The Numbers News - August 2019

August 31, 2019

There were no new wide releases on Friday, and sadly the holdovers didn’t thrive as a result. It’s going to be a brutal weekend at the box office. Angel Has Fallen topped the chart on Friday, but wasn’t able to match expectations with $2.9 million. That said, it is still on pace for $15 million over the full four-day weekend for a two-week total of $44 million, which is a good result for this time of year. More...

Terminator: Dark Fate Trailer 2

August 30, 2019

Sci-fi action movie starring Mackenzie Davis, Linda Hamilton, and Arnold Schwarzenegger opens November 1 ... Full Movie Details. More...

Limited and VOD Releases: Don’t Let these Films Remain Secrets

August 30, 2019

It’s an awkward time for limited releases, as it is way too late for a summer box office run, but still way too early for Awards Season buzz. That said, there are some films on this week’s list that could do well in theaters, even if they never expand significantly. These include; Before You Know It, The Load, Ne Zha, and Official Secrets. More...

The Aeronauts Trailer

August 29, 2019

Historical drama starring Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones opens December 6 ... Full Movie Details.

In 1862, young widow Amelia Wren and ambitious scientist James Glaisher mount a balloon expedition to fly higher than anyone in history. This is a journey to the very edge of existence, where the air is thin and the chances of survival are slim. As their perilous ascent reveals their true selves, this unlikely pair discover things about each other—and themselves—that help them find their place in the world they have left behind. More...

Weekend Predictions: New Releases Go on Holidays

August 29, 2019

It’s the final weekend of the summer, Labor Day weekend. Officially it is the final weekend of the summer, but if you’ve been paying attention to the box office, then you know summer really ended with the release of Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw weeks ago. This long weekend, movie studios have just given up and there are no wide, or even semi-wide releases to talk about. This means the top five will look about the same as it did last weekend with Angel Has Fallen on top, while some of the holdovers, specifically Good Boys and The Lion King, should take advantage of the lack of competition. Meanwhile, this weekend last year, Crazy Rich Asians remained the top film at the box office and will likely beat any of this week’s offerings. In fact, none of the films playing this year will earn as much over four days as Crazy Rich Asians did over three. More...

Theater Averages: Brittany Sprints to the Top

August 28, 2019

Brittany Runs a Marathon led the way on the theater average chart earning an average of $36,142 in five theaters. This is more than enough to expand significantly. Additionally, the film has more mainstream appeal than many limited releases, so it should expand enough to earn some measure of mainstream success. Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool was well back with $18,258 in one theater, but this is still a great start for a documentary. The final film in the $10,000 club was Give Me Liberty, which earned an average of $11,087 in three theaters. More...

International Box Office: Hobbs and Shaw have a Fantastically Fast Start in China

August 28, 2019

Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw roared back into first place on the international chart earning $119.4 million in 68 markets for totals of $440.4 million internationally and $588.1 million worldwide. This includes a first place, three-day $99.08 million debut in China, for a total opening in the market of $103.06 million. Granted, films tend to have short legs in China, but a start like this will still give the film an easy time reaching $700 million worldwide, which is enough to be a financial success, even if it doesn’t match the previous installments in the franchise. More...

Home Market Releases for August 27th, 2019

August 28, 2019

This week, the main list of new releases is particularly short for two reasons. Firstly, it is a slow week. Secondly, I’ve filtered out the TV on DVD releases for their own section. I’ve been meaning to do this for a while and we are entering the heart of TV on DVD season on the home market, so it made sense to do it this week. (I’m including all TV on DVD releases, both individual seasons and full series Megasets.) As for the biggest new releases, there are not a lot to talk about. Godzilla: King of the Monsters and The Secret Life of Pets 2 both missed expectations at the box office, but both are worth picking up for their respective target audiences. As for the best, only The Last Black Man in San Francisco and Rocketman are contenders for Pick of the Week. The latter has far better extras, but the former is the better movie and wins that title. More...

Lucy in the Sky Trailer

August 27, 2019

Drama starring Natalie Portman and Jon Hamm opens October 4 ... Full Movie Details.

