The Numbers News - June 2015
| ← May 2015 | July 2015 → |
Home Market Releases for June 30th, 2015
June 30, 2015
There's a short list this week, for two reasons. Firstly, there's not a lot of new releases worth mentioning. Secondly, I really have to concentrate on the July preview (look for that on the site tomorrow). The biggest release of the week is clearly Get Hard, but it was not the best. As for the best, there are two that jump out: Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter (Blu-ray) and The Decline Of Western Civilization Collection (DVD or Blu-ray). Both are top-notch picks, but I went with Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter.
More...
Weekend Wrap-Up: Jurassic Still Roaring
June 30, 2015
As expected, there was a race for the top spot on the box office chart over the weekend; however, it was only a two-way race. Jurassic World and Inside Out both earned more than $50 million over the weekend and were in a relatively tight race for first place. On the other hand, Ted 2 struggled somewhat in third. To be fair, it still made enough to become a hit, but not enough to justify a third installment in the franchise. Meanwhile, Max did fine, assuming it didn't cost more than reported. Overall, the box office fell 25% from last weekend, but it still earned $184 million, which is 2.2% higher than the same weekend last year. Year-to-date, 2015 is ahead of 2014 by 5.1% at $5.37 billion to $5.11 billion. This is a great turnaround for a year that looked like it was going to drop below last year's pace.
More...
Featured Blu-ray / DVD Review: While We're Young
June 29, 2015
While We're Young is the latest film from writer / director Noah Baumbach. He has a great streak going by his Tomatometer Scores and this film earned 84% positive reviews. However, the audience score is only 58% positive. That dichotomy is a bit troubling. Is this film designed to wow critics, but will leave the average moviegoer cold?
More...
Weekend Estimates: Jurassic World Storms to $500 Million
June 28, 2015
After losing for the second Friday running on the daily chart to Inside Out, Jurassic World is projected to cling on to top spot for the weekend as a whole, according to studio estimates released on Sunday morning. The official projections are $54.2 million for Jurassic World and $52.1 million for Inside Out, although the numbers we’re seeing suggest it will be even closer. Inside Out has a shot at top spot, although Jurassic World is running the favorite at this point. Either way, it’s a great weekend for both films, and a disappointing one for Ted 2, which will finish third with about $33 million.
More...
Friday Estimates: Holdovers Keep Ted 2 on the Outside
June 27, 2015
Inside Out led the way on Friday with $14.99 million. This was 56% lower than the film’s opening Friday, but that’s a better decline than most movies deal with during this point in their run. By comparison, Monsters University fell 53% on Friday on its way to a 45% weekend-to-weekend decline, while Brave fell 58% Friday-over-Friday on its way to a 49% decline. If we use these two films as guides, Inside Out will drop about 47% to $48 million. I think its superior reviews will help it reach $50 million, but it could be close.
Limited and VOD Releases: Big Game and Other Small Releases
June 26, 2015
The vast majority of the films on this week's list are either debuting on Video on Demand simultaneously with their theatrical release, or have been playing on VOD for a while. There are a few exceptions, but none of them look like they will become box office hits. The film I'm most interested in seeing is Big Game. It might not be the typical limited release and its reviews are not award-worthy, but it certainly looks entertaining. At the very least, it is worth a rental on Video on Demand.
More...
Contest: Terminate Maggie
June 26, 2015
The first weekend of July has two potential $100 million hits: Magic Mike XXL and Terminator Genisys. Both movies have nearly identical box office potentials, but Terminator Genisys should start faster due to its genre and target audience. As such, it is the choice target film for this week's Box Office Prediction contest. In order to win, one must simply predict the opening weekend box office number for Terminator Genisys.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going over, will win a copy of Maggie on DVD.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going under, will also win a copy of Maggie on DVD.
Finally, we will be choosing an entrant from the group of people who haven't won, or haven't won recently, and they will also win a Frankenprize featuring a previously reviewed DVD or Blu-ray.
Entries must be received by 10 a.m., Pacific Time on Friday to be eligible, so don't delay!
More...
Weekend Predictions: Will Ted 2 Take the Box Office to the Max?
