Beauty and the Beast breaks box office records.

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On Sunday, it was estimated that Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, directed by Bill Condon, and starring Emma Watson as Belle, and Dan Stevens as The Beast, earned $170 million over its opening weekend domestically and another $180 million for its overseas opening for a total worldwide opening of $350 million.

When the Monday actuals came in, the grosses turned out to be even higher than originally estimated for both domestic and overseas.

The film, which cost $160 million to produce, actually ended up earning $174,750,616 over its domestic opening weekend, surpassing its Sunday estimate by $4.8 million. This gives the film the honor of being the biggest March opening weekend ever, as well as the biggest Spring opening weekend ever, and the sixth biggest opening weekend of all time.

Overseas, it was also underestimated, coming in at $182,275,977, beating the original estimate by $2.3 million. The total worldwide opening was $357,026,593, a full $7 million above the original Sunday estimate, making it the 13th biggest worldwide opening weekend of all time.

In the United States, it is playing on around 9,200 screens at 4,210 theaters. The opening weekend average was a scorching $41,508 per theater, and a sizzling $18,995 per screen.

On Friday, it grossed $63,777,443, which includes $16.3 million from preview showings starting on Thursday at 7:00 pm at around 3,300 theaters. The true Friday take comes out to $47,477,443.

On Saturday, the film grossed $62,706,808 (-1.68%), dropping less than 2 percent from its combined Thursday-Friday take. Over the true Friday gross, the film actually increased by 32 percent (+32.08%) on Saturday.

On Sunday, it grossed another $48,266,365 (-23.03%), dropping only 23 percent from its Saturday gross. The film had a much better Sunday hold than originally predicted which made up most of the difference between the Sunday estimates and the Monday actuals.

The Friday to weekend multiplier was a decent 2.74, when dividing the weekend by the Thursday-Friday combined gross.

When we take the Thursday night showings out of the equation, the Friday to total multiplier increases to a solid 3.34 by dividing the true Friday to Sunday gross of $158,450,616 by the true Friday gross of $47,477,443.

With this strong of a start, Beauty and the Beast should have little trouble breaking the $1 billion mark worldwide before the end of its run.

Over the weekdays it has held well too:

Monday gross: $13,531,723 (-71.96%)
Tuesday gross: $17,878,785 (+32.12%)
Wednesday gross: $11,538,802 (-35.46%)
Thursday gross: $10,905,961 (-5.48%)

Box Office for March 3-5, 2017

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The final film in the Wolverine franchise, Logan, starring Hugh Jackman and Sir Patrick Stewart, made an even bigger splash than estimated, having the biggest opening weekend of 2017 so far and kicking off the Spring season with a bang. The actual figures came it at $88,411,916 from an ultrawde 4,071 theaters (a record for an R-rated movie), averaging $21,717 per venue, and beating its Sunday estimate ($85.3 million) by $3.1 million. This also makes it the biggest R-rated opening weekend for the month of March.

The film opened to another $159,032,421 overseas from 81 markets, for a total worldwide opening of $247,444,337, which makes it the second biggest worldwide opening for an R-rated movie after last year’s Deadpool earned $264,711,361 in its worldwide bow.

In second place was Jordan Peele’s satirical horror thriller Get Out, which had an astonishingly great hold for a film of its genre. The film earned $28,236,285 in its second weekend, dropping a mere 15% from last weekend and beating its Sunday estimate ($26.1 million) by $2.1 million. It averaged $9,611 from 2,938 theaters (expanding from 2,781 theaters). The 10 day gross has now reached $78,079,925, with the $100 million barrier to come crashing down sometime next weekend.

Opening in third place was the faith based drama The Shack starring Sam Worthington, Octavia Spencer and Tim McGraw. It earned $16,172,119 from 2,888 theaters for an average of $5,600 per venue.

The LEGO Batman Movie dropped 39% in its fourth weekend to rank at #4 with $11,702,364, bringing its 24-day gross to $148,684,165, with the $150 million barrier to come down sometime this week. Worldwide, it has grossed $259,400,183 so far.

John Wick: Chapter Two, starring Keanu Reeves, dropped 49% in the face of Logan to rank #5 with $4,804,238, bringing the 24-day gross to $82,945,210. Worldwide gross is now $145,425,757.

The youth adult drama Before I Fall suffered a dismal opening at #6, with $4,690,214, for an average of just $1,999 from 2,346 theaters.

At #7, Hidden Figures dropped 34% to $3,826,330, for a total gross so far of $158,766,769. The worldwide total is now $196,605,170.

#8 was The Great Wall, starring Matt Damon, which dropped 60% in its third weekend. It grossed $3,627,020 for a 17-day gross of $41,388,325 domestic, but has now grossed $320,877,650 worldwide.

