s crop of Super Bowl Weekend releases. The three films opening against America’s biggest sporting event had modest goals to match their (mostly) modest budgets; and yet, here we are, with a photo finish for first on Friday and a weekend that is shaping up to make 2011’s Super Bowl weekend pale by comparison.  Estimates put Fox’s Chronicle on top with $8.6 million from 2,907 locations. Not far behind, however, is CBS Film’s The Woman in Black with an estimate of $8.3 million from 2,855 locations. That’s 45% higher than anyone expected from the supernatural-thriller. Right now, Chronicle is expected to edge out Black with $20 million to $19.7 million this weekend; but it is important to note that neither film was projected to make anything close to $20 million by Sunday. Only Universal’s Big Miracle is coming in as projected. The family film made an estimated $2.3 million on Friday for what looks like an $8 million first weekend. Join us tomorrow for a more detailed look at the studios’ counterprogramming successes, unless you have other plans…?

	Title	Friday	Total
1	Chronicle	$8,650,000	$8.6
2	The Woman in Black	$8,300,000	$8.3
3	The Grey	$3,200,000	$28.4
4	Big Miracle	$2,300,000	$2.3
5	Underworld Awakening	$1,700,000	$50.5

Weekend Box Office – THE GREY the Clear Winner with $20 Million; ONE FOR THE MONEY in Third

Posted: January 29th, 2012 at 9:14 am

Newbie distributor Open Road Films has claimed its first number one opening with the wolf vs. man thriller The Grey.  From 3,185 locations, The Grey took in an estimated $20 million, or well above the mid-teens that was projected.  Second place was claimed by Underworld Awakening, pushing the adaptation of Janet Evanovich’s bestselling novel, One For the Money, into third.

	Title	Weekend	Total
1	The Grey	$20,000,000	$20
2	Underworld Awakening	$12,500,000	$45.1
3	One For the Money	$11,750,000	$11.7
4	Red Tails	$10,400,000	$33.7
5	Man on a Ledge	$8,250,000	$8.2
6	Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close	$7,145,000	$21.1
7	The Descendants	$6,550,000	$58.8
8	Contraband	$6,532,200	$56.4
9	Beauty & the Beast 3D	$5,345,000	$41.1
10	Haywire	$4,000,000	$15.2

Friday Box Office – THE GREY Bares Its Fangs In First; ONE FOR THE MONEY Stronger Than Expected

Posted: January 28th, 2012 at 8:58 am

Open Road’s The Grey debuted in first place on Friday with an estimated $6.5 million from 3,185 locations.  That is only a bit less than the debut of Unknown, Liam Neeson’s last turn as a tough-guy, but substantially more than Open Road saw from Killer Elite, its first release last September. The thriller is projected to earn $18.5 million for the weekend, giving 2012 its fourth winning frame in a row.  Friday’s number two was Lionsgate’s One For the Money, which made an estimated $4.1 million from 2,737 venues. It is unclear, however, how much of an impact the film’s Groupon ticket deal had on its debut, but, so far, Money is not looking like the confirmed disaster that many expected/hoped for.  Discounted tickets were also offered for Summit’s new Man On A Ledge.  From 2,998 locations the PG-13 thriller took in a reported $2.5 million – enough for fifth place behind holdovers Underworld Awakening and Red Tails.  Details and analysis tomorrow.

	Title	Friday	Total
1	The Grey	$6,500,000	$6.5
2	One For the Money	$4,100,000	$4.1
3	Underworld Awakening	$3,400,000	$36
4	Red Tails	$2,800,000	$26.1
5	Man On A Ledge	$2,500,000	$2.5

 

Weekend Box Office – UNDERWORLD AWAKENING Leads with $25.4 Million; RED TAILS Second with $19.1 Million

Posted: January 22nd, 2012 at 9:15 am

Underworld Awakening had no trouble topping a crowded field of new or expanding releases this weekend. Nine years after the action-horror series launched, Underworld 4 took in an estimated $25.4 million from 3,078 locations for the second-highest opening weekend in the franchise’s history. Red Tails also had reason to be happy with its second-place showing while returns for the week’s three other highly-touted features were more modest.