A married astronaut returns to Earth after a mission and begins an affair with a fellow astronaut. She heads into a downward spiral as she loses her connection to her family—a condition that can afflict those who spend a long time in space. When her lover begins another affair with an astronaut trainee, the bottom drops out of her life. More...

Weekend Wrap-Up: Angel has a Divine Debut

August 27, 2019

Angel Has Fallen led the way at the weekend with $21.38 million. There were some other pleasant surprises in the top ten and this helped the overall box office to a surprise win. It was down 9.6% from last weekend to $108 million; however, this was 5.6% higher than the same weekend last year and we haven’t had many reasons to celebrate in the year-over-year competition, so let’s focus on that. Year-to-date, 2019 is still behind 2018 and is so by nearly identical margins as last weekend at 6.3% or $500 million. This is still a deep hole to try and climb out of, especially since there are only four months left in the year, and I will be happy if we can just cut that gap in half by the end of the year. More...

Where's My Roy Cohn? Trailer

August 26, 2019

Documentary opens September 20 ... Full Movie Details.

One of the most controversial and influential American men of the 20th Century, Roy Cohn was a ruthless and unscrupulous lawyer and political power broker whose 28-year career ranged from acting as chief counsel to Senator Joseph McCarthy’s Communist-hunting subcommittee to molding the career of a young Queens real estate developer named Donald Trump. More...

Weekend Estimates: Angel Doesn’t Fall, Overcome Can’t, Ready Was Ready

August 25, 2019

There is some good news to talk about and that’s been depressingly rare this year. Angel Has Fallen is beating expectations with an estimated opening of $21.25 million. This opening is just behind London Has Fallen’s debut. Additionally, Angel has better reviews and matched the previous film’s A minus from CinemaScore, so it should have similar legs. It is too soon to tell how it will do internationally, but given the franchise’s performance so far, I remain optimistic. More...

Friday Estimates: Angel Rises from London

August 24, 2019

Angel Has Fallen earned an estimated $7.9 million on Friday. Amazingly, this is an improvement over the $7.51 million earned by London has Fallen during its opening day. Most people, myself included, assumed this film would suffer a deep decline. This film also earned better reviews, while both films earned an A minus from CinemaScore. On the other hand, the film did earn less during the 24-hour Friday period, so that suggests a slightly smaller opening weekend. Even so, it will beat our prediction with just over $21 million. More...

Queen & Slim Trailer

August 23, 2019

Drama starring Daniel Kaluuya, and Jodie Turner-Smith opens November 27 ... Full Movie Details.

When a black man and black woman on a first date are pulled over by a police officer at a traffic stop, their life goes awry. Forced to kill him in self-defense, rather than turn themselves in, they must go on the run. More...

Limited and VOD Releases: Run to the Theaters

August 23, 2019

There are several releases on this week’s list earning amazing reviews, including Brittany Runs a Marathon, which has the best shot at attracting a mainstream audience. On the other hand, Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles and Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool could do well on the art house scene. More...

Thursday Night Previews: Angel Has Fallen Rises to Franchise High

August 23, 2019

Angel Has Fallen had the best previews in the franchise earning $1.5 million last night, putting it on pace for about $15 million over the weekend. This matches our expectations nearly perfectly and should be enough to keep Lionsgate happy. More...

Weekend Predictions: Summer Slows to a Crawl

August 22, 2019

There are three wide releases this week, but only one of them, Angel Has Fallen, is widely expected to do anything at the box office. Overcomer is a faith-based film and those are a risk at the box office, but the people behind this one do have a good track record. Finally there’s Ready or Not, the widest ever release for Fox Searchlight and its reviews are easily the best of the week, but the buzz suggests that won’t be enough to thrive. This weekend last year, Crazy Rich Asians dipped just 6% earning just over $24 million. No film is going to match that figure this week. There’s a chance all three wide releases won’t match that figure this week, combined. More...

Bombshell Trailer

August 22, 2019

Real-life drama starring Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, Margot Robbie, and John Lithgow opens December 20 ... Full Movie Details.