June 26, 2015
It’s the final weekend of June and there are two wide releases hoping to grab some cash before Independence Day Long Weekend. Ted 2 is a sequel to an amazingly popular R-rated comedy. Unfortunately, we’ve seen too many times that sequels to comedies rarely live up to to their predecessors. The other wide release is Max, which is being called “earnest,” which is both a compliment and an insult. Regardless, it likely won’t be a significant player at the box office this weekend. On the other hand, both Jurassic World and Inside Out have a legitimate shot at first place over the weekend. This weekend last year, the box office was led by Transformers: Age of Extinction, which earned just over $100 million. No film will match that figure this weekend. On the other hand, the second place film last year was 22 Jump Street, which earned $15.84 million. 2015 won’t lead the way at the top of the chart, but it certainly has better depth than 2014 had and should come out on top of the year-over-year competition.
More...
International Box Office: Jurassic Worldwide Success
June 25, 2015
Jurassic World remained in first place internationally, earning $160.5 million on 18,718 screens in 66 markets for a total of $583.1 million internationally. This pushed its worldwide total to $985.9 million. It hit $1 billion worldwide on Monday, which was a speed record for that milestone. Its biggest market was China, where it earned $68.84 million over the full week for a total of $168.24 million after 12 days of release. However, the film has been pushed into second place on the daily chart by SPL 2: A Time For Consequences. On the other hand, the film is still in first place in the U.K. with $17.53 million in 614 theaters for a two-week total of $60.67 million.
More...
Contest: Documenting Your Success: Winning Announcement
June 25, 2015
The winners of our Documenting Your Success contest were determined and the entrants with the closest predictions for Inside Out opening weekend were...
More...
Per Theater Chart: Overnight Success
June 24, 2015
The top two films on the per theater chart were also the top two films on the overall box office chart. Jurassic World led the way with an average of $24,840, while Inside Out was close behind with an average of $22,919. The best new limited release was The Overnight, with an average of $17,674 in three theaters. The final film in the $10,000 club was The Tribe, which earned $11,094 in its lone theater.
More...
Home Market Releases for June 23rd, 2015
June 23, 2015
As I've mentioned countless times in the past, the summer is the worst time of year for the home market. Outside of an occasional spring hit, there's very little worth talking about. It's much too late for last year's holiday hits, it's much too early for the summer blockbusters, and there are not even a lot of TV on DVD releases to pick up the slack. However, as bad as the average is, this week is much, much worse. There are no first-run releases of note. There's no real limited releases, TV on DVD releases, or classics coming out either. I had nothing to review this week. The top contender for Pick of the Week is Ex Machina, which is only coming out on Video on Demand. It's that slow on the home market. The other two contenders are Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro on Blu-ray and Timbuktu on Blu-ray.
More...
Weekend Wrap-Up: Jurassic World Maintains Record-Breaking Run
June 23, 2015
It looks like Jurassic World is on pace to top The Avengers to become the biggest movie ever, not directed by a Canadian. It earned over $100 million at the weekend and has already passed $400 million. Meanwhile, Inside Out had the second-best opening for a Pixar film. It was a great weekend at the box office and we really needed it. The overall box office was down 9.5% from last weekend, but it was still at $248 million, which is the ninth-biggest combined weekend box office. Compared to last year, the box office was 70% higher this year. Year-to-date, 2015 has pulled in $5.08 billion, which is 5.2% or $250 million over 2014's pace.
More...
Home Market Numbers: SpongeBob Soaks Up the Competition
June 22, 2015
It was a busy week on the home market, sort of. There were plenty of new releases on the video chart, with new releases earning five of the top six spots. However, the number one film, The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water wasn't a major hit, selling 584,000 units / $11.52 million. Its opening week Blu-ray share was 47%, which is really good for an animated film aimed at kids. Overall, this isn't a bad start, but I was really hoping for more. Its box office numbers were much better than expected, plus it was a great movie, but its home market debut is only good.
More...
