Mo' Better Blues (1990)

Theatrical Performance
Domestic Box Office $16,153,000Details
Further financial details...

Synopsis

Talented trumpeter Bleek Gilliam, who’s obsessed by his music and indecisive about his two girlfriends. But when he has to come to the aid of his manager and childhood friend, Bleek finds his world more fragile than he ever imagined.

Metrics

Opening Weekend:$4,387,360 (27.2% of total gross)
Legs:3.68 (domestic box office/biggest weekend)
Domestic Share:100.0% (domestic box office/worldwide)
Production Budget:$10,000,000 (worldwide box office is 1.6 times production budget)
Theater counts:544 opening theaters/572 max. theaters, 2.8 weeks average run per theater
Infl. Adj. Dom. BO $40,305,944

Latest Ranking on Cumulative Box Office Lists

RecordRankAmount
All Time Domestic Box Office (Rank 4,301-4,400) 4,316 $16,153,000
All Time Worldwide Box Office (Rank 6,001-6,100) 6,078 $16,153,000
All Time Domestic Box Office for R Movies (Rank 1,401-1,500) 1,467 $16,153,000
All Time Worldwide Box Office for R Movies (Rank 1,801-1,900) 1,831 $16,153,000

See the Box Office tab (Domestic) and International tab (International and Worldwide) for more Cumulative Box Office Records.


Watch Now On

iTunes:iTunes

Movie Details

Domestic Releases: August 3rd, 1990 (Wide) by Universal
Video Release: December 28th, 2004 by Universal Home Entertainment
MPAA Rating: R
Running Time: 129 minutes
Comparisons: vs. Jungle Fever
Create your own comparison chart…
Keywords: Musicians, Comedy Drama, 1960s, Set in Brooklyn, Money Troubles, Loan Shark, Gambling
Source:Original Screenplay
Genre:Drama
Production Method:Live Action
Creative Type:Contemporary Fiction
Production/Financing Companies: 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks
Production Countries: United States
Languages: English

Ranking on other Records and Milestones

RecordRankAmountChart
Date
Days In
Release
Never Wide Domestic 49 $16,153,000 Aug 3, 1990 0

Compare this performance with other movies…

Domestic Cumulative Box Office Records

Weekend Box Office Performance

DateRankGross% ChangeTheatersPer TheaterTotal GrossWeek
Aug 3, 1990 7 $4,387,360   544 $8,065   $4,387,360 1
Aug 10, 1990 11 $2,439,580 -44% 572 $4,265   $8,627,580 2
Aug 17, 1990 15 $1,450,820 -41% 482 $3,010   $11,096,560 3

Daily Box Office Performance

Weekly Box Office Performance

DateRankGross% ChangeTheatersPer TheaterTotal GrossWeek
Aug 3, 1990 8 $6,188,000   544 $11,375   $6,188,000 1
Aug 10, 1990 11 $3,457,740 -44% 572 $6,045   $9,645,740 2

Leading Cast

Denzel Washington    Bleek Gilliam
Spike Lee    Giant

Supporting Cast

Wesley Snipes    Shadow Henderson
Giancarlo Esposito    Left Hand Lacey
Robin Harris    Butterbean Jones
Joie Lee    Indigo Downes
Bill Nunn    Bottom Hammer
John Turturro    Moe Flatbush
Dick Anthony Williams    Big Stop Williams
Cynda Williams    Clarke Bentancourt
Nicholas Turturro    Josh Flatbush
Jeff "Tain" Watts    Rhythm Jones
Samuel L. Jackson    Madlock
Leonard L. Thomas    Rod
Charles Q. Murphy    Eggy
Steve White    Born Knowledge
Ruben Blades    Petey
Abbey Lincoln    Lillian Gilliam
Linda Hawkins    Jeanne
Raye Dowell    Rita
Angela Hall    Cora
Coati Mundi    Roberto
Zakee Howze    Young Bleek/Miles
Deon Richmond    Tyrone
Anaysha Figueroa    Shanika
Raymond Anthony Thomas    Joe
Sheldon Turnipseed    Benny
Christopher Skeffrey    Louis
Terrence Williams    Sam
Darryl M. Wonge, Jr.    Miles at Birth
Jelani Asar Snipes    Miles at 1 Year
Glenn Williams III    Miles at 3 Years
Arnold Cromer    Miles at 5 Years
Leon Addison Brown    Smith
Scot Anthony Robinson    Cooley
Herbert Daughtry    Minister
Bill Lee    Father of the Bride
Branford Marsalis    Party Guest
Douglas Bourne    Jimmy the Busboy
Tracy Camilla Johns    Club Patron
John Canada Terrell    Club Patron
Monty Ross    Club Patron
Carol M. Wiggins    Club Patron
Isabella Isabella    Club Patron
Mamie Louise Anderson    Club Patron
Jon Seneca    Big Stop's Friend
John Sobestanovich    Taxi Driver
Flavor Flav    Impatient Movie Patron