A revealing look inside the most powerful and controversial media empire of all time; Fox News, and the explosive story of the women who brought down the infamous man who created it. More...

Theater Averages: The End Begins on Top

August 22, 2019

The End of the Century was the only film in the $10,000 club and it barely got there with $10,398 in one theater. More...

International Box Office: Hollywood Goes Global

August 21, 2019

Once Upon a Time... In Hollywood started its international run in earnest with $48.53 million over the three-day weekend, $55.22 million including previews and weekdays. It was playing on 10,054 screens in 59 markets and has a running tally of $65.44 million after two weeks of release. Its biggest market of the weekend was either France or the U.K., depending on how you look at it. In the former, it earned first place with $7.08 million on 683 screens. It also opened in first place in the latter with $6.22 million on 708 screens over the weekend, and had a total opening of $9.16 million. It also had strong openings in Germany ($5.06 million on 820 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $5.82 million); Australia ($4.52 million on 299 screens); and Spain ($2.41 million on 869 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $3.63 million). More...

Home Market Releases for August 20th, 2019

August 21, 2019

I don’t like awarding the Pick of the Week to films only coming out on Video on Demand, but John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum is the best release of the week and it isn’t even particularly close. More...

Rambo: Last Blood Trailer 2

August 20, 2019

Action movie starring Sylvester Stallone opens September 20 ... Full Movie Details.

Almost four decades after he drew first blood, John Rambo is back. Now, Rambo must confront his past and unearth his ruthless combat skills to exact revenge in a final mission. More...

Weekend Wrap-Up: Good Does Well, Box Office is Still Weak

August 20, 2019

It’s the dog days of summer and Good Boys was the only new release with an impressive debut of $21.40 million, while The Angry Birds Movie 2’s $16.09 million six-day debut isn’t a bad start for this time of year. There were a few holdovers to earn more than $10 million over the weekend, so the overall box office wasn’t a disaster, just a disappointment down 9.5% from last weekend to $119 million. More importantly, this is 7.7% lower the the same weekend last year. Year-to-date, 2019 has pulled in $7.35 billion, but this is 6.3% or $490 million behind last year’s pace. At this point, I don’t think it is possible for 2019 to catch up, but hopefully it can put together a strong last few months to at least save face. Additionally, the international box office is doing better, so worldwide it is close to a wash. More...

Judy Trailer

August 19, 2019

Biopic starring Renée Zellweger opens September 27 ... Full Movie Details. More...

Featured Blu-ray and DVD Review: The Hustle

August 19, 2019

The Hustle’s release date was pushed back a year at the last minute, which is a sign that MGM lost faith in the film. When it was finally released, it did well at the box office, earning nearly $100 million worldwide on a $21 million production budget. Would the film have performed better had the studio had more faith? Or was it lucky it made this much in the first place? More...

Weekend Estimates: Universally Good Weekend at the Box Office

August 18, 2019

Good Boys and Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw are topping the weekend box office chart, so while the overall box office isn’t doing well, Universal is having a great weekend. Good Boys is leading the way with $21.0 million, which is not only better than our predictions, but better than Universal’s projections based on Friday’s estimates. It’s not all rosy, as the film’s reviews and its B plus from CinemaScore don’t suggest really long legs, while this is not the type of film to do well internationally. In fact, it is only pulling in $2.1 million during its opening weekend overseas, including $1.0 million in the U.K. More...

Friday Estimates: Good Does Great

August 17, 2019

Good Boys earned first place on the Friday chart with $8.31 million. Universal is projecting a $20.8 million opening weekend based on this start, which would give the film a rather low internal multiplier. This is due to its reviews and its mere B plus from CinemaScore, neither of which are bad, but they are not great either. It would still be the fastest opening for a comedy all year and this is the first R-rated comedy to top the chart since The Boss debuted more than three years ago. On the one hand, this is great news for Good Boys. On the other hand, what the hell happened to the genre? R-rated comedies used to regularly earn $100 million or more at the box office. More...