Weekend Estimates: Pixar’s Second-Best Not Enough to Topple Jurassic World’s Second Weekend
June 21, 2015
Getting almost perfect reviews, a prime Summer slot, and no direct competition will be enough to propel Inside Out to the second-best opening ever for a Disney-Pixar film, and their best ever for a non-sequel (Toy Story 3 is their best ever with $110.3 million in 2010). But it won’t be enough for the animation house to record its 15th consecutive opening weekend win, thanks to the continued monster performance of Jurassic World. The monster movie is projected to earn $102 million, the second-biggest second weekend of all time.
More...
Friday Estimates: Lots of Upside to Inside Out
June 20, 2015
Inside Out earned first place during its first day of release with an estimated $34.238 million on Friday. By comparison, the most recent Pixar film, Monsters University, pulled in $30.47 million during its first day of release. With Jurassic World in second place with $29 million on Friday, could Inside Out pull off a surprise weekend win?
More...
Limited and VOD Releases: To Infinity and Polar Bears!
June 19, 2015
While there are a huge number of limited releases on this week's chart, almost none of them have a real shot at mainstream success. There are two films that at least have a legitimate chance at expanding significantly: Infinitely Polar Bear and The Overnight. There are also a number of documentaries and foreign-language films that could do well in limited release, but they won't expand enough to earn significant amounts.
More...
Contest: Lather Up
June 19, 2015
Next weekend, Ted 2 will top Max, the only other wide release of the week. Because of that, Ted 2 is the only real choice target film for this week's Box Office Prediction contest. In order to win, one must simply predict the opening weekend box office number for Ted 2.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going over, will win a Frankenprize featuring a soap opera TV on DVD release: La Gata on DVD.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going under, will win a Frankenprize also featuring a TV on DVD release.
Finally, we will be choosing an entrant from the group of people who haven't won, or haven't won recently, and they will also win a Frankenprize featuring a TV on DVD release.
Entries must be received by 10 a.m., Pacific Time on Friday to be eligible, so don't delay!
More...
Weekend Predictions: Inside Out and Upside Down
June 19, 2015
For the past few months, 2015 had been struggling to keep pace with 2014. Worse still, 2014 wasn't a great year at the box office either. However, that changed with the record-breaking release of Jurassic World. Even if the film falls 60% this weekend, it will still lead the way over Inside Out. For the first time in their history, a Pixar film is expected to open in second place, but they have a good shot of continuing their record of having an opening weekend between $62.58 million and $70.47 million (which has been true of all but three of their films since 2001). That's incredible reliability. Dope is the other wide release, but it is barely opening truly wide and the worst case scenario has it failing to reach the top five. This weekend last year, there were five films that earned $10 million or more. This year, there might be just two. However, last year, Think Like a Man Too was the top film with under $30 million. Jurassic World might earn three times than and Inside Out should at least double that. 2015 should be carried on Jurassic World's wave and easily come out on top of the year-over-year competition.
More...
International Box Office: Jurassic’s Worldwide Success
June 18, 2015
Jurassic World completed the trifecta over the weekend. Not only did the film have the largest domestic debut, it broke the same record internationally and worldwide. The film pulled in $315.61 million on 19,612 screens in 66 markets for a worldwide opening weekend of $524.42 million. It broke the previous international and worldwide records that were held by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part II. It is also the first film to open with more than $500 million worldwide and it is just a matter of when, not if, it will top $1 billion globally. The only downside is the number of markets it has yet to open in, which is one. It debuts in Japan in August and it might be the biggest global hit of the year before it even gets there.
More...
Contest: Half-Shell Full of Prizes: Winning Announcement
June 18, 2015
The winners of our Half-Shell Full of Prizes contest were determined and the entrants with the closest predictions for Jurassic World opening weekend were...
More...
Jurassic World is the Alpha Male of the Theater Averages
June 18, 2015
It's a strange week on the theater averages chart. The number one film was Jurassic World with an average of $48,855. This is the best average for a wide release in 2015 and the third best average for a film released in 2015 and the fifth best average during 2015. Second place went to The Wolfpack with an average of $21,960 in two theaters. This is amazing for a documentary. The only other film in the $10,000 club was Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, which debuted in 15 theaters, a lot for a limited release, and earned an average of $13,100. This suggests room to expand over the coming weeks.
