The latest: Following in the footsteps of Ne Zha 2 and Lilo & Stitch, Disney’s animated sequel Zootopia 2 reaches the $1 billion milestone in less than three weeks.
We heard it in a Hollywood movie once: “A million dollars isn’t cool. You know what’s cool? A billion dollars.”
And in this town, it’s true. A movie making that minimum seven figures isn’t cool, it’s a box office bomb. But 10 figures? Now we’re talking. Cracking a billion dollars globally requires a mighty recipe of the hottest stars, the shiniest filmmaking technology, and an engaging plot with twists and turns that never becomes super-duper complicated. And, of course, you’ll need an audience willing to turn out in droves the world over, from America to Lebanon to Zambia.
It’s a compelling window into our era of blockbusters and inflation. The Transformers and Pirates of the Caribbean series each have multiple entries, in the years before the franchises were run into the ground. Alice in Wonderland showed the way for Disney and these newfangled live-action remakes. The last Lord of the Rings was rewarded by fans with the highest gross of the trilogy, goodwill that transferred into The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, and then evaporated after that. The presence of the Jurassic and Star Wars movies, along with Skyfall, shows you can still wring plenty of money out of the long-running James Bond franchise.
Then there’s the superheroes. The Dark Knight movies officially ushered in the era of big business for those who take their comic-book moviemaking seriously. Marvel took a lighter step, focusing on interconnected stories that create serious FOMO for those who skip the multiplex line, in movies like Avengers, Spider-Man, Captain Marvel, and Black Panther.
Re-releases of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was enough to get it over the edge, while Spider-Man: No Way Home had no problem swinging over the line the first time. In 2022, Top Gun: Maverick landed in the billion zone, followed by Jurassic World: Dominion‘s slow crawl to the finish line. And James Cameron had one last wet stocking stuffer: Avatar: The Way of Water.
And in 2023, Super Mario Bros. went and foot-stomped the competition, hitting the billion-dollar goal in just 26 days. Then Barbie painted the world pink, reaching the milestone in just 17 days, and becoming the highest-grossing movie directed by a woman.
With 2024, Inside Out 2 shook off the box office doldrums (and revitalized Pixar‘s reputation as a theatrical studio) with its 19-day sprint to the billion line, the fastest ever for an animated movie. And in its seventh week, it surpassed Frozen II as the highest-grossing animated movie ever, reaching $1.46 billion worldwide. And Disney continues the streak with Deadpool & Wolverine, the naughty/nostalgic roast of the MCU and tribute to the Fox era of Marvel movies.
For 2025, Lilo & Stitch is the first billion dollar-grossing American production, following China’s animated sequel Ne Zha 2.
And if you want to go more in-depth, check out our article on The 50 Highest-Grossing Movies Ever, which includes some of those lesser specimens that couldn’t quite break a billion.
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(Photo by ©Warner Bros. Studios)
[Box office figures as of 11/20/2023]
After Avengers: Endgame and Avatar duked it out for bragging rights as the all-time highest-grossing movie in 2019, the world was hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, which effectively shuttered theaters (some of them never to reopen), and this list seemed safe for the time being. But in late 2021, Spider-Man: No Way Home blew everyone away and nostalgia-bombed its way into the top 10.
Just a few months later, the decades-in-the-making sequel Top Gun: Maverick also shocked the world by swooping past the $1 billion mark, and another half year later, Avatar: The Way of Water proved James Cameron is the box office GOAT by shooting all the way up to the No. 3 spot. And with the latter’s ascension, Disney laid claim to a whopping seven of the top 10 highest-grossing films of all time (eight, if you count its joint ownership of Titanic with Paramount).
In 2023, The Super Mario Bros. Movie surprised everyone by jolting into the top half of this list in just its first six weeks of release, ultimately landing at No. 16, and most were ready to call it a year. Nobody was going to beat Mario. Then Barbenheimer fever hit, and before we knew it, we had a new champion that was not only the highest-grossing film ever solo-directed by a woman, but also the highest-grossing film in Warner Bros. studio history. With the addition of The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Barbie, the top 50 has lost Peter Jackson’s first Hobbit movie and Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight.
For the list below, we’ve included global box office performance, as well as domestic, and release date. We included dollars earned in re-releases, and in each of our descriptions, we look at where the film stood record-wise at the time of its run, and dive into things like critical and audience reception. We’ll be here to track the progress of new blockbusters and regularly update this list of top box office performers. So keep your eyes here, and check in with our weekly weekend box office wrap-ups.
Avatar (2009)
81%
The world had to wait some 12 years for James Cameron to follow up the biggest film of all time with what would become the new biggest film of all time. Nobody believed he was going to surpass Titanic’s numbers with this tale of an alien planet and the paraplegic Marine who teams up with its inhabitants in the battle for Unobtanium. But he did. At the peak of a 3-D reemergence, aided by the filmmaker’s usual technological gamesmanship (and higher ticket prices), Avatar‘s seven straight weekends at No. 1 led to over $595 million at the North American box office. Then, two days later on Feb. 2, 2010, its 47th day of release, the movie became the highest domestic earner ever. Avatar held that record for five years and 11 months and went on to become the only film ever to earn $2 billion outside of the U.S. and Canada, making it the world’s highest grosser at the time. It held onto its impressive global record for nearly 10 years, until Avengers: Endgame came along and snatched the crown. But with Avatar 2 on the horizon in 2021, the now Disney-owned-and-rebranded 20th Century Studios decided to remind everybody the franchise existed, re-releasing the film in China and, whether intentional or not, pushing it back into pole position.
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
94%
The journey that began in 2008 with Iron Man was coming to an end – at least for some of the characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Audiences that had been holding their breath for an entire year after perhaps the biggest cliffhanger since The Empire Strikes Back could not wait to buy their tickets – and did they ever buy those tickets when they finally could. Opening weekend for Avengers: Endgame in April 2019 surpassed Infinity War’s year-long record by nearly $100 million. In just eight days, the film had grossed a half billion domestically. On day 10 it was over $621 million; the tenth film to ever cross $600 million. One by one the records fell, leading many to ignore the words “if” and “can” and focus instead on “when” Avatar’s previous record ($2.787 billion) as the highest-grossing movie would fall. But Endgame began to show signs early in its run that its impressive sprinting start might not be enough for it to ultimately come out ahead of James Cameron’s epic; it only had the second-biggest second weekend ever and the fourth-best third weekend. In the era of the modern blockbuster, even a record-breaker can be front-loaded and only spend three weeks atop the charts. It really all came down to a final dash near the finish line. After just six weeks of release, Endgame was about $73 million away from dethroning Avatar – substantial ground to make up. But then Marvel and Disney re-released the film on June 28, 2019 with new goodies over its end credits. And then, over the weekend of July 19, 2019 – its 13th week of release – when another Disney release would begin its run for the top 10 all-time earners (hello, Lion King), Endgame squeaked ahead. It may not have been able to catch The Force Awakens for the all-time domestic leader, but by the time summer was over, it would pull in front of Avatar and become the king of the world… at least for a while. With a 2021 re-release in China, Avatar did ultimately take back the crown, but it doesn’t diminish the incredible achievement of Endgame.
Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)
76%
For 13 years the arguments increased on whether or not James Cameron’s Avatar maintained a cultural footprint strong enough to draw in the crowds again. The counter-argument of “Don’t bet against the King” turned out to be the right one. Despite having just the 38th highest opening weekend at the time, word-of-mouth that another theatrical event was upon us spread throughout the world. Spending seven weeks atop the box office (the same as its predecessor) and 15 in the top 10 (one more than the original), the sequel to the biggest film of all time erased all doubts. Once again, Cameron made the most expensive film ever and came out profitable on the other side, securing his place to have three of the four biggest spectacles ever made.
Titanic (1997)
88%
James Cameron makes expensive movies. The Abyss, Terminator 2, and True Lies were all the most expensive movies of their time upon release. In 1997, Cameron blew out the budget again, and this time there was worry he may have gone too far. Though delayed from July until December, Titanic nevertheless became a global phenomenon the likes of which the box office had never seen at the time. After 15 straight weeks at number 1, 14 Oscar nominations and 11 statuettes, Titanic, its stars, and its signature song were ingrained in the hearts and tear ducts of the world, and the movie would hold the all-time box office record for 12 years – until Cameron would eclipse himself once again with Avatar.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)
93%
Twelve years after the completion of the Star Wars prequel trilogy, J.J. Abrams was tasked with making Episode VII – a monumental undertaking, and a risky one. Were people still interested after the prequels? Were they burnt out? The approach was to mix the old and the new, and it worked. Abrams gave a brand new cast of characters the chance to interact with the original trio of Luke, Han, and Leia, and generations of fans were so ready for the adventure that they gave the film the highest opening weekend in history ($247.9 million). In just under three weeks, The Force Awakens became the all time domestic champion, passing Avatar and joining the $2 billion club within 54 days. It still remains the highest-grossing domestic release of all time.