The Addams Family Trailer

August 16, 2019

Animated comedy opens October 11 ... Full Movie Details. More...

Thursday Night Previews: Good Doing Better

August 16, 2019

We have preview numbers for a couple of new releases. Good Boys managed an impressive $2.1 million on Thursday, putting it in a great position to top our prediction by a substantial margin. I would love to get a pleasant surprise at the box office right now. More...

Limited and VOD Releases: My Kingdom for a Turtle

August 16, 2019

There are quite a few limited releases on this week’s list earning strong enough reviews to give them a chance at doing well in theaters. Of these, Kingdom and Buñuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtles are the two I’m most interested in, but I don’t think they are destined to find box office success. Unfortunately, I don’t think any of the films on this week’s list will find box office success. More...

Weekend Predictions: Will the Box Office get Angry?

August 15, 2019

Like last weekend, there are five wide releases coming out this weekend, and again, this is just too many. I can’t imagine all of them will find an audience. In fact, I would be less surprised if none of them really found an audience and Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw remained in first place, than if all of them found an audience. The Angry Birds Movie 2 is the biggest of the new releases, but it debuted on Tuesday, so its demand will be deflated by the weekend. Good Boys has deceptively good reviews, but the buzz isn’t where it should be. 47 Meters Down: Uncaged is a horror film entering a too-crowded market. Meanwhile, both Blinded By the Light and Where’d You Go, Bernadette? will be lucky to avoid the Mendoza Line. This weekend last year, Crazy Rich Asians opened. It wasn’t a monster hit out of the gate, but it was a bigger hit than anything opening this weekend. More...

Theater Averages: Falcon Soars to Top Spot

August 15, 2019

It was a good weekend for limited releases, as three of them opened in the $10,000 club. This group was led by The Peanut Butter Falcon with an average of $12,047 in 17 theaters. This is not as high an average as we’ve seen from other limited releases this year, but it was playing in 17 theaters, which is a lot for an opening weekend. Jay Myself was the only holdover in the $10,000 club earning $10,828 in one theater. Up next was One Child Nation, which managed an average of $10,262 in two theaters, while After the Wedding was right behind with an average of $10,053 in five. More...

Little Women Trailer

August 15, 2019

Historical drama, based on the classic book, opens December 25 ... Full Movie Details. More...

Last Christmas Trailer

August 14, 2019

Romantic comedy starring Emilia Clarke and Henry Golding opens November 8 ... Full Movie Details.

Kate harumphs around London, a bundle of bad decisions accompanied by the jangle of bells on her shoes, another irritating consequence from her job as an elf in a year-round Christmas shop. Tom seems too good to be true when he walks into her life and starts to see through so many of Kate’s barriers. As London transforms into the most wonderful time of the year, nothing should work for these two… But sometimes, you gotta let the snow fall where it may, you gotta listen to your heart and you gotta have faith. More...

International Box Office: Nezha is Not Going Away

August 14, 2019

Nezha remains the top draw in its native China and internationally. This weekend, it pulled in $68.97 million for a total of $512.19 million after nearly four full weeks of release. This doesn’t just make the movie the highest-grossing animated film in China, it more than doubles the previous record set by Zootopia. Additionally, it has entered the top five all-time in China, in local currencies, and will soon climb into fourth place over Operation Red Sea. More...

Luce Trailer

August 13, 2019

Psychological thriller starring Naomi Watts, Octavia Spencer, Kelvin Harrison Jr and Tim Roth opened August 2 ... Full Movie Details.

Luce is an all-star high school athlete, top student, and beloved by everyone in the community. When his teacher makes a shocking discovery, Luce’s identity as a model high schooler is called into question, and his adoptive parents are forced to reckon with their idealized image of their son. More...

Weekend Wrap-Up: Hobbs and Shaw Survive Their Sophomore Stint

August 12, 2019

The weekend box office was mediocre with many of the new releases missing expectations, and some of them had low expectations to begin with. Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw was able to remain in first place, but on the low end of expectations, leaving Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark as the biggest positive news of the weekend. Overall, the weekend box office was 11% lower than last weekend at $132 million. Worse still, this is 10% lower than the same weekend last year, leaving 2019 further behind last year’s pace. 2019 is now behind 2018 by 6.2% or $480 million at $7.16 billion to $7.64 billion. More...