More...
The Secret Life of Pets Trailer
June 17, 2015
Animated comedy from Illumination Entertainment opens July 8, 2016 ... Full movie details...
More...
Home Market Releases for June 16th, 2015
June 17, 2015
Wow. Slow week. There are a few releases that are notable, but we very quickly run into titles that would be considered filler during the average week. In fact, there are no first run releases that are contenders for Pick of the Week. There are a trio of limited releases that are in the running for that title: Time Lapse (DVD or Blu-ray or Video on Demand); Wild Tales (DVD or Blu-ray or Video on Demand); and The Wrecking Crew (DVD or Blu-ray or Video on Demand). There were also two catalog releases of note: The Cat Returns (Blu-ray Combo Pack) and Spirited Away (Blu-ray Combo Pack). Both are excellent, but Spirited Away is the better of the two films and it is the Pick of the Week.
More...
Featured Blu-ray Review: Studio Ghibli Double-Feature: The Cat Returns and Spirited Away
June 16, 2015
This week we have two Studio Ghibli films making their Blu-ray debuts. The first, Spirited Away, is one of their best-known movies. The other, The Cat Returns, is not. Fans of the studio will obviously want to pick up both of these Blu-rays, but will they have appeal beyond the hardcore fans?
More...
Weekend Wrap-Up: Jurassic World Chews Up the Record Book
June 16, 2015
After disappointing weekend after disappointing weekend, I had become pessimistic about any film's chances of being a breakout success this summer. Jurassic World changed that. The film didn't just top expectations, it broke all-time records. Over the weekend, the film pulled in $208.81 million. That is the record for biggest single weekend and it helped take the overall weekend box office to an all-time high with $273.67 million. This is 106% more than last weekend; that's right, the weekend box office was more than double last week's result. Additionally, and more importantly, it was 46% higher than the same weekend last year. Jurassic World itself earned 12% more than all films combined this weekend last year.
More...
Home Market Numbers: Sniper Steady on Top
June 14, 2015
The week ending May 31 was a terrible week for new releases with only one that sold more than 50,000 units on the combined home market chart. Fortunately, American Sniper held on a lot better than most releases do, and was down just 27% to 844,000 units/ $16.01 million in consumer spending for the week, giving it totals of 1.99 million units / $37.40 million after two weeks of release. It is now in fifth place on the 2015 combined chart, but again, given its box office, it should be higher.
More...
Jurassic World the First Film with a $500 Million Global Opening
June 14, 2015
As more numbers come in, the global nature of Jurassic World’s gigantic opening is beginning to come into focus. It will be the first film to top $500 million on its opening weekend, with Universal projecting a global weekend haul of $511.8 million (see here for a full international breakdown so far). Its international debut is estimated at $307.2 million, the second-biggest of all time behind Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2, which debuted with $314 million outside the US, and, with $169 million domestically, a worldwide opening of $493 million. Unsurprisingly, the the difference between the two films primarily comes from the ever-growing Chinese market...
More...
Weekend Estimates: Jurassic World Projected for a $204.6 Million Opening
June 14, 2015
Universal have announced a $204,596,380 projected opening weekend for Jurassic World, leaving it just short of The Avengers’ weekend record, which stands at $207,438,708. According to Universal’s estimates, the film made a revised estimate of $82.6 million on Friday, $69.7 million on Saturday—just ahead of The Avengers’ $69.5 million Saturday haul—and is projected to make $52.3 million today, down 25% from Saturday’s number. The Avengers made $57 million on Sunday, and the same number for Jurassic World would edge it over the record line with $209 million. With stratospheric numbers like this, it’s obviously hard to predict the final weekend outcome precisely, but it’s still clearly possible that Jurassic World will take the all-time record.
More...
Featured Blu-ray / DVD Review: The Duff
June 14, 2015
The Duff opened in February, which isn't a good time of the year to release a film. It earned good reviews and topped its meager expectations. Now that it is out on the home market, is it worth picking up? Was it unfairly overlooked by moviegoers the first time around?
More...
