Weekend Wrap-Up: 2014 Rises Thanks to Empire and Peabody

March 11, 2014

300: Rise of an Empire poster

The box office weekend was a little stronger than expected with 300: Rise of an Empire earning $45 million while Mr. Peabody and Sherman earned $32 million. Overall the box office pulled in $143 million, which was 17% more than last weekend. It was also 2% more than the same weekend last year. Granted, that's not a lot. In fact, it is probably less than ticket price inflation. Then again, any win, even a close win, is amazing since we were up against Oz the Great and Powerful's massive opening last year. Year-to-date, 2014 has amassed $1.84 billion, putting it 11% ahead of 2013, which had earned $1.65 million by this point in the year. It won't be long till 2014 hits $2 billion and there are some pretty big hits coming out this summer to look forward to.

300: Rise of an Empire opened in first place, as expected, but with a better than expected opening weekend of $45.13 million. Granted, this is a huge step down from 300, but it is still a great start for this time of year. As for the film's prospects going forward, its reviews are only 43% positive. Its audience reaction was 68% positive, but that's not great either. Meanwhile, its internal multiplier was 2.57, which is okay. Add it up and I think the film will last long enough to reach $100 million, but not much more beyond that.

Mr. Peabody and Sherman matched expectations nearly perfectly with $32.21 million during its opening weekend. Its reviews are strong and family films tend to have better than average legs, so I'm hopeful for its chances to reach $100 million. On the other hand, Muppets Most Wanted comes out in two weeks, so the direct competition could hurt its chances to get to the century mark.

Non-Stop held on a little better than expected with $15.83 million over three days for a total of $52.57 million. This is already more than it cost to make and if it can get to just over $80 million domestically, it will cover its entire production budget with domestic ticket sales. This means it only needs to cover its global P&A budget internationally to break even before the home market.

The LEGO Movie fell a little faster than expected down 48% to $10.91 million over the weekend. However, since the movie has $224.88 million after a month of release, the studio should be more than happy. $250 million in total is still a possibility, but it will be a little tougher now.

Son of God was right behind with $10.38 million over the weekend for a total of $41.87 million after two. This represents a 59% decline, so the film will likely fade away rather quickly. (It might bounce back into the top ten on Easter weekend, but that's more than a month away).

There were no other sophomore films to talk about, but there were still a couple of other stories of note. Firstly, Frozen remained in eighth place with $2.95 million over the weekend for a total of $392.99 million after 108 days of release. It only fell 19% during this past weekend and while the film hits DVD and Blu-ray next week, $400 million remains within reach. That is so amazing. It is so rare for a for a film to remain in the top ten this many weeks in a row.

Finally, 12 Years a Slave returned to the top ten jumping from 18th place to 9th place with $2.11 million over the weekend for a total of $53.04 million after nearly five months of release. This is great for a limited release, but it is below average for a Best Picture Oscar winner.


-

Filed under: Weekend Estimates, Mr. Peabody & Sherman, Frozen, 300: Rise of an Empire, The Lego Movie, 12 Years a Slave, Non-Stop, Son of God