Hustlers Trailer

August 12, 2019

Black comedy starring Jennifer Lopez, Constance We, Julia Stiles and Keke Palmer opens September 13 ... Full Movie Details. More...

Home Market Releases for August 13th, 2019

August 12, 2019

Avengers: Endgame comes out on DVD / Blu-ray / 4K this week and it should come as no surprise that it is the biggest release of the week. It is so big that there are practically no other releases to talk about and I had to include some films that would be relegated to the Secondary Blu-ray releases list most weeks. (Conversely, there were a lot of secondary Blu-ray releases this week.) That's not to say there are no other releases worth owning. The only real competition for Pick of the Week is Shadow on DVD / Blu-ray / 4K Ultra HD, but there are several others worth picking up. More...

Weekend Estimates: Hobbs and Shaw Remain Top Draw

August 11, 2019

Friday Estimates: Scary Tops Friday, Hobbs and Shaw Set to Win Weekend

August 10, 2019

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark led the way on Friday with $7.86 million. The film’s reviews are Certified Fresh at 80% positive, but it only managed a C from CinemaScore. To be fair, this isn’t a bad result for a horror film, but it does mean it likely won’t have great legs and will sink into second place over the full weekend. It will still beat our prediction and could even become CBS Films’ best opening of all time. Right now, it is on pace to come close to The Woman in Black’s current record with about $20 million during the opening weekend. It would be ironic is CBS Films set the company record now, as it is ceasing theatrical releases and instead shifting towards streaming content. More...

Featured Blu-ray and DVD Review: Avengers: Endgame

August 10, 2019

Avengers: Endgame is the biggest box office hit worldwide. It is also a follow-up to Infinity War, which I consider the best movie in the M.C.U. Can Endgame live up to its predecessor? Can it top it? More...

Thursday Night Previews: Stories Scares Up Some Box Office Dollars

August 9, 2019

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark had the best previews on Thursday, earning $2.3 million. It was expected to top Dora and the Lost City of Gold, because it is a horror movie and that genre tends to be a lot more front-loaded. However, it wasn’t expected to do this well and it will easily top our $15 million prediction for the weekend, especially if its reviews translate into strong word-of-mouth. More...

Honey Boy Trailer

August 9, 2019

Drama starring Shia LaBeouf, Lucas Hedges, and Noah Jupe opens November 8 ... Full Movie Details. More...

Limited and VOD Releases: Peanut Butter is More than a Tasty Snack

August 9, 2019

It’s another slow week for limited releases, so I stretched my usual rule regarding the minimum number of reviews needed to make the list. That doesn’t mean there’s nothing worth watching coming out this weekend. There are two documentaries earning perfect or near-perfect reviews, Vision Portraits and One Child Nation. There are a couple of Chinese films coming out, The Bravest and Dying to Survive. There’s even an Anime title on this week’s list, Love Live! Sunshine!! The School Idol Movie Over The Rainbow. However, The Peanut Butter Falcon is the film with the best shot and earning some measure of mainstream success. More...

Weekend Predictions: Can Dora find Box Office Gold?

August 8, 2019

There are five wide or semi-wide releases coming out this weekend, which is just too many and practically guarantees at least one of them will flop at the box office. Of these films, Dora and the Lost City of Gold is the only one expected to compete for first place, while Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark should do well as a low-budget horror movie. Unfortunately, The Kitchen and The Art of Racing in the Rain are not connecting with critics and that will likely keep them out of the top five. Finally, Brian Banks is opening in just 1,240 theaters and that could keep it out of the top ten. This weekend last year, The Meg opened with $45 million. No film playing this weekend will match that and I don’t think this year’s depth is going to compensate, meaning we are going to lose in the year-over-year competition yet again. More...

