Per Theater Chart is Getting Bloody

February 28, 2012

It was another slow week on the per theater chart with no film topping $10,000. The closest any film got was The Forgiveness of Blood with an average of $8,908 in three theaters. Goon's opening is also worth noting, as it made $1.27 million in 258 theaters in Canada. It is very rare for a Canadian film to open in more than a handful of theaters, while opening with more than $1 million almost never happens. It would be nice if the film could replicate this success in the States, but it is monstrously unlikely.

The rest of the new limited releases all missed Mendoza Line. Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya at least came close with an average of $1,970 while its fellow Bollywood film, Jodi Breakers, was well back with an average of $1,169 in 45 theaters. Tomorrow When the War Began only managed $4,800 in 12 theaters for an average of $400. Then again, it was released on DVD the Tuesday after opening in theaters, so this is not a surprise.

This past week also saw milestones reached for a couple Per Theater Chart alumni:

  • As previously mentioned, Goon opened with more than $1 million, so it obviously reached that milestone. Where it goes from here is a little hard to predict, as it is so rare for Canadian film to reach this level. Will it have legs like the average wide release? If that's the case, it should have no trouble getting to $3 million. Or it could collapse like a lot of niche market films, or its surprising success could be an omen for long legs. Then there's its box office potential in the United States. Maybe it will be a surprise hit in hockey towns like Detroit, Boston, etc., even if it is not a success nationwide.
  • The Iron Lady made it to $25 million over the weekend and with its surprise Oscar win, it might get to $30 million.

-

Filed under: Weekend Estimates, Theater Averages, Tomorrow When the War Began, Goon, The Iron Lady, The Forgiveness of Blood, Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya, Jodi Breakers