Friday Estimates: Jurassic World has Monster $82.8 Million Opening Day
June 13, 2015
After pulling in $18.5 million on Thursday night, Jurassic World amassed $82.8 million for the full day. This blows past the biggest June day and is officially the third-best day ever. It’s actually the biggest 24-hour Friday in box office history, after one subtracts the Thursday night shows: The Avengers held the previous mark with $62.1 million, while Jurassic World earned an estimated $64.3 million.
More...
Featured Blu-ray / DVD Review: Kingsman: The Secret Service
June 13, 2015
Kingsman: The Secret Service is based on a comic book co-created by Mark Millar, who previously created the Kick-Ass comic book series. (On a side note, apparently there is a Hit Girl prequel comic book in the works and if that does well, there might be a Kick-Ass 3 movie that focuses more on Hit Girl. She was definitely the best part of the second movie.) It was a February release, so expectations were good, but not great. However, the film managed more than $125 million domestically and $400 million worldwide. That's fantastic. Is it as good as its box office numbers? Or did it thrive thanks to terrible competition?
More...
Jurassic World Opens Gates to $18.5 Million on Thursday Night
June 12, 2015
To describe 2015 as a good year for Universal is something of an understatement. After Furious 7 became their most successful film of all time, and recently setting a record for the fastest to $2 billion internationally in a calendar year, the studio now has another blockbusting opening on their hands. Jurassic World opened last night at 7pm in North American theaters, and earned $18.5 million by the end of the day, the 14th-best late-night debut of all time, and on a par with films like The Dark Knight, which made exactly the same on its opening night back in 2008, and opening weekend record holder The Avengers, which posted $18.7 million in 2012.
More...
Limited and VOD Releases: Me and Earl and the Limited Releases
June 12, 2015
While there are a number of films on this week's list, only one of them is earning overwhelmingly positive reviews. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl's Tomatometer Score is 85% positive and it is playing in 15 theaters, so it is the clear choice for fans of limited releases. In fact, it might do well enough to earn some measure of mainstream success.
More...
Contest: Documenting Your Success
June 12, 2015
While there are technically two wide releases coming out next week, Inside Out and Dope, Inside Out is by far the bigger of the two releases. As such, is is the target film for this week's Box Office Prediction contest. In order to win, one must simply predict the opening weekend box office number for Inside Out.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going over, will win a Frankenprize featuring one of the three documentaries we are giving away this week: If You Build It on DVD.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going under, will win a Frankenprize featuring The Swirl on DVD.
Finally, we will be choosing an entrant from the group of people who haven't won, or haven't won recently, and they will also win a Frankenprize featuring Where Was God? on DVD.
Entries must be received by 10 a.m., Pacific Time on Friday to be eligible, so don't delay!
More...
Weekend Predictions: Is There Still an Audience for a Jurassic Film?
June 12, 2015
Jurassic World is the only wide release this week and its box office potential is so high that it has scared away even the counter-programming. It isn't the only film playing in theaters this weekend, but it will very likely make more at the box office than the rest of them combined. Spy will be a distant second place and is hoping not to be crushed. If it can avoid falling 50%, it should have enough legs to reach the century mark. ... with a push from the studio. The only other film that is on track to earn more than $10 million over the weekend is San Andreas, which already crossed the $100 million mark. This weekend last year, two films opened wide, 22 Jump Street and How to Train Your Dragon 2. Neither film will match Jurassic World individually, but they might have the advantage if you combine their openings. Additionally, there will only be two $10 million films this weekend, while there were three last year. 2015 will win on top, but 2014 has better depth and I think 2015 will lose the year-over-year comparison... again.
More...
International Box Office: After Shocks for San Andreas
June 11, 2015
San Andreas remained in first place over the weekend with $97.8 million in 69 markets for a total of $188.0 million internationally and $286.5 million worldwide. It is almost guaranteed that the film's production budget is fully covered and the film should have the legs to cover its full advertising budget before its international run is over. That means its home market run will be pure gravy. This week, its biggest market was China, where the film earned first place with $34.26 million over the weekend for a six-day opening of $51.95 million. It won't last in first place for long, as Jurassic World has already opened in that market and taken over top spot. (More on that this time next week.) Its next biggest opening was South Korea, where it also earned first place with $5.74 million on 847 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $7.25 million.