Fifty Shades Darker ranked #9, dropping 54%, with $3,558,020 in its fourth weekend for a 24-day total of $109,985,335 domestic, and $357,051,813 worldwide.

La La Land rounded out the Top 10 at #10 with $2,986,489, falling 36% from last weekend, for a total gross so far of $145,695,851 domestically and a total of $397,293,556 worldwide.

Elsewhere at #13, Best Picture winner Moonlight had the biggest weekend of its run so far, with $2,300,940, after expanding to 1,564 theaters, for an average of $1,471. Total gross is now $25,153,321.

And suffering the biggest second weekend drop of all time was Collide, which lost more than half of its theaters, and dropped 89% to a mere $173,620 for an embarrassing average of $173 from 1,002 theaters.

Total business for all movies was $189,131,562, which was up 17% from the first weekend of March in 2016 when total business was $161,499,059.

 

89th Academy Award winners

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The 89th Academy Awards ceremony was held on Sunday February 26, 2017. The telecast was produced by Michael De Luca and Jennifer Todd, and was directed by Glenn Weiss. It was hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and aired on ABC.

The winners for the 89th Academy Awards were:

*Best Picture: Moonlight – Adele Romanski, Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner
*Best Director: Damien Chazelle – La La Land
*Best Actor: Casey Affleck – Manchester by the Sea
*Best Actress: Emma Stone – La La Land
*Best Supporting Actor: Mahershala Ali – Moonlight
*Best Supporting Actress: Viola Davis – Fences
*Best Adapted Screenplay: Moonlight – Barry Jenkins and Tarell Alvin McCraney
*Best Original Screenplay: Manchester by the Sea – Kenneth Lonergan

*Best Foreign Language Film: The Salesman (Iran, Persian Language) – Asghar Farhadi
*Best Animated Feature: Zootopia – Byron Howard, Rich Moore and Clark Spencer
*Best Animated Short: Piper – Alan Barillaro and Marc Sondheimer
*Best Live Action Short: Sing – Kristof Deak and Anna Udvardy
*Best Documentary Short: The White Helmets – Orlando von Einseidel and Joanna Natasegara
*Best Documentary Feature: O.J.: Made in America – Ezra Edelman and Caroline Waterlow

*Best Original Score: La La Land – Justin Hurwitz
*Best Original Song: City of Stars (from La La Land) – music by Justin Hurwitz, lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul

*Best Sound Editing: Arrival – Sylvain Bellemare
*Best Sound Mixing: Hacksaw Ridge – Kevin O’Connell, Andy Wright, Robert Mackenzie and Peter Grace
*Best Film Editing: Hacksaw Ridge – John Gilbert
*Best Costume Design: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them – Colleen Atwood
*Best Production Design: La La Land – David Wasco and Sandy Reynolds-Wasco
*Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Suicide Squad – Alessandro Bertolazzi, Giorgio Gregorini and Christopher Nelson
*Best Cinematography: La La Land – Linus Sandgren
*Best Visual Effects: The Jungle Book – Robert Legato, Adam Valdez, Andrew R. Jones and Dan Lemmon

La La Land won the most awards of the night with six awards in all, including Best Director and Best Actress.
Moonlight earned three awards including Best Picture.
Hacksaw Ridge and Manchester by the Sea both earned two awards.

PS: This is my first post in a long time. Thanks for being so patient with me. I’ll try my hardest to update this blog more often.

Long time, no see.

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It’s been a long time since I posted on this site. Normal uploads will likely resume this weekend. I will likely post the actual box office figures for the Top 20 films over the Labor Day frame when the 4-day actuals come out on Tuesday afternoon. Thanks for listening.

Weekend Box Office for September 6-8, 2013 (Actual Figures – Part 1)

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The fall season started off about as well as expected, with the quietest weekend of the year. The Top 12 films earned $66,071,229 in the 36th weekend of the year and first weekend of the fall season, which was still up 27 percent from last year when the Top 12 could only muster $51,858,635.

Universal’s Riddick got off to a good start, earning $19,030,375, which was more than enough to take the #1 spot. The $38 million sci-fi fantasy, the third in the Pitch Black franchise, starring Vin Diesel, was released on around 4,400 screens at 3,107 theaters. It averaged a good $6,125 per theater, or $4,325 per screen. Worldwide total is $26,430,375.

The Weinstein Company’s The Butler, starring Forest Whitaker and directed by Lee Daniels (Precious), dropped to #2 after ranking #1 for three weeks. It earned $8,401,729 in its fourth weekend, dropping a reasonable 44 percent from last weekend. The total gross of the $30 million dollar drama is now a solid $91,403,106, after 24 days. Butler is playing on 3,500 screens at 3,330 theaters, averaging $2,523 per theater, or $2,400 per screen.