Jojo Rabbit Trailer

August 8, 2019

Black comedy, written and directed by Taika Waititi opens October 18 ... Full Movie Details.

An awkward young German boy is being raised by a single mother, and his only ally is his imaginary friend Hitler. His naïve patriotism is tested when he meets a young girl who upends his world views, forcing him to face his biggest fears. More...

Theater Averages: Luce and Nightingale Sing a Sweet Song

August 8, 2019

It was a busy weekend on the theater average chart with five films in the $10,000 club. Luce led the way with an average of $26,597 in five theaters. This bodes well for any future expansion. The Nightingale was next with an average of $20,041 in two theaters. Jay Myself arguably had a stronger opening, earning $18,909 in one theater over the weekend for a five-day debut of $27,571. Exit managed an average of $16,221 in two theaters, which is excellent for a foreign-language film and hopefully means more Asian movies will be released here. The final film in the $10,000 club was the overall box office champ, Hobbs and Shaw, with an average of $14,117. More...

International Box Office: Hobbs and Shaw Fall Short of Nezha

August 8, 2019

Nezha continued to grow in China, earning $128.49 million over the weekend, which was not only the best film in China, but the biggest movie internationally. Furthermore, the film has earned $342.33 million, putting it ahead of Zootopia as the biggest animated film of all time in that market. And it didn’t just tiptoe ahead of the competition. Nezha is over $100 million above Zootopia in China. I really hope it gets a release here, as not enough Chinese movies are seen outside of Asia. More...

Weekend Wrap-Up: Hobbs and Shaw Stumble Out of the Gate

August 7, 2019

It was a mixed weekend at the box office with Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw missing lofty expectations by a huge margin and this left the box office 8.4% lower than last weekend at $149 million. More importantly, this was 6.9% higher than the same weekend last year. 2019 closed the gap between it and last year a little bit and it is now down by 6.2% or $460 million at $6.96 billion to $7.42 billion. Unfortunately, we really needed a much faster start from Hobbs and Shaw to have a good month, so this might be as good as it gets until September. More...

Home Market Releases for August 6th, 2019

August 7, 2019

Pokémon: Detective Pikachu is the biggest release of the week and it is also one of the best. Amazing Grace and Penguin Highway and better movies, but Pikachu is the only one of the three Pick of the Week contenders with significant extras on its DVD / Blu-ray release. More...

47 Meters Down: Uncaged Trailer 2

August 6, 2019

Creature feature opens August 16 ... Full Movie Details.

A group of five girls from different backgrounds and countries are united by their lust for life and adventure in the coastal metropolis of Recife. Looking to get off the well-worn tourist trail, they hear about a hidden underwater ruin from a local guide and seize the opportunity to discover their own Atlantis beneath the turquoise waves. Unbeknownst to them, the caves where the forgotten city lies are not completely uninhabited, and as they swim deeper into the submerged labyrinth of caves they enter the territory of the deadliest shark species in the ocean. More...

Bethany Hamilton: Unstoppable Trailer

August 5, 2019

Biographical surfing documentary opened July 12 ... Full Movie Details.

Bethany Hamilton’s complete and untold story that follows her journey from childhood into motherhood—the ups, downs and her powerful resilience against all odds to become one of the leading professional surfers of all time. In 2016 alone Bethany’s capacity to inspire reached new heights as she beat a six-time world champion and the top-ranked surfer in the world at a major competition. From chasing her toddler, to chasing the biggest waves, Bethany is continuously rewriting the rules on being a fearless athlete, and brings new meaning to the phrase “Surfs Like a Girl.” More...