More...
Featured TV on DVD Review: The Odd Couple: The Complete Collection
June 10, 2015
The Odd Couple is a TV show based on the award-winning movie of the same name that was based on the award-winning play of the same. The movie starred Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon, who are inarguably one of the top ten comedy duos of all time. That sets a really high bar, one that is nearly impossible to match. Does it get there? And is The Complete Series worth picking up?
More...
Contest: I Spy: Winning Announcement
June 9, 2015
The winners of our I Spy contest were determined and the entrants with the closest predictions for Spy opening weekend were...
More...
Per Theater Chart: Youthful Enthusiasm
June 9, 2015
There was only one film in the $10,000 club, Testament of Youth, which opened with $13,252 in four theaters. There was one other film, A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence, which earned an average of $8,699 in two theaters over the weekend. However, it was a Wednesday release and its average over five days was $12,657.
More...
Weekend Wrap-Up: Spy High, but not a Monster Hit
June 9, 2015
None of the three new releases matched expectations and while the holdovers pulled their weight, it wasn't enough to help the overall box office. Spy didn't make it to $30 million during its opening weekend, but it came within a rounding error of that mark. Insidious Chapter 3 did very well compared to its production budget, but will likely be the weakest installment in the franchise. Meanwhile, if it weren't for its lower production budget, Entourage would be considered a bomb. Overall, the box office fell 4.3% from last weekend to $133 million. Worse still, the box office fell 18% from last year. Year-to-date, the overall box office has pulled in $4.39 billion, which is 1.2% above 2014's pace.
More...
Home Market Numbers: American is Number One
June 8, 2015
It was a very shallow week for new releases with only one release that made any real impact. American Sniper dominated the combined home market chart selling ten times as many units as the second place film. During its first week of release, it sold 1.20 million units and generated $22.57 million in sales for an opening week Blu-ray share of 42%. The film is nearly in the top ten on the 2015 combined chart, but given its box office, it should have sold twice that. Also, its Blu-ray share is lower than expected for an action film.
More...
Home Market Releases for June 9th, 2015
June 8, 2015
It is a good week, but not a great week on the home market. There's really only one major release to talk about, Kingsman: The Secret Service. It is also one of the best releases of the week and one of a trio of Pick of the Week contenders that earned between 70% and 80% positive reviews. The other two are The Duff and The Sisterhood of Night. All three are worth picking up, but the winner of the Pick of the Week title is Red Army on DVD or Blu-ray / Video on Demand.
More...
Weekend Estimates: Spy! Beats Crowded Field with $30 Million Debut
June 7, 2015
Going into the weekend, any one of three films could conceivably win at the box office, with a fourth wide release having the potential to act as a spoiler by pulling away some of the audience from the others. In the event, the right film won, if one goes by the reviews, with Spy! pulling in $30 million to take the prize. That’s basically a par score for Melissa McCarthy, compared to Bridesmaids’ $26 million start, the $34.5 million debut of Identity Thief, The Heat’s $39 million, and Tammy’s $21.5 million. Paul Feig directed McCarthy in Bridesmaids, The Heat and now Spy!, so it’s a par score for him too.
More...
Featured TV on DVD Review: Power Rangers: Super Megaforce: Sky Strike
June 7, 2015
This is the second DVD from Super Megaforce, the 21st season of the long-running Power Rangers franchise I have reviewed. It is mostly the same as the previous couple of seasons with the same cast of live action characters. What episodes are here? How does this compare to the previous DVD?
More...
Friday Estimates: Insidious Scares Spy Out of Top Spot
June 6, 2015
Insidious Chapter 3 came out on top on Friday's box office chart, at least according to the estimates. Its opening day haul of $10.4 million put it just ahead of Spy’s Friday box office of $10.3 million. (When we get the final numbers, it is not unlikely that these two will switch places.) However, while Insidious won the battle on Friday, it won’t win the war for the weekend. Horror films have much weaker internal multipliers (internal multiplier is the weekend total divided by the Friday box office). For example, Insidious Chapter 2 had an opening day of $20.23 million on its way to a $40.27 million weekend. Its internal multiplier was just 1.99. That’s low, even for a horror film. Insidious Chapter 3 should have a better multiplier than that, thanks to its better reviews, but not by a huge margin. It certainly won’t keep pace with Spy. Even $25 million is likely out of question with $23 million being the most likely result after Friday’s results. This might not be enough to keep pace with San Andreas by the end of the weekend.