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
85%
Just shy of 10 years since it began, the Marvel Cinematic Universe gathered nearly every one of its characters for a galaxy-wide showdown with the series’ Big Bad, Thanos. The movie featured one of the gutsiest cliffhangers in any franchise’s history, leaving audiences to wait in shock for an entire year to discover how Phase 3 of the epic series would end. The film bested The Force Awakens’ three-day opening weekend record with $257.6 million, and hit the $2 billion mark in 48 days. Domestically, it would ultimately come up just short of Black Panther, which was released two months prior.
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
93%
Speaking of gathering Marvel characters for an epic showdown, 2021 provided an unexpected box office champion that would swing triumphantly into the top 10. That is to say, the success of Spider-Man: No Way Home wasn’t unexpected because of the film itself, which was an ambitious, multiverse-expanding entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that brought together some of the most beloved characters in the web-slinger’s big-screen history in a funny, heartbreaking, thrilling spectacle. No, it was unexpected because it managed this herculean feat even as the COVID-19 pandemic continued to keep audiences largely at home. If there was one movie in all of 2021 — or, hell, even going back as far as 2020 — that moviegoers were willing to risk going to the theater for, it was absolutely No Way Home, and boy did they ever show up. The film became not only the highest-grossing Spider-Man movie ever made, but also the most successful movie ever released by Sony Pictures en route to dominating 2021 and settling into the top 10 here. The future of Tom Holland’s Peter Parker is still up in the air, but he has earned himself a rather secure spot on the all-time box office list.
Jurassic World (2015)
72%
Twenty-two years after Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park became the Jaws for a new generation, it was time for that generation’s kids to have their own version of dinosaur mayhem. The second-best–reviewed film in the Jurassic series (72% on the Tomatometer vs. the original’s 91%), Jurassic World trampled a competitive summer full of Avengers, Minions, and inner feelings, and became just the third film since Titanic in 1998 to pass $600 million in domestic box office.
The Lion King (2019)
52%
Having found success with its live-action re-imaginings of The Jungle Book and Beauty and the Beast, Disney tripled down in 2019 with three “new” remakes. Dumbo was a bit of a bust, and Aladdin was a success, but The Lion King truly roared. That made sense given that the 1994 original, at the time, was one of the studio’s most successful films in the middle of its rebirth, and director Jon Favreau’s new, CGI-fueled version traced it for a new generation. The result is the highest-grossing domestic release to receive a Rotten score on the Tomatometer, at 52%. But its $191 million opening was the eighth highest of all time, and it became the 14th film to pass a half billion domestically and just the ninth film to rack up $1 billion overseas.
Marvel's the Avengers (2012)
91%
Want proof that Avengers work best together? Consider that the first combined outing for Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America bested the $1.4 billion that their origin stories had made combined. Five films into the MCU (including Edward Norton’s The Incredible Hulk), the team was finally assembled for a singular battle against Loki and his inherited army. Joss Whedon’s movie became the first ever to make over $200 million in a single weekend and was Marvel’s first entry into the Billion Dollar Club, which had just 12 members at the time.
Furious 7 (2015)
81%
What started out as a Point Break derivative – with cars! – became one of the unlikeliest mega franchises ever. Vin Diesel’s return in the series’ fourth film is what really got the Fast and Furious franchise engines revving, and Dwayne Johnson’s addition in the fifth film added some humor and helped get the critics on board. But it was the full embrace of the series’ now-signature bombast, as well as the untimely death of Paul Walker, that brought the combo of curiosity and tribute that helped make James Wan’s Furious 7 the franchise’s most successful entry. It hit with audiences – the opening weekend haul of $147 million was almost $50 million more than any previous entry – as well as with critics (it’s the highest-rated movie in the series at 81% on the Tomatometer).
Top Gun: Maverick (2022)
96%
Tony Scott’s fighter pilot movie Top Gun topped the box office in 1986 with a domestic gross of $176.8 million (it tallied $357.3 million worldwide), so it was no slouch by any means, and it went on to become a celebrated cult classic. But no one could have reasonably predicted that, more than three and a half decades later, its sequel would earn more than that in the U.S. alone, moving it all the way up to No. 7 on the domestic charts, and enter the top 20 earners worldwide at No. 12 with over $1.4 billion in receipts. Part of that was likely thanks to Tom Cruise reprising his role as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, but director Joseph Kosinski also utilized some strategically deployed fan service and specially developed, state-of-the-art IMAX cameras for stunning action sequences to deliver the biggest crowd-pleaser of Summer 2022.
Frozen II (2019)
77%
When a film becomes not just a global phenomenon but the highest-grossing film in your canon of animated entertainment, a sequel is inevitable. While not quite as well-received as the first film critically (77% vs. 90% on the Tomatometer), Frozen II virtually demanded that parents bring their children for a second adventure. It began with the third-highest opening weekend for an animated film (after Pixar sequels Incredibles 2 and Finding Dory) – $130.26 million – and then became the highest-grossing film over the five-day Thanksgiving holiday, which was all the more impressive given it had opened the prior weekend. In its fourth weekend of release, it became Disney’s sixth billion-dollar film of 2019, pushing Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle out of the Top 50 on the same weekend that its sequel The Next Level opened. Now, the movie has overtaken the original Frozen to become the highest-grossing animated film of all time… if you don’t necessrily regard The Lion King as an animated film in the traditional sense.
Barbie (2023)
88%
Barbie may not be the first toy to get its own movie, but it is certainly the one that united audiences and critics alike around the globe. Movie fans even embraced the grassroots campaign known as “Barbenheimer” as it shared a release date with Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer. Greta Gerwig’s film was the clear victor of 2023 with its leading opening weekend of $162 million, four straight weekends at No. 1, and the highest total ever for a female director, not to mention the highest-grossing film in Warner Bros. vast catalog. The 14th film to gross over $600 million at the domestic box office, resulting in the 11th-highest gross ever at the time, Barbie is expected to have a powerful presence in the 2023 awards race.
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
75%
If any film in the top 10 could be considered both a success and a disappointment it would be Joss Whedon’s Avengers sequel. Coming up shy of the first film’s record-breaking opening weekend – note that it was still the second-best opening of all time when it was released – the movie never matched its predecessor in dollars or affection. With a 75% Tomatometer rating, it doesn’t even rank among the top 10 Tomatometer scores of the MCU – though we think there’s a case to be made for reassessing its virtues – and it lost the summer of 2015 to the dinosaurs of Jurassic World. Still, it was just the 16th film ever to cross the $400 million line domestically in its initial run.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023)
59%
At the height of Nintendo’s hold on the gaming community, a live-action Super Mario Bros. film was produced in 1993 and became a massive disappointment creatively and financially. Flash-forward 30 years and a new attempt by the company that brought audiences Despicable Me and The Secret Life of Pets dominated the box office. With over $574 million, it became the second-highest grossing animated film ever released domestically and internationally. It was poised to become the top-grossing film of 2023 until Barbie passed it on August 23.
Black Panther (2018)
96%
After an introduction in Captain America: Civil War, T’Challa got his own film in February of 2019. Audiences were hungry for representation on screen and looking for a thrilling re-introduction to the character, and in Ryan Coogler’s action-packed, beautiful-looking epic, they got both. The movie became the fifth film in history to have a $200 million opening weekend, and just the third film ever to gross over $700 million in North America, outlasting even Avengers: Infinity War that summer. Why isn’t it even higher in the list? Because it remains the only post-Avengers film in the MCU to make less money internationally than domestically.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)
96%
Fans of J.K. Rowling’s fantasy series got to see its characters (and the actors who played them) grow up in front of their eyes. The culmination of the journey that began in 2001 also ushered in a new trend of splitting final chapters in half. The back half of the Potter finale set the new record for an opening weekend at the time with $169.1 million, and its $960 million international haul ranked only behind Avatar and Titanic. By the end of its run, the eight Harry Potter had films grossed a combined $7.72 billion.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)
91%
One of the more controversial entries in the Star Wars series – don’t get anyone started on the casino planet sequence! – Rian Johnson’s The Last Jedi took the standard dip that had afflicted other middle films in the franchise. The Empire Strikes Back made 31.9% less than A New Hope, Attack of the Clones made 34.6% less than The Phantom Menace, and The Last Jedi fell 33.8% off The Force Awakens. Still, Johnson’s film joined Episodes IV, V, and VII in the 90%+ realm on the Tomatometer and may end up being the ultimate bridge to the next generation of Star Wars fans.