	Title	Weekend	Total
1	Underworld Awakening	$25,400,000	$25.4
2	Red Tails	$19,100,000	$19.1
3	Contraband	$12,240,000	$46.1
4	Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close	$10,545,000	$11.2
5	Haywire	$9,000,000	$9
6	Beauty & the Beast 3D	$8,556,000	$33.3
7	Joyful Noise	$6,075,000	$21.9
8	Mission: Impossible 4	$5,540,000	$197.3
9	Sherlock Holmes	$4,805,000	$178.6
10	The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo	$3,750,000	$94.7

Friday Box Office – UNDERWORLD AWAKENING Emerges with $9.4 Million Opening

Posted: January 21st, 2012 at 9:38 am

In terms of box office numbers, January keeps offering up pleasant surprises.  This week, the big winner is Underworld Awakening with an estimated $9.4 million from 3,078 locations.  While not an unexpected first-place victory, part four in Screen Gems’ franchise is on track to earn about 15% more than the last installment, Underworld: Rise of the Lycans, saw on its first weekend back in January of 2009.  And unlike 2010, when No Strings Attached was the only major new release, there are plenty of other titles crowding into theatres this weekend.  George Lucas’s Red Tails is at number two with $6 million from 2,512 venues – a better start for the WWII drama than would be suggested by the twenty-plus years it took to open the film.  After a month in limited release, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close expanded to 2,630 locations and took in $3.2 million.  The only film that is not meeting or exceeding expectations is Relativity’s Haywire.  After earning an estimated $2.9 million from 2,439 on Friday, the Steven Soderbergh drama will have trouble topping the $8 million weekend mark set by the studio.  Details and analysis tomorrow.

	Title	Friday	Total
1	Underworld Awakening	$9,400,000	$9.4
2	Red Tails	$6,000,000	$6
3	Contraband	$3,700,000	$37.6
4	Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close	$3,200,000	$3.9
5	Haywire	$2,900,000	$2.9

Weekend Box Office – CONTRABAND Scores $24.1 Million; THE DEVIL INSIDE Gets Exorcised

Posted: January 15th, 2012 at 9:02 am

Even with Saturday’s family trade and higher ticket prices, Disney’s 3D re-issue of Beauty and the Beast could not catch Contraband this weekend. From its 2,863 locations Universal’s R-rated drama took in an estimated $24.1 million – a figure well above early expectations for the Mark Wahlberg vehicle.  The other BIG news is the changing fortunes of last weekend’s number one film, The Devil Inside.  Estimates have taken the film from number six – down to number eleven – and back up to number seven all within an hour.  We’re hoping to get it right this with this one but, keep in mind, it’s all estimates until Monday morning…

	Title	Weekend	Total
1	Contraband	$24,100,000	$24.1
2	Beauty and the Beast 3D	$18,490,000	$18.4
3	Mission: Impossible 4	$11,500,000	$186.7
4	Joyful Noise	$11,345,000	$11.3
5	Sherlock Holmes 2	$8,410,000	$170
6	The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo	$6,800,000	$87.9
7	The Devil Inside	$7,900,000	$46.2
8	Alvin and the Chipmunks 3	$5,800,000	$118.7
9	War Horse	$5,600,000	$65.7
10	The Iron Lady	$5,386,000	$5.9

Friday Box Office – CONTRABAND Grabs Number One with $8.7 Million; BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 3D Second

Posted: January 14th, 2012 at 8:44 am

If 2011 closed as a bit of a downer, 2012 continues to surprise with its robust (early) box office performances.  Last week Paramount’s The Devil Inside caught most of us off-guard with its big number one finish; this weekend it was Universal’s turn with Contraband.  The R-rated thriller earned an estimated $8.7 million from 2,863 locations on Friday – a first place debut that puts it on track for a weekend 25% higher than expected.  In second place, Disney’s 3D reissue of Beauty and the Beast took in $5.6 million from 2,625 venues and should reach $23 million by the end of the four-day MLK Holiday weekend.  Warner Brothers’ Joyful Noise was the final new title of the weekend, not counting TWC’s The Iron Lady which expanded into 802 theatres and finished Friday in eighth-place.  Noise earned $3.3 million from its 2,863 locations for a third-place tie with Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol.  Rounding out the top five, The Devil Inside was down a giant 87% from its debut.  With the film’s awful reviews, expect it to relinquish its current slot to Sherlock Holmes 2 by Sunday. Details and analysis tomorrow.

	Title	Friday	Total
1	Contraband	$8,700,000	$8.7
2	Beauty & the Beast 3D	$5,600,000	$5.6
3	Joyful Noise	$3,300,000	$3.3
4	Mission: Impossible 4	$3,300,000	$178.5
5	The Devil Inside	$2,700,000	$41

Weekend Box Office – GHOST PROTOCOL Wins New Year’s Frame; WAR HORSE Finds Its Footing

Posted: January 1st, 2012 at 10:44 am

For the second week in a row, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol is the domestic box office champ… Happy New Year, Paramount!  With a weekend estimate of $31.2 million, M:I 4 has already crossed $300 million in worldwide grosses and has now surpassed the final domestic total of Mission: Impossible 3 after 17 days in theatres.  But Ghost Protocol is not the only film with something to celebrate.  Unlike the Christmas holiday the final weekend of 2011 had enough good news to go around.