For a description of the different acting role types we use to categorize acting perfomances, see our Glossary.

Production and Technical Credits

Spike Lee    Director
Spike Lee    Screenwriter
Spike Lee    Producer
Monty Ross    Co-Producer
Jon Kilik    Line Producer
Ernest Dickerson    Director of Photography
Sam Pollard    Editor
Bill Lee    Composer
Wynn Thomas    Production Designer
Robi Reed    Casting Director
Randy Fletcher    Assistant Director
Preston Holmes    Production Supervisor
Ted Glass    Set Decorator
Ruth E. Carter    Costume Designer
Susie Money    Costume Supervisor
Frank Stettner    Sound Mixer
Tom Fleischman    Re-recording Mixer
Skip Lievsay    Sound Designer
Philip Stockton    Dialogue Editor
Kevin Lee    Dialogue Editor
Alex Steyermark    Music Editor
Tom Brumberger    Special Make-up Effects
Branford Marsalis    Song Writer
Christopher Martin    Song Writer
Keith Elam    Song Writer
Lolis Eric Elie    Song Writer
Jeff Ward    Stunt Coordinator

The bold credits above the line are the "above-the-line" credits, the other the "below-the-line" credits.


  1. Summary
  2. News
  3. Box Office
  4. International
  5. Video Sales
  6. Cast & Crew
  7. Trailer

Synopsis

Talented trumpeter Bleek Gilliam, who’s obsessed by his music and indecisive about his two girlfriends. But when he has to come to the aid of his manager and childhood friend, Bleek finds his world more fragile than he ever imagined.

Metrics

Opening Weekend:$4,387,360 (27.2% of total gross)
Legs:3.68 (domestic box office/biggest weekend)
Domestic Share:100.0% (domestic box office/worldwide)
Production Budget:$10,000,000 (worldwide box office is 1.6 times production budget)
Theater counts:544 opening theaters/572 max. theaters, 2.8 weeks average run per theater
Infl. Adj. Dom. BO $40,305,944

Latest Ranking on Cumulative Box Office Lists

RecordRankAmount
All Time Domestic Box Office (Rank 4,301-4,400) 4,316 $16,153,000
All Time Worldwide Box Office (Rank 6,001-6,100) 6,078 $16,153,000
All Time Domestic Box Office for R Movies (Rank 1,401-1,500) 1,467 $16,153,000
All Time Worldwide Box Office for R Movies (Rank 1,801-1,900) 1,831 $16,153,000

See the Box Office tab (Domestic) and International tab (International and Worldwide) for more Cumulative Box Office Records.


Watch Now On

iTunes:iTunes

Movie Details

Domestic Releases: August 3rd, 1990 (Wide) by Universal
Video Release: December 28th, 2004 by Universal Home Entertainment
MPAA Rating: R
Running Time: 129 minutes
Comparisons: vs. Jungle Fever
Create your own comparison chart…
Keywords: Musicians, Comedy Drama, 1960s, Set in Brooklyn, Money Troubles, Loan Shark, Gambling
Source:Original Screenplay
Genre:Drama
Production Method:Live Action
Creative Type:Contemporary Fiction
Production/Financing Companies: 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks
Production Countries: United States
Languages: English