Frozen (2013)
89%
The Oscar-winning song that has tortured parents for nearly a decade was just part of what made Frozen the highest-grossing animated film in history. The story of two sisters searching for happily-ever-after with each other rather than the standard gentleman suitors also won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature and bested 2012’s Ice Age: Continental Drift for the highest international haul for an animated film ever, a record it eventually lost to its sequel.
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018)
47%
J.A. Bayona’s follow-up to Colin Trevorrow’s continuation of Steven Spielberg’s series received the weakest Tomatometer score of the franchise to date (46%) and, following the path of many “second” entries in franchises (even if it’s technically the fifth), dropped 36% from Jurassic World in overall domestic box office. But it was still good enough for 23rd all-time in North America and 13th in overseas dollars. It was also the second highest-grossing domestic film of the 2018 summer season, behind the No. 23 film on this list.
Beauty and the Beast (2017)
71%
Speaking of Disney soundtracks, it was the 2017 live-action redo and not the Best Picture-nominated animated Beauty and the Beast from 1991 that really broke the bank and remains in the record books. Bill Condon’s version of the tale as old as 1991, starring Emma Watson, was not the first of Disney’s splashy re-imaginings, but it certainly was the most successful at the time, becoming the seventh film to cross a half billion in North America and the 16th to pass three quarters of a billion overseas.
Incredibles 2 (2018)
93%
Brad Bird’s The Incredibles debuted a full four years before the MCU began, a time when the Pixar brand was as close to a guarantee of success (and quality) as the industry had. Fourteen years later and deep into the superhero cinematic explosion, Bird’s sequel more than doubled the original’s box office and became the highest-grossing animated film ever at the domestic box office. It was the ninth film to cross the $600 million mark in North America and was knocked out of the top 10 domestic grossers of all time in the summer of 2022 by Top Gun: Maverick.
The Fate of the Furious (2017)
67%
A half billion dollars was put into the production of the seventh and eighth chapters of this franchise, and they made a combined $2.75 billion globally. F. Gary Gray’s film was a bit of a comedown from the highs of James Wan’s Furious 7. It even fell behind the sixth Furious film domestically, but did incredibly well abroad: it was the sixth film ever to make a cool billion outside the U.S. and Canada alone. Though still Fresh (67% on the Tomatometer), it was the lowest-scored Fast and Furious movie among critics since the fourth film.
Iron Man 3 (2013)
79%
The first Marvel film released following the massive success of Joss Whedon’s The Avengers was also the most successful of the individual Iron Man films. Robert Downey Jr.’s Kiss Kiss Bang Bang director, Shane Black, took over for Jon Favreau and put a twist on some comic-book lore in ways that still draws out disappointment from some fans. The general moviegoing public ate it up, though. Iron Man 3 was just the 13th film to reach $400 million domestic in its initial run and is the highest-grossing non-Avengers film in the MCU overseas with over $805 million. (And, if you are are keeping track, it is the 13th Disney property in the top 25.)
Minions (2015)
55%
After two successful Despicable Me films it was time to give Gru’s kooky supporting yellow folk their own story. Smart move. Minions had the largest opening for Illumination Entertainment ever, earning $115.7 million on its first weekend. Though it came up shy domestically of Despicable Me 2 ($336 million vs. $368 million) it can still boast the third-best overseas return for any animated film ($823.4 million) behind only Disney’s two Frozen films, and it stands as the company’s biggest international earner to date, even higher than The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
Peter Jackson’s (first) epic trilogy unfolded over three straight holiday seasons, and its finale was rewarded in every fashion: Return of the King historically won all 11 Oscars that it was nominated for, including Best Picture and Best Director; it was one of the best-reviewed films of the year (Certified Fresh at 93%); and it became the fourth-highest domestic grosser of all time behind just Titanic, The Phantom Menace, and Sam Raimi’s first Spider-Man film. It was no slacker overseas, either: When Return finished its run, only Titanic had a greater number outside of the U.S. and Canada.
Captain America: Civil War (2016)
90%
It was not officially an Avengers film, but Civil War may as well have been. Thor and Hulk were AWOL, sure, but Spider-Man received his welcomed introduction into the MCU, as did Black Panther. The movie’s run kicked off with the fifth-highest opening in history, earning $179.1 million on opening weekend (that’s now the 11th-highest opening). Another $745 million internationally made this the fourth MCU film to reach $1 billion. Another fun fact: Anthony and Joe Russo are one of only two filmmakers/filmmaking pairs on this list to have three films in the top 50.
Aquaman (2018)
66%
How could the DCEU get to $1 billion? Adding Batman into their Superman storyline couldn’t do it. Wonder Woman’s solid domestic numbers were nearly matched internationally, but even those figures came up short of Suicide Squad – and the goal. No, it would take Aquaman to crack the $1 billion mark for the DC Extended Universe. James Wan’s second billion-dollar film on the list may have had the second-smallest opening weekend of the Universe, but its prolonged success through the holiday season and beyond – the movie made nearly five times its opening – was greater than any DC property since Tim Burton’s Batman in 1989.
Skyfall (2012)
92%
The James Bond franchise got a boost with Pierce Brosnan and an even larger one with Daniel Craig. But there was no bigger boost to the long-running franchise than Craig’s Skyfall, the first film to cross $300 million domestically and $1 billion globally. A series that has existed for 50-plus years is going to get a little help from inflation – Goldfinger, Thunderball, and You Only Live Twice would have been $300 million grossers today – but we’re not doing inflation here. Skyfall was also a gold standard for Bond beyond the box office: It stands amongst the series’ top five scores on the Tomatometer, Certified Fresh at 92%.
Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
91%
No wonder Disney and Sony made up: 2019’s Spider-Man: Far From Home, which might have been the end of their association had they not moved past their impasse, is Sony’s second highest-grossing film of all time. Six of the studio’s eight highest-grossing films ever have involved Spider-Man (or Venom), but this was the first Sony flick to cross the $1 billion line, and the ninth film in the MCU to do it. (Spider-Man appeared in four of the MCU’s other members of the $1 Billion Club). It was also the fifth stand-alone Spider-Man film (live-action or animated) to register at 90% or higher on the Tomatometer – critics love their web-slinger.
Captain Marvel (2019)
79%
After getting tag-teased at the end of Infinity War, Brie Larson’s Carol Danvers made her debut in the MCU as the universe’s first headlining female superhero in 2019’s Captain Marvel. Outgrossing DC’s Wonder Woman around the world and at home, the breakthrough film was embraced by critics (though its Certified Fresh score of 79% ranks 21st out of the MCU’s 33 films). The space epic was only one of two films in 2018-19 to spend 10 straight weeks in the top 10 (the other being Black Panther), and was the seventh MCU film to reach $1 billion at the box office globally.
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
35%
The only Transformers sequel under the direction of Michael Bay to rank higher than 20% on the Tomatometer (a whopping 35%!) is not the series’ biggest domestic or international earner. But combined it remains the champion overall in worldwide gross (and bonus for the studio: it had one of the series’ lowest budgets). Only the final Harry Potter chapter could beat it in the summer of 2011, when they were the only films to pass $300 million domestic.
Jurassic Park (1993)
91%
Before James Cameron owned the top two spots in all-time domestic box office (for a period), it was Steven Spielberg who had pulled off that feat. His adaptation of Michael Crichton’s novel Jurassic Park was a return to the revered popcorn blockbusters he made his name on, and it replaced the previous year’s Batman Returns as the top opener ever with $47 million and went on to gross over $357 million that summer. That was just a couple million dollars shy of his 1982 classic, E.T., but re-releases in 2-D and 3-D over the years have put the film over $400 million domestic and $1 billion worldwide.
Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014)
18%
The Transformers series was beginning to show its age in North America in 2014, but around the world it was more popular than ever. Shia LaBeouf was replaced with Mark Wahlberg as the franchise’s central human hero, and the fourth film from Michael Bay approached a near three-hour running time at 165 minutes. But even as it dipped below $300 million for the first time at home, its $858 million international haul was still the sixth-highest total for any movie outside the U.S. and Canada at the time. (It is now 16th.) Bay’s fifth film of the franchise, The Last Knight, fell 47% in overall domestic and nearly 45% internationally. At 18% on the Tomatometer, Age of Extinction has the lowest Tomatometer score of the top 50 biggest films at the worldwide box office.
The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
87%
The conclusion of Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy gave us Bane, Catwoman, and even a surprise along the way. By the end of that summer only four films had grossed more domestically in their initial runs than The Dark Knight Rises: Avatar, Titanic, The Dark Knight, and Marvel’s The Avengers, which was the only film to eclipse Rises in all of 2012. When all was said and done, Nolan’s trilogy grossed over $2.46 billion worldwide.
Joker (2019)
68%
The director of The Hangover films wanted to make an origin story out of Batman’s most infamous nemesis. The project was met with skepticism, and then it began a run on the festival circuit. Venice awarded the film its top prize in the Golden Lion; some critics were hailing it as a masterpiece. Though its Tomatometer score is among the lower scores in the Top 50 (69%), Todd Phillips’ Joker had the highest opening ever in the month of October (passing the previous year’s Venom) and ultimately became the highest-grossing film ever released in that month in North America, surpassing Alfonso Cuaron’s Gravity domestically. The film has overtaken Warner Bros.’ The Dark Knight on this list, and has also earned a place in the studio’s history as one of its most profitable films of all time.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
51%
The final chapter of the Skywalker saga may have broken the trend set by the other third entries in the franchise’s trilogies (each outgrossed the middle episodes), but it will become record that we may never see broken again. During the week of January 12, 2020, it became the seventh film released by Disney in 2019 to break the $1 billion barrier – it reached that marker in 28 days, whereas The Last Jedi did it in less than three weeks. That record will be remembered far longer than having the 12th-highest opening of all-time – The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi were Nos. 1 and 2 until Avengers: Infinity War opened – or that it had the second-lowest Tomatometer score among the nine films, ahead of just The Phantom Menace. Nevertheless, it puts a capper on a nine-episode series from 1977-2019 that grossed (with re-releases) a collective $8.796 billion.
Toy Story 4 (2019)
96%
When the fourth entry of Pixar’s signature series opened to “only” $120 million, many labeled it a disappointment. Some had expected Toy Story 4 to have the studio’s biggest opening ever, and the film was then written off – by some – as part of a string of failed sequels in the summer of 2019. Well, Woody and the gang proved them all wrong. The movie went on to outgross the third film by over $12 million domestically. Even if it came up a bit short internationally, it still became the fourth billion-dollar grosser in Pixar’s history and their third highest–grossing film overall.
Toy Story 3 (2010)
98%
We all assumed it was the end for Woody, Buzz, and all their toy friends – that bittersweet finish was just so perfect. The series would have gone out with a box-office bang, too. The first summer release for the Toy Story franchise turned into the first $100 million opening weekend for Pixar as well as the studio’s first $400 domestic tally and first worldwide haul of $1 billion. For almost two years it was the second highest–grossing domestic release in Disney’s history; by 2019 it was 16th.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006)
53%
Everyone mocked the concept of Disney turning one of their classic rides into a feature-length film. Well, some $300 million and an Oscar nomination for Johnny Depp’s portrayal of Captain Jack Sparrow later, we were looking at a franchise with a modicum of respect. At least, for a little while. Critics went from disdain for the concept before the first film was released to disdain for its epic length and earnestness in the span of just two films, with the original movie’s score of 79% dropping to 53% on the Tomatometer for the sequel. But audiences went the other direction, giving Dead Man’s Chest a 38.6% boost in domestic earnings and an 84.2% boost internationally. It was Disney’s first $100-plus million opening ($135 million to be precise), and the studio has had 20 more since then. From 2006 until Toy Story 3 was released in 2010, Dead Man’s Chest was the highest-grossing domestic release in Disney’s history.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
84%
A year after J.J. Abrams launched the record-breaking continuation of George Lucas’ Skywalker saga, audiences were given a go-between tale to help fill in the gaps that led to the destruction of the first Death Star. The Magnificent Seven-like story was an instant favorite for some and an average side-trip for others. It became just the seventh film to clear a half billion dollars in domestic box office. A nearly equal international haul filled in the other half needed for Rogue One to join the $1 Billion Club, a goal that Solo: A Star Wars Story came up short of by more than $600 million.
Aladdin (2019)
57%
Aladdin wasn’t always a sure bet: A blue Will Smith was mocked in early reveals of his Genie character and Tim Burton’s live-action Dumbo proved to be a bust just two months before Aladdin‘s release. But Guy Ritchie’s new version of the beloved 1992 animated film took advantage of other 2019 summer under-performers like Godzilla: King of the Monsters, Dark Phoenix, and Men In Black International, gobbling them all up and staying in the top five at the box office for seven straight weeks. Its international haul was only $70 million less than 2017’s Beauty and the Beast, and it was even higher than several films above it on this list including Black Panther and Incredibles 2.
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011)
32%
After Gore Verbinski’s Pirates trilogy grossed a combined $2.68 billion worldwide, Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer were not about to let the series sail into the sunset. The third film’s bloated length of 168 mins was roundly criticized (its Tomatometer score is just 45%), and this fourth film fared even worse with reviewers (33%), but it did the job at the box office. Domestic audiences showed up for the revamped outing with Jack Sparrow, just not in the expected droves, and a mammoth international total ($804.6 million) kept Stranger Tides in the record books.
Despicable Me 3 (2017)
58%
Though the third film in the Despicable Me franchise made just $13 million more than the original at the domestic box office, internationally the Despicable Me films had a 164% increase from the first film ($543.1 million) to the third ($1.035 billion). Released in 4,529 theaters, Gru’s third chapter did manage to have the largest launch in film history in North America until Avengers: Endgame came along. Four other films during the summer of 2019 also exceeded its one-time record theater count.
Finding Dory (2016)
94%
Thirteen years after Finding Nemo became Pixar’s first $300 million domestic grosser and its biggest hit, the sequel focusing on Ellen Degeneres’ beloved memory-challenged sidekick reclaimed the throne, becoming again the animation house’s highest domestic grosser ever. The movie bested Toy Story 3 by over $71 million at home – even if it came up a bit short of that film internationally – and showed Pixar’s sequel business was really starting to thrive.
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
54%
George Lucas returned to the director’s chair after more than two decades to give fans what they thought they wanted 16 years after the release of Return of the Jedi. Fans certainly turned over their money, but many left with a sense of disappointment that would help taint the prequel trilogy for decades to come. Phantom Menace was the highest-grossing film domestically to earn a Rotten score 52% (until 2019’s The Lion King came along and matched that score, but with far more reviews). The $431 million earned in its initial run was enough to make it second only to Titanic all time in North America; it took re-releases to push it over $1 billion globally. In 1999, it was the first film to clear $100 million in five days, beating the previous record holder, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, which earned $98.6 million in the same amount of time.
Zootopia (2016)
98%
To this day, Zootopia remains the second highest–grossing animated Disney film not connected with Pixar. Since Frozen spent 16 straight weeks in the top 10, only three films have come as close, with 13 straight weeks in that top 10: Black Panther, La La Land, and yes, Zootopia. Its $682 million overseas is the sixth best ever for an animated film and the second best for any Disney animated film, Pixar or otherwise. Also, it is just one of four films on this list to receive a Tomatometer score of 98%.
Alice in Wonderland (2010)
51%
Among the first five attempts Disney made to bring its classic cartoons to life by 2010, Tim Burton’s Alice In Wonderland was by far the most successful. Its $116.1 million start was the sixth-largest movie opening ever at the time and the second-highest for Disney behind the second Pirates film. It was Burton’s seventh collaboration with Johnny Depp, and the director has not had a film gross as much domestically in total as Alice made in its first three days since – not even with his attempt to replicate the success with Dumbo in 2019, which grossed a total of $114.7 million. But back in 2010, only Avatar, Titanic, and The Return of the King had made more money outside of North America than Alice did.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001)
80%
Four years after the publication of J.K. Rowling’s first Harry Potter book, Chris Columbus brought it to the big screen, and its legions of fans turned up in record numbers. A $90.2 million opening weekend crushed the previous title holder from four years earlier, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, by over $18 million. The Sorcerer’s Stone‘s final domestic total ranked sixth all time behind the initial runs of Titanic, The Phantom Menace, E.T., Jurassic Park, and Forrest Gump. That total remained the highest of the series until Deathly Hallows: Part 2 in 2011. International releases during the pandemic of 2020-21 ultimately pushed the film into the billion club.
