Disney magic worked wonders on families around the world as the epic fairy tale film Cinderella opened big at number one with an estimated $70.1M kicking off what should be a lucrative global run throughout the spring season. The PG-rated extravaganza averaged a fantastic $18,219 from 3,845 locations which included 358 IMAX screens.
If estimates hold, Cinderella will edge out the $69.4M opening weekend of last summer’s Maleficent which had the added benefit of A-lister Angelina Jolie plus a 3D option. Cinderella countered that by having the Frozen Fever short playing with it which was a strong draw of its own. Disney reported an optimistic Saturday-to-Sunday decline of only 26% in its weekend estimate. 30-33% would be normal for this time of year. Final grosses may see Cinderella’s opening weekend fall a tad shy of Maleficent’s, but it is still humongous regardless.
Just as Disney’s Marvel unit is a leader in producing high-quality super hero films, the studio has also become adept at producing big-budget live-action event films based on popular fairy tales and similar material which boast a more female skew. Alice in Wonderland bowed to a stellar $116.1M in 2010 and Oz the Great and Powerful opened to $79.1M two years ago. Like Cinderella, both were released in early March to take advantage of the arrival of spring and the start of many school holidays. Alice and Oz benefited from 3D, though.
Directed by Shakespeare-loving Kenneth Branagh, Cinderella marked a new career high beating the $65.7M of 2011’s Thor. Branagh is that rare director called upon to helm both princess and super hero blockbusters. Cinderella’s cast included Lily James in the title role, Oscar winner Cate Blanchett, plus Helena Bonham Carter and featured extravagant sets and costumes.
As expected, the new princess pic skewed heavily female – 66% according to Disney research. 55% were under 25. Critics and audiences agreed that it was a solid and entertaining film as reviews were strong going into the weekend and moviegoers polled by CinemaScore gave a glowing A grade. With positive word-of-mouth and many schools closing for spring breaks in the weeks ahead, the long-term prospects are bright.
With cast and crew circling the globe over the past two weeks hosting red carpet premieres in Europe and Latin America, the massive Disney push paid off with Cinderella opening to a robust $62.4M from 31 markets with half of the top ten overseas territories still to come. More than half of that gross came from China and Russia delivering debuts of $25M and $7.3M, respectively. Korea opens next weekend while France, Australia, Brazil, Spain, and the U.K. launch on the following frame closer to the Easter holiday. With a $132.5M global launch and many lucrative markets still to come, Cinderella should be able to easily beat the $493M global haul of Oz.
Disney has no intention of quitting the fairy tale business. Next year, the Mouse House has Johnny Depp and company back for another Alice in Wonderland film slated for Memorial Day weekend and the studio is also developing a live-action feature based on Beauty and the Beast with Emma Watson playing Belle. Add in Marvel, Star Wars, and Pixar films and Disney will have mountains of cash to count for years to come.
Liam Neeson’s particular set of skills do not seem to be in much demand anymore. The actor’s latest revenge actioner Run All Night opened poorly in second place with an estimated $11M from 3,171 locations for a weak $3,474 average. It was well below the $20-30M range he has opened recent non-sequel action films at and is his worst opening as a lead since his career took a turn for the better with 2009’s Taken.
Releasing just two months after Taken 3, there was softened demand to see Neeson so soon again in the same genre. Run – his fourth action pic in the past year – added Ed Harris to the mix, but audience interest was still muted. Lackluster reviews didn’t help either. Studio research from Warner Bros. showed that the R-rated film skewed much older with 86% being over 25. The gender split was fairly even for an action flick with 52% being male. The CinemaScore was a good A-.
The spy hit Kingsman: The Secret Service rose back up one spot in its fifth weekend taking in an estimated $6.2M. Off only 25%, the leggy Fox hit has collected a remarkable $107.4M so far and still has not left the top five.
The Will Smith flop Focus dropped 42% to an estimated $5.8M in its third run giving Warner Bros. a disappointing cume of only $44M. The con man pic is still on track to be the actor’s worst performance since at least 2001. Robot actioner Chappie tumbled from its number one spot from last weekend. The Sony title fell a steep 57% to an estimated $5.8M putting the total at $23.3M.
The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel added 449 more locations to its run and grossed an estimated $5.7M, off 33%, giving Fox Searchlight $18.1M to date. Hit toon The SpongeBob Movie followed with an estimated $4.1M, off 39%, for a new total of $154.7M for Paramount. Kevin Costner’s McFarland, USA held up well again slipping 29% to an estimated $3.7M putting Disney at $35M.
Three films fought over the final two spots in the top ten with estimated weekend grosses of $2.9M a piece. American Sniper dropped 33% and boosted its remarkable cume to $341.5M lifting it a spot on the all-time domestic blockbusters list to number 28 just behind Transformers: Dark Of the Moon. Universal’s Fifty Shades of Grey fell 48% and has banked $161.4M to date, and an impressive $546.5M worldwide. Sleeper teen hit The DUFF declined by 39% and has taken in a solid $30.3M for Lionsgate and CBS.
The top ten films grossed an estimated $118.2M which was up 20% from last year when Mr. Peabody & Sherman rose to number one with $21.8M; and up 27% from 2013 when Oz the Great and Powerful held the top spot with $41.3M.
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