Ranking on other Records and Milestones

RecordRankAmountChart
Date
Days In
Release
Never Wide Domestic 49 $16,153,000 Aug 3, 1990 0

Leading Cast

Denzel Washington    Bleek Gilliam
Spike Lee    Giant

Supporting Cast

Wesley Snipes    Shadow Henderson
Giancarlo Esposito    Left Hand Lacey
Robin Harris    Butterbean Jones
Joie Lee    Indigo Downes
Bill Nunn    Bottom Hammer
John Turturro    Moe Flatbush
Dick Anthony Williams    Big Stop Williams
Cynda Williams    Clarke Bentancourt
Nicholas Turturro    Josh Flatbush
Jeff "Tain" Watts    Rhythm Jones
Samuel L. Jackson    Madlock
Leonard L. Thomas    Rod
Charles Q. Murphy    Eggy
Steve White    Born Knowledge
Ruben Blades    Petey
Abbey Lincoln    Lillian Gilliam
Linda Hawkins    Jeanne
Raye Dowell    Rita
Angela Hall    Cora
Coati Mundi    Roberto
Zakee Howze    Young Bleek/Miles
Deon Richmond    Tyrone
Anaysha Figueroa    Shanika
Raymond Anthony Thomas    Joe
Sheldon Turnipseed    Benny
Christopher Skeffrey    Louis
Terrence Williams    Sam
Darryl M. Wonge, Jr.    Miles at Birth
Jelani Asar Snipes    Miles at 1 Year
Glenn Williams III    Miles at 3 Years
Arnold Cromer    Miles at 5 Years
Leon Addison Brown    Smith
Scot Anthony Robinson    Cooley
Herbert Daughtry    Minister
Bill Lee    Father of the Bride
Branford Marsalis    Party Guest
Douglas Bourne    Jimmy the Busboy
Tracy Camilla Johns    Club Patron
John Canada Terrell    Club Patron
Monty Ross    Club Patron
Carol M. Wiggins    Club Patron
Isabella Isabella    Club Patron
Mamie Louise Anderson    Club Patron
Jon Seneca    Big Stop's Friend
John Sobestanovich    Taxi Driver
Flavor Flav    Impatient Movie Patron

For a description of the different acting role types we use to categorize acting perfomances, see our Glossary.

Production and Technical Credits

Spike Lee    Director
Spike Lee    Screenwriter
Spike Lee    Producer
Monty Ross    Co-Producer
Jon Kilik    Line Producer
Ernest Dickerson    Director of Photography
Sam Pollard    Editor
Bill Lee    Composer
Wynn Thomas    Production Designer
Robi Reed    Casting Director
Randy Fletcher    Assistant Director
Preston Holmes    Production Supervisor
Ted Glass    Set Decorator
Ruth E. Carter    Costume Designer
Susie Money    Costume Supervisor
Frank Stettner    Sound Mixer
Tom Fleischman    Re-recording Mixer
Skip Lievsay    Sound Designer
Philip Stockton    Dialogue Editor
Kevin Lee    Dialogue Editor
Alex Steyermark    Music Editor
Tom Brumberger    Special Make-up Effects
Branford Marsalis    Song Writer
Christopher Martin    Song Writer
Keith Elam    Song Writer
Lolis Eric Elie    Song Writer
Jeff Ward    Stunt Coordinator

The bold credits above the line are the "above-the-line" credits, the other the "below-the-line" credits.

Compare this performance with other movies…

Domestic Cumulative Box Office Records

Weekend Box Office Performance

DateRankGross% ChangeTheatersPer TheaterTotal GrossWeek
Aug 3, 1990 7 $4,387,360   544 $8,065   $4,387,360 1
Aug 10, 1990 11 $2,439,580 -44% 572 $4,265   $8,627,580 2
Aug 17, 1990 15 $1,450,820 -41% 482 $3,010   $11,096,560 3

Daily Box Office Performance

Weekly Box Office Performance

DateRankGross% ChangeTheatersPer TheaterTotal GrossWeek
Aug 3, 1990 8 $6,188,000   544 $11,375   $6,188,000 1
Aug 10, 1990 11 $3,457,740 -44% 572 $6,045   $9,645,740 2