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Thumbnail image courtesy ©Universal Pictures, ©Warner Bros. Pictures, ©Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
(Photo by Disney / Courtesy Everett Collection)
It’s the rule of attractions as we rank movies based on Disney rides by Tomatometer, from the charismatic swashbucklery of Pirates of the Caribbean, to the spooky Southern-fried shenanigans of the Haunted Mansion, through the rushing rapids of Jungle Cruise, and into the sci-fi futurism of Tomorrowland. And also there’s the Country Bears.
73%
62%
53%
49%
43%
38%
32%
29%
23%
14%
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(Photo by Universal Pictures, GagaOOLaLa and Breaking Glass Pictures, and Sony Pictures Entertainment)
“Know Your Critic” is a column in which we interview Tomatometer-approved critics about their screening and reviewing habits, pet peeves, and personal favorites.
Nguyên Lê speaks with equal excitement about Asian representation, Hollywood blockbusters he loved growing up, and the J-horror that thrills and terrifies him. He is honest, optimistic, and hungry to continue growing as a writer.
Lê became a critic in 2013. He’s written for the Houston Chronicle, FANGORIA, AwardsWatch, and /Film. Whether one seeks out his work, comes across him on Twitter, or speaks with him directly, Lê’s community-centric spirit shines.
In an interview with Rotten Tomatoes, Lê recalled that his family’s karaoke nights regularly featured movie soundtrack staples. “Both my mom and her sisters (I call them aunts) are music lovers, and it used to be a tradition that family karaoke sessions would always have Romeo and Juliet’s ‘A Time For Us,’ Titanic’s ‘My Heart Will Go On,’ and Beauty and the Beast’s titular song at the ready,” he shared. “’A Time For Us’ and ‘Beauty and the Beast’ actually have Vietnamese covers!”
“Listening to them often enough prompted me to find the sources, so inadvertently their obsessions were the building blocks for the film lover in me,” Lê said.
Nguyên Lê is a Houston-based freelance film critic and writer. Find him on Twitter: @nle318.
What is your favorite memory in a movie theater?
Get Out, of course. Actually, scratch that – it’s a press screening for Black Panther.
What is your biggest movie theater pet peeve?
Checking your phone in the screening, full blast, full brightness. I don’t know what could be more interesting! When you go to the theater, you go to a darkened environment, but then suddenly there’s a bit of a supernova event happened right there next to you. What’s up at that?
What’s your go-to screening snack?
Ariana DeBose and I are going to be friends, because I am a member of the Raisinet club.
Do you read other critics’ reviews before writing your own?
I try not to. However, sometimes I do break that rule – obviously not because I want to copy their ideas or anything, because that’s wrong. I just like to see how they express a point. It’s more like reading into the way that they form the sentences, the way that they play around with the words.
I think my biggest point of difference, which is also a personal caveat as well, is just that English is not my first language. I am a writer, but at the same time I’m also a learner. And sometimes I need to learn more before I write – I’ve had to breach my own rule in order to be better at this.
What’s the biggest misconception about critics?
I will answer this question from the perspective of someone of Asian descent. It’s that I am trying to replace the people who are there. I’m not – we’re not.
If we consider this field a giant roundtable, we are just hoping that we could pull up our very own seat in order to join the discussion.
(Photo by Columbia/courtesy Everett Collection)
What’s a Rotten thing that you love?
The remake of The Grudge, the 2004 version.
That movie terrifies me. I saw it as a teenager and to this day I am afraid of it. What do you love about the 2004 Grudge?
I think my answer is going to be same. It still scares the bejesus out of me until today!
Brief story time. My sister and I were just trying to test the waters in terms of watching horror. We made a deal: Let’s take horror level by level. We’re just going to start with maybe psychological or maybe emotional horror, and then we’re going to move up to something scary, something scarier, something scarier, something scarier. My sister and I we were doing just fine. And then we decided to, I don’t know, out of the blue, watch The Grudge. Only then did we realize that dang it, we skipped a whole bunch of levels.
You sure did!
I couldn’t sleep for three nights! It was too much, but I’m thankful that I was curious back then.
It actually made me go back and check out the original, after knowing it was actually a remake. That opened me up to this new realm: J-Horror. And then checking that it ballooned into, “let’s check out the entirety of Asian horror.” And it’s literally a whole new world.
It really made me appreciate the people behind the mask and the makeup. Really nice people who, whenever they appear on screen, have us frozen! Roberto Campanella, Javier Botet, Doug Jones, and, since we’re talking about The Grudge, Takako Fuji.
It’s also a good cushion knowing their names, like, okay, it’s just an actor, so that I can sleep easy. Kind of. Sort of.
What is the movie or show that you’ve watched more than any other?
Pulse from a Kiyoshi Kurosawa. It was one of those in my exploration of Asian horror – a J-Horror actually. Back then, it was just a “what if” – as in like, “what if whenever you make a connection, you are actually connecting to the other side?” Ooh, spooky. However, when you grow up, you actually realize that whenever you make a virtual connection, you are actually being in touch with isolation and loneliness. It’s an existential horror film that I really like. And, on the most superficial level, it has scares that no other film I think has been able to replicate so far.
You are brave…
Well, I do have a policy that when it’s sun down, no horror, but if it’s sun up, whatever. I just try to squeeze in as many as I can.
What is the hardest review you have ever written?
It’s the next one that I haven’t written, if that makes sense.
It’s always going to be the next one because, again, I have to kind of like let the learner inside me – to give him some lead, because he has to know how to verbalize certain things. And then once he’s okay, then he can signal the writing me in order to, “Okay, let’s catch up and let’s hold our hands and walk down this path together and complete this write up.”
I need to first be able to climb over my apprehension, my hesitation of English not being my first language, in order to write a whole review full in English.
I do write down notes in the screenings sometimes. Usually I write them down in English, just so that I can have the words in order to write later on. However, sometimes things get too complex, or it’s just that the idea that I had in my head first came to me in Vietnamese, so I have to write them down in Vietnamese and then translate later on. I have to translate it so that I can tick two boxes at the same time. First one being, I got my point across. And the second is that it has to be artful enough that the time you would spend to read it is worthwhile.
There’s a whole lot of psychological quantum physics going on before I get to go for the next one.
What are you most proud of in your career so far?
I’m still trying to work on the positive side of myself; I don’t know if there’s a moment where I ever feel like I’m really proud of what I’m doing. Sometimes there are moments where I get to realize that I’m actually really alone in this game… Writing is not exactly a field that’s admired in my community – it all boils down to whether I am happy with it or not.
If I have to pick one particular work that I’m proud of right now, it’s a deep dive into how one of the biggest film franchises on earth succeeded and then failed in bringing the Vietnamese presence onto the big screen. It’s an article that I wrote for /Film about how Star Wars failed Kelly Marie Tran, and why there’s still hope for Vietnamese representation. And I think I’m especially proud of that one because it took me two years in order to finally have the words to formulate the thoughts.
(Photo by RKO)
What’s your favorite classic film?
I would have to say Cat People. I came across the film back in school. And I only saw a snippet of it, but I think the instructor, he showed me, he said that this is the most interesting clip of that film. And I remember it. It’s sealed into my brain because it was very thrilling, but at the same time, I understand that it was a horror. It’s so memorable because I didn’t see what was horrifying our main character at all, but it still chilled me to the bone.
Was that the 1940s version or the 1980s version?
The 1942. And it was a swimming pool clip.
If you could interview anyone in the industry, living or dead, who would you want to speak with? And what would you ask them?
Gore Verbinski. Even though Pirates of the Caribbean was not my first exposure ever to what we in Vietnam called kind of “a big film,” a Hollywood production – that title belongs to Jurassic Park from Steven Spielberg – it’s the one that would constantly play in my head over and over and over and over. Back then, when I was thinking of going to film school and being a director, I actually told myself, “If I ever get to make a kind of a big film, a blockbuster production, I’m going to model it after the way that Gore Verbinski did it.” He’s just detailed and an immaculate director.
What makes a “good” movie?
Flow. I guess other critics would call it pacing, but I do like to define it as “flow,” because to me the pacing of the film, on purpose, it can be discombobulating. It can be erratic or asynchronous. But if you can make the flow of it work, then you always have a good film.