More...
Z for Zachariah Trailer
June 5, 2015
Sci-fi thriller starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Margot Robbie and Chris Pine opens August 21 ... Full movie details...
More...
Limited and VOD Releases: Some Lovely Limited Releases
June 5, 2015
In another improvement to our news this week, the Limited Releases column is expanding to cover both limited and VOD releases. I know what you are thinking. You are thinking, “aren't you already talking about VOD on the Home Market Releases column?” Yes. However, those are for VOD releases for films that already played in theaters some time ago. This column will include films that debut on VOD either before, or simultaneously with, their theatrical release. We think this it an important change, as too often the Limited Release column was “Limited Releases Playing in New York City and Possibly Los Angeles.” For people in most of the rest of the country, there were no films on the list playing anywhere near them. This week, there are at least a few films worth checking out, including We Are Still Here, which is playing on VOD and Love and Mercy and Testament of Youth, which are theatrical-only releases that both have a shot at mainstream success.
More...
Contest: Half-Shell Full of Prizes
June 5, 2015
It is an easy week to pick the target film for this week's Box Office Prediction contest, as Jurassic World is the only film opening wide. In order to win, one must simply predict the opening weekend box office number for Jurassic World.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going over, will win a TMNT Frankenprize featuring one of the three TMNT DVDs coming out this week: NYC Showdown, The Search for Splinter, or Pulverizer Power. They will also win two more DVDs with a similar target audience.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going under, will also win a TMNT Frankenprize.
Finally, we will be choosing an entrant from the group of people who haven't won, or haven't won recently, and they will also win a TMTN Frankenprize.
Entries must be received by 10 a.m., Pacific Time on Friday to be eligible, so don't delay!
More...
Weekend Predictions: Will Spy Become McCarthy / Feig's Third Hit?
June 5, 2015
There are three wide releases this week, including one that is already in theaters. The biggest of these three releases is Spy, which is the latest film from Melissa McCarthy and Paul Feig. Both of their previous films crossed $100 million with ease. Insidious Chapter 3 is the third film in the Insidious franchise, but most think it won't be the best. Entourage started out ahead of expectations, but its reviews could cause a quick decline. This weekend last year, The Fault in Our Stars opened with nearly $50 million, while Maleficent landed in second place with more than $30 million. I don't think 2015 will be strong on top, but I think it will have better depth.
More...
Home Market Numbers: Fifty Shades Continues its Perfect Run
June 4, 2015
The second major change in news articles this week is the consolidation of the home market columns and using the Combined DVD and Blu-ray Sales Chart. It is kind of a bad week for this change, as the new releases were a disappointment; 50 Shades of Grey remained on top on both the Blu-ray sales chart and the DVD sales chart. It sold an additional 896,000 units and generated $15.82 million for the week giving it totals of 2.27 million units / $40.20 million.
More...
Pawn Sacrifice Trailer
June 4, 2015
Drama with Tobey Maguire and Liev Schreiber opens September 18 ... Full movie details...
More...
International Box Office: San Andreas Rumbles to the Top
June 4, 2015
San Andreas opened in first place on the international chart with $63.9 million on 15,420 screens in 60 markets. Its best international market was Mexico where it earned first place with $9.97 million. It also opened in first place in Australia with $2.47 million in 449 theaters. The film generated $7.07 million in 505 theaters in the U.K. and $5.16 million on 2,256 screens in Russia. The film was also potent in Brazil with an opening of $3.2 million in 926 theaters, while it earned a nearly identical amount in France with $3.19 million in 496. It is still too soon to tell where the film will end up, but it made more worldwide than it cost to make during its opening weekend, so the studio must be happy.
More...