	Title	Weekend	Total
1	Mission: Impossible 4	$31,250,000	$134.1
2	Sherlock Holmes 2	$22,095,000	$132
3	Alvin & the Chipmunks 3	$18,250,000	$94.6
4	War Horse	$16,940,000	$42.9
5	The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo	$16,300,000	$57.1
6	We Bought a Zoo	$14,300,000	$41.7
7	The Adventures of Tintin	$12,000,000	$47.8
8	New Year’s Eve	$6,710,000	$46.3
9	The Darkest Hour	$4,300,000	$13.2
10	The Descendants	$3,650,000	$39.6

Friday Box Office – MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – GHOST PROTOCOL Stays Ahead of Holiday Competition

Posted: December 31st, 2011 at 9:23 am

With three days before Hollywood’s jam-packed holiday season comes to a close, and with no major new studio releases, last week’s holdovers got a chance to stretch their legs on Friday.  After dominating the charts since it went wide ten days ago, Paramount’s Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol was yesterday’s winner with an estimated $10.7 million. This season’s all-purpose hit passed the $100 million mark on Thursday and is projected to take in another $35 million by the end of the four-day weekend.  Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows also hit $100 million (on Wednesday). Although the WB sequel was pushed into third by Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked on Wednesday and Thursday, Sherlock 2 should finish the holiday frame back in second place with $30 million to Alvin 3’s $25. As expected, each of the top five films saw a significant spike in earnings over last Friday; with the most impressive gain made by Fox’s We Bought a Zoo which rose 40% above its December 23^rd debut.  Just missing the top five, War Horse lost some momentum after its strong showing on Christmas Day.  The Disney/Dreamworks pic is projected to post $18 million through Monday – just ahead of director Steven Spielberg’s second holiday release: The Adventures of Tintin.  Check back for details and analysis.

	Title	Friday	Total
1	Mission: Impossible 4	$10,700,000	$113.5
2	Sherlock Holmes 2	$7,650,000	$117.6
3	Alvin and the Chipmunks 3	$7,125,000	$83.4
4	The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo	$5,350,000	$46.1
5	We Bought a Zoo	$4,900,000	$33.3

 

Holiday Box Office – MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – GHOST PROTOCOL Leads; WAR HORSE Opens Stronger Than Expected

Posted: December 26th, 2011 at 11:34 am

Because of the unique release pattern of this year’s holiday offerings, we are posting the weekend box office numbers one day later than usual.  Yesterday’s estimates for the three-day period did not include War Horse, which needed only one day in theatres to earn almost as much as We Bought a Zoo did in three.  Please note that the chart below includes separate estimates for Friday-Monday that are NOT in the same order.  I just couldn’t come up with a better way to present what has turned out to be a very confusing Christmas at the box office.

	Title	Weekend	4-Day	Total
1	Mission: Impossible 4	$26,535,000	$46.2	$78.6
2	Sherlock Holmes 2	$17,800,000	$31.8	$90.6
3	Alvin and the Chipmunks 3	$13,325,000	$20	$56.9
4	The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo	$13,000,000	$19.4	$27.7
5	Adventures of Tintin	$9,125,000	$16.1	$24.1
6	We Bought a Zoo	$7,800,000	$15.6	$
7	War Horse	$7,500,000	$15	$15
8	New Year’s Eve	$3,005,000	$5	$34.2
9	Arthur Christmas	$2,600,000	$2.7	$44.1
10	The Darkest Hour	$2,500,000	$5.5	$5.5

Friday Box Office – MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – GHOST PROTOCOL Continues To Haunt Top Spot; WE BOUGHT A ZOO Sees Modest Start

Posted: December 24th, 2011 at 9:52 am

Welcome to one of the most crowded (and confusing) holiday box office races you are likely to encounter.  Along with last weekend’s big name holdovers, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows and Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked, six films will have opened wide or expanded within a five day span… or six days if you count films like The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo which opened in some locations on Tuesday night.  Adding to the box office clusterf&c%, only one of the six titles opened on Friday while two will open on Sunday: throwing off the whole ‘three-day weekend’ model that keeps people like me employed.  Fox’s We Bought a Zoo was Friday’s lone new release, opening to an estimated $3 million from 3,117 locations – not quite enough to push it into the daily top five.  At number one since Wednesday, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol is on track to win the weekend with around $35 million – higher than was originally expected.  We’ll try to make sense of all of the Christmas-chaos after the dust settles but, until then, why not take in a movie?  I don’t think the excuse “there’s nothing to see” is going to hold up this year.