If you can make it in a way that ties everything up, whether through images or sound or anything – really any component of the film that you have – if you have the flow, then you create that visual entertainment factor that I so love.
What do you consider required viewing?
The first one is widely accessible: Jurassic Park. Because to me that is movie magic. Practical effects rule.
And I have to list this – it’s not really accessible, but people should really seek it out anyway. It’s a movie from Vietnam called Song Lang. I’m picking that film because it deals with a story that Vietnamese cinema rarely covers on screen because of a variety of reasons, one of the biggest reasons being the laws and censorship in the country. That film is sensitive, on the same level as Brokeback Mountain or Pariah.
Have you seen yourself on screen? If so, what were you watching and what did you relate to about that character or story?
I’m actually still waiting. And I don’t know, maybe it’s something that will happen after my lifetime. Maybe that’s just the pessimist in me speaking, because with additional exposure of and attention to Asian representation in media, maybe that will come soon. But I haven’t seen me on screen yet.
Even though, although I do notice – and I actually wrote an article about this for the online magazine JumpCut Online – how in 2020 there were a great number of films that make reference to Vietnam or Vietnamese characters. And in that entire year alone, that’s a whole lot more Vietnamese representation than I’ve never seen.
But in terms of waiting for a guy, an actor of Vietnamese descent, maybe briefly speaking my language and maybe wearing glasses like me – I guess I’m going to have to wait for a little bit. I haven’t seen myself yet.
(Photo by Walt Disney Pictures/ Courtesy: Everett Collection)
Who are some fellow film and television critics whose work you admire?
Carlos Aguilar (@Carlos_Film). His body of work for the LA Times is just, simply put, impressive. He is one of those writers where I would say that at a minimum, he will write something that is informative and entertaining to read, but at maximum, he will write something that at the same time opens your eyes to a whole different horizon. And that’s always just a thrill to come through articles that.
Harris Dang (@FilmMomatic). He’s in Australia. His work is very fun to read, and it’s also very eye-opening. He’s also of Vietnamese descent, so I can feel a little bit less lonely. Whenever my mind is wired in a way that’s like, You are the only person in this field… then I would say, No, Harry is out there! and then that negative thought just dissipates.
Hoai-Tran Bui (@htranbui), from over at /Film. I hope she’s okay with this, but then I publicly called her on Twitter chị hai – it’s Vietnamese for big sister.
I look up to her so much because to find someone in the field of writing in journalism, who you can relate to, and just to know shares the same background as you– It’s a test for me, and naysayers in the field, to know that just because it’s a field that the culture doesn’t regard highly, it doesn’t mean that there isn’t a successful person in that field. And if they ask, “Okay, so then who is your example?” I would show them: “Here, there’s Hoai-Tran Bui over at /Film.”
Is there someone in your life who’s not a critic whose opinion you admire?
My mom. Snooping on her watching wuxia and historical series into the early hours ignited me to expand my palette besides just phim Mỹ, or American films.
But when I told her this was one of the possible questions you’d ask, she said along the lines of the correct answer is me. Her reasoning was that, somehow I can do a live-dubbing while the film plays out, or translate the English subtitles into Vietnamese on the spot.
What is your favorite film from your childhood?
Spirited Away. And it still is.
I first became aware of the film thanks to — I actually forgot the name of the magazine already! I think it might have been called Purple Ink because that’s what students in Vietnam used to write with back then. When you mention “purple ink,” people actually will know that you’re talking about high school.
Once the film came out on DVD, my sister and I actually tracked it down in order to get a copy of it. Back then we were still learning English, so to say that we actually could understand the film then, I would say “no.”
Spirited Away is the kind of film where it grows up with you – as in, at eight years old you understand in one way, and then at 15 it means something else to you, and now me hitting 30, if I see it again, it would mean something else to me entirely.
Nguyên Lê is a Houston-based freelance film critic and writer. Find him on Twitter: @nle318.
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(Photo by Disney/ courtesy Everett Collection)
The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise launched Johnny Depp into megastardom and put pirates back on the cultural treasure map, all beginning with 2003’s The Curse of the Black Pearl. If you want to watch the Pirates of the Caribbean movies in order, set sail with Captain Jack Sparrow and his two lovely assistants Elizabeth Swann and Will Turner (Keira Knightley, Orlando Bloom) towards Dead Man’s Chest and At Worlds End.
With that trilogy closed, the series continued on with the further adventures of Jack with On Stranger Tides and Dead Men Tell No Tales. In the years since, a sixth film remains in the works, while in June 2020, Disney announced a spin-off to star Margot Robbie. For now, see our guide on how to watch the Pirates of the Caribbean movies in order. —Alex Vo
53%
43%
32%
The movie business is difficult; that shouldn’t surprise anyone. A lot of thought and care and preparation — not to mention money — goes into the filmmaking process, and sometimes the end result just doesn’t quite turn out the way its creators intended. But even when a film production goes sideways, for whatever reason, there’s often a glimmer of something incredible hidden beneath the botched line deliveries, mediocre special effects, and general ineptitude on display. Sometimes, there are great scenes to be found in truly Rotten movies.
With that in mind, we’ve compiled an initial list of 30 examples in which an inspiring exchange, an ingeniously staged action sequence, or a hilarious performance helped shine a light on otherwise mediocre productions. We’re talking about genuinely outstanding moments — not ones we find ironically amusing — that might feel right at home in more expertly crafted films. There are, of course, countless more we could have included, but we’ll save those for the next installment of this series. And, if there are any that you think belong here, let us know in the comments!
(Photo by 20th Century Fox)
DARTH MAUL vs. QUI-GON AND OBI-WAN
The long-awaited Star Wars prequel introduced us to such inexplicable horrors as Jar Jar Binks, midi-chlorians, and mind-numbing Galactic Senate debates, but the film did offer an awesome glimpse of what it could have been. The final battle pitting Darth Maul against Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi is one of the most dynamic lightsaber duels we’ve ever gotten, thanks in part to the martial arts talent of Ray Park as the Zabrak Sith Lord. Not only is the fight kinetic and inventive, who can forget the iconic moment when that second crimson beam emerges from Darth Maul’s double-bladed lightsaber?
WINGSUIT FLIGHT
The Transformers franchise is largely a jumbled mess of CGI, explosions, stilted dialogue, and perfunctory storytelling. That said, Michael Bay knows his way around visual spectacle, and while Dark of the Moon features its fair share of incomprehensible robot mayhem, there is one practical stunt (read: they did it for real) in the film that is genuinely thrilling. Bay enlisted the aid of experienced wingsuit flyers to jump off the Sears Tower and soar between Chicago’s skyscrapers as chaos unfolds all around them. It’s impressive, it’s majestic, and it’s just cool as hell. If only the rest of the movie could match this three-minute sequence…
OPENING HIGHWAY PILEUP
None of the Final Destination movies is particularly well-reviewed (Final Destination 5 is the only Fresh one at 62%), and for the most part, they all feel like a series of morbid Rube Goldberg-esque vignettes strung together by the thinnest of plots. A few of those gory scenarios, however, are surprisingly inventive, and none of them tops the opening to Final Destination 2, which sets its wheels in motion with an immaculately staged, over-the-top highway pileup that is equal parts ridiculous, harrowing, and literally explosive. Nothing else in the film even comes close.
(Photo by Distant Horizon)
DONNIE YEN vs. COLLIN CHOU
You may know Donnie Yen from Ip Man or Rogue One, and you may know Collin Chou as Seraph from the Matrix sequels, but chances are you haven’t seen this Hong Kong action thriller by Wilson Yip (who also directed the Ip Man movies). The story is a predictably rote potboiler about a loose-cannon cop who takes on a crime syndicate, but the climactic battle between Yen’s Detective Ma and Chou’s gangster Tony is savage and visceral, with bone-crushing stunt work and Yen adding MMA techniques to his more traditional martial arts style.
PARKING GARAGE SINGLE TAKE
Since directing and co-writing the first Saw, James Wan has introduced the world to the Conjuring universe, brought us the best-reviewed Fast and Furious movie, and earned the right to bring DC’s Aquaman to the big screen. Before all of that, though, he did direct this fairly absurd action thriller about a grieving father (Kevin Bacon) out for revenge against the gang who murdered his son. It’s a violent film with a ridiculous plot, but it does feature one sequence that demonstrates Wan’s potential for greater things. A two minute-long single take follows Bacon’s character as he attempts to lose his pursuers in a multi-level parking garage, with seamless camerawork that weaves up and down the ramps and alongside the outside of the garage to capture perfectly timed appearances by different characters. It’s impressive, and it far outshines everything else in the movie.