At #3, Lionsgate’s Spanish-language family comedy Instructions Not Included, starring Eugenio Derbez, had another great weekend. After opening to over $10 million over 4-days from just 348 theaters (and averaging almost $30,000), the film more than doubled its theater count, moving up to 800 screens at 717 theaters. It made $8,149,289 in its second weekend, increasing 4 percent over last weekend. It averaged a still strong $11,366 per theater, or $10,187 per screen. The total for the $5 million film is now a commendable $20,360,893 after only 10 days.

The Warner Brothers comedy film We’re the Millers, starring Jason Sudeikis and Jennifer Aniston and directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber (Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story), had yet another solid hold, dropping only 39 percent from last weekend, and earning $7,695,027 in its fifth weekend. Millers averaged $2,234 from 3,445 theaters or $2,199 from 3,500 screens, and brought its gross to a strong $123,613,931 after 31 days. The budget was only $37 million. Worldwide total is $178,713,931.

Rounding out the Top 5 was Disney’s Planes which brought in $4,120,811 in its fifth weekend, dropping 47 percent from last weekend. It averaged $1,359 from 3,033 theaters, or $1,145 from 3,600 screens. The total for the $50 million Cars spinoff, which was originally intended to go direct-to-video, is now a better than expected $79,124,995 after 31 days. Worldwide total is $121,024,995.

TriStar’s concert film One Direction: This is Us, featuring the British boy band and directed by Morgan Spurlock (Super Size Me) and produced by Spurlock and Simon Cowell, plummeted 74 percent from last weekend and dropped to sixth place, making $4,046,455 in its second weekend while still playing on 4,900 screens at 2,735 theaters. Expect a huge drop in venues and screens next weekend, as the film only averaged $1,480 per theater. Its per screen average was even worse at a mere $826. Regardless, it has now earned $23,936,965, which is a good result for a film that only cost $10 million to produce and was likely very cheap to market. Worldwide total is $49,936,965.

Elysium, starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster and directed by Neill Blomkamp (District 9), ranked in seventh place dropping 51 percent, earning $3,141,332 in its fifth weekend from 2,300 screens at 2,241 theaters. TriStar’s $115 million sci-fi film averaged $1,402 per theater, or $1,366 per screen, and brought its domestic total to a disappointing $85,118,599 after 31 days. It has made up for it somewhat with its international grosses, as the worldwide total is now $212,218,599.

In eighth place was Fox’s fantasy sequel Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters, which dropped 46 percent and brought in $2,425,539 in its fifth weekend, from 2,400 screens at 2,045 theaters. It averaged $1,186 per theater, or $1,011 per screen. The domestic cume is now $59,773,505 after 33 days, a disappointing result for a film that cost $90 million to make. However, like Elysium, Percy Jackson 2 is making up for its domestic shortcomings internationally, as the worldwide total is now $152,306,305.

The Sony Classics comedy release Blue Jasmine, Woody Allen’s latest directorial effort, and starring Alec Baldwin and Cate Blanchett, ranked in ninth place, dropping 41 percent and earning $2,347,694 in its third weekend of wide release, from 1,100 screens at 1,069 theaters. Averaging $2,196 per theater, or $2,134 per screen, the film has now made $25,108,580 after 45 days.

British sci-fi comedy The World’s End, the third collaboration between director Edgar Wright (Scott Pilgrim vs. The World), and actors Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, rounded out the Top 10. The Focus Features release earned $2,314,494 in its third weekend from 1,520 single-screen theaters, averaging $1,523 per theaters. The cume for the $20 million film stands at a decent $21,784,111 domestically after 17 days. Worldwide total is now $38,684,111.

Two films fell out of the Top 10 this weekend.

The fantasy drama The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones dropped to eleventh place, falling 60 percent, bringing in $2,207,000 from 2,519 single-screen theaters in its third weekend, and averaged only $876 per theater. The Screen Gems release has made just $27,851,204 after 19 days, a terrible result for a film that cost $60 million to produce. Worldwide total is $36,951,204.

The Warner Bros thriller Getaway, starring Ethan Hawke, Selena Gomez and Jon Voight, dropped 51 percent, falling to #12 and made only $2,191,484 in its second weekend from 2,135 single-screen theaters, for an average of just $1,026. The cume for the $18 million release after 10 days, stands at a dismal $8,680,163.

Expect a huge drop in theaters for both films next weekend.

And finally, the sci-fi comedy This is the End, one of Summer 2013’s biggest surprise hits, was brought back into wide release but found few takers. The $32 million Columbia Pictures release managed another $1,901,825 from 2,200 screens at 2,161 theaters in its thirteenth weekend, for an average of $880 per theater, or $864 per screen. Not a good result, but it did push its total to a solid $98,847,912 after 89 days. This leaves the film just $1,152,088 away from the $100 million mark domestically. Worldwide total is $116,795,144.