Weekend Estimates: Hobbs and Shaw’s International Numbers Save Weekend Haul

August 4, 2019

Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw missed even the low end of predictions with an estimated opening weekend of just $60.8 million. This is not a good start for a film that cost $200 million to make. Additionally, its reviews and its A minus from CinemaScore do not suggest long enough legs to make up for this opening. Fortunately, the film is doing a lot better internationally with an estimated opening of $120 million in 63 markets. Furthermore, this number doesn’t include China, because the film doesn’t open there until the end of the month. (It has also yet to open in France, Italy, and Japan, but it will earn more in China than those three markets combined.) The film is opening well behind The Fate of the Furious in most markets, including Russia where it managed $8.20 million on 1,766 screens, compared to $14.26 million on 1,470 screens for the previous film. It was even worse in the U.K. at $7.85 million in 610 theaters vs. $17.58 million on 572. Overall, the film is more in line with Fast Five than the other recent films in the franchise. This is still enough to earn a profit, especially if it does well in China, but the spin-off won’t replace the main films in the Fast and the Furious franchise like I thought it had a chance of doing. More...

Friday Estimates: Hobbs and Shaw has an Impossible Start

August 3, 2019

Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw is going to miss predictions, but it did bounce back from weak previews with $23.72 million on Friday. This is higher than Mission: Impossible—Fallout managed during its opening day, despite worse preview numbers. This bodes well for the film’s legs. Its reviews are slightly better than the previous installment in the Fast and the Furious franchise, while its A minus from CinemaScore is a little weaker. Universal is projecting a $60 million opening weekend after this result, but studios tend to underestimate these things so it looks like their movies over-performed in the end, so I think $61 million or $62 million is more likely. More...

Thursday Night Previews: Are Hobbs and Shaw having a Falling Out with Moviegoers?

August 2, 2019

Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw started its box office run with just $5.8 million on Thursday night. That’s not enough. I wasn’t expecting it to reach the same heights at the most recent installments in the Fast and the Furious franchise, as different release dates have different potentials when it comes to previews. However, I was expecting it to earn more than $6 million Mission: Impossible—Fallout earned roughly this time last year. The film’s reviews are good enough that it’s legs shouldn’t be an issue, but this start is worrying. Hopefully it will perform better tonight and reach its full potential over the weekend. More...

The Peanut Butter Falcon Trailer

August 2, 2019

Drama starring Shia LaBeouf, Dakota Johnson, and Zachary Gottsagen opens August 9 ... Full Movie Details. More...

Limited and VOD Releases: It’s a Good Night to see a Movie

August 2, 2019

It is a slow week for limited releases with only six films on the main list. Fortunately, four of those six films are earning excellent reviews and a couple of them could do well at the box office. This includes both Luce and The Nightingale. Meanwhile, Love, Antosha could do well for a documentary. More...

Weekend Predictions: How Fast can Hobbs and Shaw Start?

August 1, 2019

It’s the first weekend of August and we have the last potential monster hit of the summer debuting. Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw is the first spin-off in the Fast and the Furious franchise. A lot of people think it will perform weaker at the box office than the other recent films in the franchise, but I think they are underestimating the box office appeal of Dwayne Johnson. Holdovers will be led by The Lion King and Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood, both of which should still be major factors at the box office. This weekend last year, Mission: Impossible—Fallout and Christopher Robin combined for just under $60 million. Even throwing in The Spy Who Dumped Me and the top three barely pass $70 million. Hobbs and Shaw should earn more than that by itself, giving 2018 a very strong win in the year-over-year competition. More...

1917 Trailer

August 1, 2019

World War I drama, written and directed by Sam Mendes opens December 25 ... Full Movie Details. More...

2019 Preview: August

August 1, 2019

July bounced back from June with both Spider-Man: Far from Home and The Lion King getting to $1 billion worldwide. Domestically, we are still behind 2018’s pace by more than $400 million, but that’s a substantial improvement over where we were at the start of the month. August should continue this winning streak, at least initially. Hobbs and Shaw could open with close to $100 million, but the only other film opening this month that has a real shot at $100 million in total is Dora and the Lost City of Gold. Last August, both Crazy Rich Asians and The Meg topped $100 million, while Christopher Robin came within 1% of that milestone. This August might be better at the very top, but I don’t think the top three this month will top the top three last month. Maybe if we get a surprise hit, it will, but I’m not willing to bet on that. On the other hand, unless something dramatic happens, 2019 should at least come close to matching last year’s pace and that’s better than most months have done this year. More...

The Numbers News - August 2019

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