ABNER DOUBLEDAY INVENTS BASEBALL
Adam Sandler began his stint on Netflix with a bang, garnering a rare 0% with this joyless — and casually racist — spoof of The Magnificent Seven. There is one gloriously effective moment of inspired comedy, though. In a scene that riffs on the invention of baseball, John Turturro cameos as Abner Doubleday, who invites the titular sextet and a dozen others to play a new game with him, only to make up all of the sport’s rules and terminology on the spot just to ensure he wins. It may be the only joke in the movie that lands, but it lands superbly.
(Photo by New Line Cinema)
AUSTIN GOES TO HOLLYWOOD
By the time the third installment of Mike Myers’ Austin Powers series hit theaters, the world had just about had its fill of “Yeah, baby!”s and shagadelic double entendres, but the cameo-filled opening scene of Goldmember is pure magic. The film begins with an action-packed Hollywood adaptation of Austin Powers’ life story, starring Tom Cruise as the titular spy, Gwyneth Paltrow as Bond girl stand-in Dixie Normous, Kevin Spacey as Dr. Evil, and Danny DeVito as Mini Me. To top it all off, as the scene ends, the cameras pull back to reveal the man at the helm is none other than Steven Spielberg. Genius.
THE FIGHT FOR THE KEY
The first Pirates of the Caribbean film was a pleasant surprise, able to silence most of those who thought it silly to build a movie around an amusement park attraction. Every film since then has been a gradual step down, and it all began with the first sequel, Dead Man’s Chest, an overstuffed bombardment of spectacle with little but Johnny Depp’s performance to hold it all together. That said, the extended swordfight for the key to the titular chest is the high point of the film, making use of some fine stuntwork and clever setpieces to deliver a top-notch action scene.
“I WAS UP FOR PRINCESS LEIA.”
The Scream formula was getting creaky by the time they shifted the setting to Hollywood for the most meta entry in the series (the cast of a Stab film, based on the real events of Scream, start getting plucked off by a real-life ghostface). The laughs were still there, thanks mostly to a killer performance by Parker Posey as Jennifer Jolie, the actress playing Courteney Cox’s Gale Weathers; the scares, not so much. But kudos to Wes Craven and whoever else convinced Carrie Fisher to make a cameo as the disgruntled, and loyal-to-a-point, studio archivist Bianca. When approached by Jolie and Weathers on the hunt for details on a former starlet, Bianca stops them before they even get a chance to ask if she’s you know who. “I was up for Princess Leia,” Fisher explains. “I was this close. So who gets it? The one who sleeps with George Lucas.”
(Photo by Universal Pictures courtesy Everett Collection)
“LA MER” ON THE BEACH
It’s hard to deny that Mr. Bean is something of a cultural icon, and it’s essentially defined the career of Rowan Atkinson. While the early-’90s series was hugely popular, the character’s big screen outings didn’t quite measure up. 2007’s Mr. Bean’s Holiday found the endearing man-child stumbling his way through France, and it largely consisted of watered-down slapstick and his trademark buffoonery. But it was also intended to be an unofficial send-off for the character, and the film’s final moments absolutely shine in that respect. As Bean makes his way across a picturesque beach, everyone around him joins him in an uplifting rendition of “La Mer,” and it’s equal parts triumphant and bittersweet. Love him or hate him, his goodbye was perfect.
CHER’S SOLO
If you thought Cher singing “Fernando” to a man named Fernando in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again was as good, cheesy, and Cher-y as it gets at the movies, you clearly didn’t stick around for the second half of 2010’s Christina Aguilera vehicle Burlesque. The movie, which is Rotten at 36%, overflows with small pleasures for those in the just right mood (read: at least three Chardonnays into your evening), among them Kristen Bell as the vampy, villainous dancer Nikki. But when club owner Tess (Cher), fretful for the future of her business, belts out the Dianne Warren-penned survival anthem, “You Haven’t Seen the Last Of Me,” singing it to no one in particular, but somehow touching anyone who hears it, well… all hail the queen.
THE CHASE
Poor man’s Scream, rich man’s Urban Legend, I know What You Did Last Summer was one of the defining slashers of the mid-to-late ’90s – even if it was one of the most generic and uninspired, sitting at 35%. Most remember it for its laughably hysterical moments (“What are you waiting fooooor!?”) and that weird Anne Heche business, but even the most discerning of genre fans give credit to director Jim Gillespie for the sequence in which the guy with the hook chases Sarah Michelle Geller’s Helen Shivers all over town. It’s genuinely scary (beware the mannequin jump scare), giggle-inducing (did she really just drop the keys), and a tiny bit moving in the end. Why the hell did she turn around?
(Photo by 20th Century Fox)
LOGAN AND VICTOR THROUGH THE WARS
X-Men Origins: Wolverine was Fox’s first attempt at a solo story based on one of their beloved Marvel properties, and other than hiring Liev Schreiber to star opposite Hugh Jackman, the film has precious few things going for it. (Seriously, who thought letting will.i.am speak — and shutting Ryan Reynolds up — was a good idea?) At least we got a pretty great opening credits sequence out of it: after revealing the origin of Logan’s (Jackman) relationship to Victor Creed (Schreiber), the film depicts the half-brothers fighting alongside each other in the US Civil War, both World Wars, and the Vietnam War, illustrating Victor’s violent descent in the process. That’s the movie we all wished we could have seen.
GARY OLDMAN WAXES NOSTALGIC ABOUT DISFIGUREMENT
Neither director Jonathan Demme nor star Jodie Foster returned for this 10-years-later sequel, but most assumed it was in capable hands, with Ridley Scott taking the helm, David Mamet penning the script, and Julianne Moore taking Foster’s place as Clarice Starling. The end result wasn’t expected to live up to its predecessor, but few foresaw the smug, unsatisfying tale of gore we ultimately got. However, in an initially uncredited role, an unrecognizable Gary Oldman plays disfigured Lecter victim Mason Verger, whose macabre retelling of his encounter with Lecter is chilling, gruesome, and a testament to Oldman’s ability to captivate an audience, even with a slab of play-doh stuck to his face.
“I’VE GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN”
Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor made names for themselves with the Crank series, so it was evident from the start they weren’t exactly interested in high art. Right after Crank: High Voltage, in fact, they came back with this futuristic thriller starring Gerard Butler that plays more like a CGI-blasted update on The Running Man, but with far fewer genuine thrills. Rotten at 28%, the movie is kind of a slog to get through, but when Butler’s Kable infiltrates the mansion of evil game developer Castle (Michael C. Hall), something almost magical happens. Castle reveals himself to Kable via a choreographed dance routine set to Sinatra’s “I’ve Got You under My Skin,” complete with a troupe of mind-controlled brawlers. As Kable fends off his attackers and Castle continues lip-syncing in the background, you can’t help but wonder, “Why couldn’t the rest of the movie have been this interesting?”
(Photo by Columbia Pictures)
TERRY CREWS LOVES VANESSA CARLTON
Despite the cult popularity of In Living Color during the early 1990s, the various members of the Wayans family have struggled to achieve the same kind of success on the big screen. Much of their output has been defined by spoof movies and sub-subpar comedies like White Chicks, built from interesting enough ideas for a sketch or two, but a bit too flimsy for an entire movie. In this case, though, the presence of Terry Crews does help liven things up, and he is at his absolute best when he gleefully lights up as Vanessa Carlton’s “A Thousand Miles” comes on the radio and he begins to lip-sync with it. It’s a small chunk of comedy gold in the middle of a stale, moldy, powdered-sugar donut.
THE “FIRST-PERSON SHOOTER” SEQUENCE
Back when he was still going by “The Rock,” Dwayne Johnson paid his dues in stinkers like 2005’s Doom, which did little to inspire confidence in video game adaptations on the big screen. At a measly 19% on the Tomatometer, Doom is an incoherent mess of a sci-fi action flick and an unfortunate stain on the resumes of all involved. But there is one instance of blatant fan service that, well, actually kind of works. The camera takes on the first-person viewpoint of Karl Urban’s character, Reaper, for several minutes as he tears through the research facility, blasting mutated baddies along the way. It’s a carefully planned and choreographed sequence that’s not only true to the game, but incredibly ballsy to attempt, and they managed to pull it off with pizazz.