Contest: Complete Disaster: Winning Announcement
June 3, 2015
The winners of our Complete Disaster contest were determined and the entrants with the closest predictions for Tomorrowland opening weekend were...
More...
Per Theater Chart: New Releases Didn't Get Results
June 3, 2015
There was only one film in the $10,000 club on the per theater chart and it was the overall box office leader, San Andreas. That film opened in first place with an average of $14,453. The best new limited release was Heaven Knows What, which earned an average of $8,431 from two theaters.
More...
Home Market Releases for June 2nd, 2015
June 3, 2015
Welcome to the column formerly known as the DVD and Blu-ray release report! In response to the changing home market landscape, we have renamed it the Home Market Release Report, and will now be including Video-on-Demand releases. It was a bad week to try and change the format, as there were a ton of great releases contending for Pick of the Week. Most of these contenders are TV on DVD releases, including Parks & Recreation: Season 7. There is also one limited release, Spring on Blu-ray, and one first-run releases, The SpongeBob Movie: A Sponge Out of Water on 3D Combo Pack. It was a close race, but I choose SpongeBob in the end.
More...
New at The Numbers: Australian Box Office Charts
June 2, 2015
We’re pleased to announce the latest expansion to our international box office tracking today: full Australian charts. With these charts, we continue the extensive growth in international tracking that we started in December, and build on our commitment to bring you the most complete and accurate movie industry information available anywhere. Our Australian data is provided to us directly by the Motion Pictures Distributors Association of Australia, the main industry trade body in Australia. That allows us to track about 60–70 titles each week—more than any other tracker. Click here for this week’s chart in US dollars and and here for the chart in Australian dollars (or flick the switch on the page to choose between the two).
More...
Weekend Wrap-Up: San Andreas Shakes Up Box Office
June 2, 2015
The post-holiday weekend was softer than the holiday weekend, which is to be expected. However, thanks to a stronger than predicted opening by San Andreas, it wasn't as bad as it could have been. On the other hand, Aloha was on the low end of expectations. The overall box office fell 9.5% from last weekend to $139 million, which is acceptable. By comparison, the overall box office fell 17% from this weekend last year, as San Andreas couldn't keep up with Maleficent's opening. Year-to-date, 2015 has pulled in $4.20 billion, putting it 1.2% ahead of 2014's pace of $4.15 million. 2015 is coming dangerously close to losing its lead over last year.
More...
Featured TV on DVD Review: The L Word: The Complete Collection
June 1, 2015
This is the third full-series Megaset I've reviewed recently. Like the previous two, I've reviewed a season or two of The L Word in the past and this show has been released on a complete series Megaset in the past, so this review is going to be shorter than most. I'm obviously not going to review every episode. I'm going to give a brief overview of what the show is list and whether or not there's anything new on this Megaset.
More...
Featured Blu-ray / DVD Review: The Spongebob Movie: Sponge Out of Water
June 1, 2015
On Friday, I got a package of half-a-dozen Nickelodeon releases ... all of which come out on Tuesday. Needless to say, I won't be reviewing all of them, but that's why the current box office prediction contest features Nickelodeon releases. The one I'm definitely reviewing is The SpongeBob Movie: A Sponge Out of Water, which earned great reviews and was a surprise hit at the box office. Did it deserve this success? Or will I be one of the dissenting voices?
More...
2015 Preview: June
June 1, 2015
May turned out to be softer than anticipated with The Avengers: Age of Ultron missing expectations by about $100 million. Additionally, only Pitch Perfect 2 really topped expectations. May 2015 kept pace with May of 2014, more or less. June doesn't have any films as strong as Age of Ultron, but there are two films that should have no trouble getting to $200 million. Those two films are Jurassic World and Inside Out and I'm not sure which one will turn out to be the biggest hit of the month. Last June, the biggest hit was Transformers: Age of Extinction, but both Jurassic World and Inside Out should top that film, albeit by small margins. On the other hand, last June had four other films that reached $100 million, while this time around only Spy! and Ted 2 have a real shot at that milestone. 2015 is stronger at the top, but has weaker depth. It will be interesting to see if 2015 will keep pace with 2014 over the course of the full month.
More...