	Title	Friday	Total
1	M:I – Ghost Protocol	$9,700,000	$42.2
2	Sherlock Holmes 2	$6,400,000	$65.5
3	Alvin and the Chipmunks 3	$5,400,000	$42.3
4	Girl with the Dragon Tattoo	$4,600,000	$12.9
5	The Adventures of Tintin	$3,500,000	$11.5

Box Office – GHOST PROTOCOL Climbs to First; GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO a Distant Second

Posted: December 22nd, 2011 at 1:58 pm

‘Twas the Wednesday before Christmas, but before I get going, I’ll end this rhyme so it doesn’t start blowing.  That’s right, we have arrived at that fabled time of year when Hollywood finally unwraps some of its most-anticipated titles.  After its IMAX triumph last weekend, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol went wide on Wednesday and quickly vaulted over both Sherlock Holmes 2 and Alvin and the Chipmunks 3 to claim first place with $8.6 million.  M:I 4 also topped David Fincher’s much-hyped version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, which snuck into theatres a day ahead of its official December 21^st release date.  From 2,914 locations, Dragon Tattoo has earned an estimated $5.1 million so far – just slightly behind what True Grit saw on its pre-Christmas debut one year ago.  Rounding out yesterday’s top five was Steven Spielberg’s The Adventures of Tintin.  One of Spielberg’s two end-of-year offerings (War Horse arrives on December 25^th), Tintin earned a relatively-soft $2.3 million from 3,087 domestic theatres, but a giant $240 million internationally.  With Christmas falling on a Sunday, this weekend’s totals are not expected to equal 2010 (when Little Fockers reigned), but we’ll keep you updated either way.

	Title	Wednesday	Total
1	Mission Impossible 4	$8,600,000	$25.7
2	Girl with the Dragon Tattoo	$3,500,000	$5.1
3	Sherlock Holmes 2	$4,284,000	$54
4	Alvin and the Chipmunks 3	$3,510,000	$32.9
5	Adventures of Tintin	$2,300,000	$2.3

Weekend Box Office – SHERLOCK HOLMES: A GAME OF SHADOWS Leads with $40 Million; ALVIN 3 Gets CHIPWRECKED; MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE 4 Starts Strong

Posted: December 18th, 2011 at 9:06 am

Looks like holiday cheer was not enough to pull the box office out of its recent slump.  Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows came out on top with $40 million from 3,703 locations while Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked claimed second with $23.5 million from 3,723.  Needless to say, neither sequel was able to meet the expectations their predecessors set on Christmas weekend back in 2009.  Meanwhile, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, took in $13 million from just 425 locations – making Tom Cruise the big winner of this weekend’s box office derby.  It’s like a little Christmas miracle.

	Title	Weekend	Total
1	Sherlock Holmes 2	$40,020,000	$40
2	Alvin & the Chipmunks 3	$23,500,000	$23.5
3	Mission: Impossible 4	$13,000,000	$13
4	New Year’s Eve	$7,420,000	$24.8
5	The Sitter	$4,400,000	$17.7
6	Breaking Dawn Part 1	$4,300,000	$266.4
7	Young Adult	$3,650,000	$4
8	Hugo	$3,625,000	$39
9	Arthur Christmas	$3,600,000	$38.5
10	The Muppets	$3,454,000	$70.9

Friday Box Office – SHERLOCK 2 On Top; ALVIN 3 Struggles and MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – GHOST PROTOCOL Shines

Posted: December 17th, 2011 at 11:06 am

After estimates became hard digits on Monday, last weekend’s domestic box office wound up with the lowest overall total of 2011… and 2010 and 2009, too.  That doesn’t bode well entering this sequel-stuffed Christmas season.  As expected, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows took first place on Friday with an estimated $14.7 million from 3,703 locations.  But with a midnight debut of just $1.25 million, Warner Brothers has had to modify expectations for their sequel.  Instead of coming in just under the original’s $62.3 million, Sherlock 2 may have to settle for a first weekend in the mid-$40’s.  In second place, Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked is also proving to be somewhat less impressive than its forebears with $6.8 million from 3,723 venues.  Part three of the ridiculously-successful CGI series is expected to bring in $25 million by Sunday. The bright spot in Friday’s constellation of sequels belongs to Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol. MI:3 proved to be something of a disappointment, inspiring Paramount to give the latest installment a platformed release beginning Friday.  From 425 locations, Ghost Protocol estimated $4.1 million for Friday’s best per-screen average, by far.  Details and analysis tomorrow.

	Title	Friday	Total
1	Sherlock Holmes 2	$14,700,000	$14.7
2	Alvin $ the Chipmunks 3	$6,800,000	$6.8
3	Mission Impossible 4	$4,110,000	$4.1
4	New Year’s Eve	$2,530,000	$19.9
5	The Sitter	$1,435,000	$14.7

 

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