Thursday Night Previews: Ghosts have a Chance with $3.4 million in Previews

July 15, 2016

Ghostbusters

Ghostbusters earned $3.4 million in previews last night, which is ... a number. Unfortunately, there hasn’t been a film like Ghostbusters to come out this summer, so it is hard to judge that figure. For example, The Conjuring 2: The Enfield Poltergeist also pulled in $3.4 million during its previews and just over $40 million during its opening weekend. However, there’s not a lot of crossover between the two films, outside of the ghosts. Perhaps a better comparison is Central Intelligence which is an action / comedy and the “/ comedy” matters. That film earned $1.84 million during its previews and if Ghostbusters has the same multiplier, it will make $66 million. Ghostbusters did have louder buzz, even if a lot of that buzz was the “Feminists ruin everything” crowd whining, but it also has better reviews. On the other hand, Ghostbusters is part of a franchise, which is going to be more front-loaded. How about Independence Day: Resurgence? It’s a long-delayed sequel, so it has that in common. It earned $4 million on debut night, so if Ghostbusters has the same legs, it will make $35 million over the weekend, although the word-of-mouth is much better here. So we have a range of $35 million to $66 million, or almost exactly what we had for our prediction. We have learned nothing. Fortunately, we will have a much better picture this time tomorrow when Friday’s estimates are in.

- Ghostbusters Comparisons

Filed under: Midnight Previews, Central Intelligence, Ghostbusters, Independence Day: Resurgence, The Conjuring 2: The Enfield Poltergeist