THE 15-MINUTE FINAL BATTLE
After he brought a fresh new take on martial arts films with 2003’s Ong Bak, Tony Jaa co-directed and starred in its “sequel,” Ong Bak 2, which was neither set in the same time period as the first nor really related to it in any way outside of its title. Ong Bak 2 left much of its predecessor’s playfulness by the wayside in exchange for an overly serious and familiar tale of revenge that exposed Jaa’s shortcomings behind the camera. With that in mind, it’s still worth fast-forwarding to the final battle of the film, a glorious display of Jaa’s martial arts prowess that sees him utilizing multiple fighting styles and weapons techniques to take down an entire village of assassins over 15 brutal minutes of non-stop action. It’s visceral and awe-inspiring, and it highlights not only Jaa’s immense skill but also the dedication of his stunt team, who no doubt took a massive beating during the shoot.
(Photo by Lou Faulon/STX Entertainment)
OPENING SCENE
This is not Luc Besson’s first space rodeo, but working with a $200 million budget, he evidently felt compelled to throw every wacky idea he ever had at the screen. The end result is a visually exquisite but narratively slipshod adventure, but it features another standout opening scene that hints at the film’s true potential. Set to the music of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity,” it chronicles the history of technological advancement that eventually leads to the film’s intergalactic setting, and it reflects a refreshingly hopeful, wholesome future of peace and cooperation that’s both touching and clever. And then the rest of the movie happens.
ROD’S QUIET PLACE
Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, and Akiva Schaffer have amassed a huge following, thanks to their work as The Lonely Island, and fans of their brand of humor are often quick to come to the defense of this cult comedy (we get it; some of you love it). Unfortunately, critics didn’t quite feel the same way, calling Hot Rod a loosely threaded collection of hit-or-miss sketches that fails to live up to its stars’ potential. The biggest “hit” of the lot, though, is clearly the scene when Rod (Samberg) escapes to his “quiet place” in the woods to blow off some steam and ends up tumbling down a hill for nearly a full minute. It begins as a spoofy Footloose homage before it suddenly turns into one of the greatest — and probably the longest — pratfalls ever filmed, and it’s pretty glorious.
“THERE WAS A FIREFIGHT!”
Perhaps the only good thing about The Boondock Saints is the opportunity to see Willem Dafoe at full tilt (though, to be fair, when is that ever not a good thing?). Much of the film is dedicated to macho posturing and childish fantasy wish-fulfillment — not a surprise considering its notoriously toxic writer-director — but there is a brief moment that lingers long after the credits roll. As Dafoe’s FBI agent Smecker arrives on the scene of a shootout, he begins to visualize what took place, passionately conducting a chorus that only exists in his mind and proclaiming, “There was a firefight!” The whole scene falls somewhere between unhinged and insane, and Dafoe’s exclamation is the cherry on top.
(Photo by Warner Bros.)
A RHINO GIVES BIRTH
Before he really began to demonstrate his range in movies like The Truman Show during the 1990s, Jim Carrey had to wade his way through a number of films that almost solely relied on his gift for physical comedy. His outlandish antics weren’t for everyone, though, particularly when you’d seen them before, and so the Ace Ventura sequel, When Nature Calls, settled at a measly 33% on the Tomatometer. While the movie feels like a somewhat stitched-together series of vignettes, the scene when Ace becomes trapped in a mechanical rhino, strips naked, and escapes through a tiny hole in the rear is… Well, as Simon Pegg put it, “It is one of the single most genius pieces of comedic writing that will never be given its due because it’s part of a ridiculous, vaguely racist, silly comedy.”
THE EMINEM INTERVIEW
Eminem is no stranger to controversy, and his most recent album reignited a familiar one about his use of homophobic slurs in his lyrics. Say what you will about his word choice, but the man is essentially besties with Elton John, and he even skewered himself on the issue in what is certainly the best scene in the 2014 comedy The Interview. As James Franco’s talk show host Dave Skylark interviews Em on his show, the contentious rapper casually reveals that he’s gay, and that he’s surprised no one has figured it out yet, considering the “breadcrumb trail” he’s left behind in all his lyrics. It’s a rather surprisingly effective moment that only works because of all the controversy he’s attracted, and his deadpan, matter-of-fact delivery is pitch perfect, making him the funniest man in the room.
FINAL RACE
After the success of the Matrix trilogy, the Wachowskis had carte blanche to work on whatever they wanted, and they chose to take on this long-in-development feature adaptation of the classic animated series. Despite their impressive technical wizardry and the candy-colored dreamscape they brought to life, the film bombed both critically and commercially. Even if you don’t love the movie as a whole, it’s hard to deny the power of the climactic race, an unexpectedly heartfelt finale bursting with top-notch special effects that not only boasts kinetic thrills but also provides closure on a key plot point. The film has gone on to inspire a cult following, and this ending is a big part of it.
(Photo by 20th Century Fox)
THE WET BANDITS GET BRICKED
The law of diminishing returns is very real, but when it comes to movies, it’s difficult to argue with a moviegoing public that saw something it liked and simply wanted more of the same. Enter Home Alone 2, which essentially repurposes the story from its predecessor but changes its setting from Chicago to New York. The silly shenanigans here are so familiar that it all essentially feels like a lazy rehash of the same movie. That said, the scene where little Kevin (Macaulay Caulkin) displays Hawkeye-level brick-throwing accuracy just gets funnier with every painful crunch, if only because Daniel Stern’s googly-eyed desperation and concussed mumbling reaches vaudevillian heights.
QUINN AND CREEDY DO STAR WARS
Nowadays, a fantasy action film headlined by Matthew McConaughey and Christian Bale might be met with fierce anticipation, but that’s exactly what we got in 2002’s Reign of Fire, and it was far less than the sum of its parts. Despite an intriguing, if somewhat goofy, take on post-apocalyptic humanity and some fairly successfully realized CGI dragons, the film bombed with critics and audiences alike. But in one scene, Bale’s Quinn and Gerard Butler’s Creedy reenact the climactic battle from The Empire Strikes Back for a crowd of awestruck children, playing it as an oral tradition, a campfire tale told from generation to generation. It’s an inspired nod to the power of Star Wars and a wink to the audience that hits its mark much more effectively than much of the rest of the film.
THE MISSING PHONE
By the time the third Jurassic Park movie came along, it was already clear the franchise was starting to run out of ideas (gymnastics battle, anyone?), and putting dinos onscreen was deemed sufficient. At least JP3 had a pretty formidable new breed in the Spinosaurus, and one scene in particular hints at how much better the film would have been with a bit more ingenuity. After Paul Kirby’s (William H. Macy) satellite phone goes missing earlier in the movie, his newly reunited son Eric reveals it was the sound of that phone that alerted them to their location. Cue the ominous ringing of the phone… and the Spinosaurus that swallowed it.
(Photo by Universal Pictures)
MEET MR. HYDE
Last year’s reboot of Universal’s classic monster movie franchise performed so dreadfully that the studio’s plans for its own “Dark Universe” were almost immediately eighty-sixed. That was, in itself, a pretty incredible feat, considering they had the talents of Tom Cruise and Russell Crowe to work with, but at the very least, the latter provided arguably the one standout moment of the movie. Crowe brought a complex intensity to the dual role of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, sophisticated in one breath and savage the next, and it left many of us asking if we couldn’t at least see a bit more of him, regardless of what happened to the Dark Universe.
PACINO’S SPEECH
Oliver Stone’s Any Given Sunday could have been so much more than it was, and at over two and a half hours, it was already a lot. Its overlong run time isn’t the only issue the film has, though; it also reiterates timeworn sports movie cliches and attempts to cast a critical eye on pro football even as Stone fetishizes it. All that aside, when you’ve got Al Pacino at your disposal, the smartest thing you can do is set him loose on some meaty lines, and that’s exactly what happens when Pacino delivers a pregame pep talk late in the film. It’s a powerful moment that really cements what Stone saw when he cast Pacino in the role of a head coach. Who wouldn’t follow that man?
THE BIG WAVE
It’s always a little tricky to turn real-life tragedy into a blockbuster production, but Wolfgang Petersen gathered a top-notch cast and gave it a go anyway. The Perfect Storm provided a pre-Pirates opportunity for Petersen to practice his nautical storytelling skills, but he proved he was more interested in the spectacle of it all. At the very least, he delivered an epic climax that ramped up the drama and pitted George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, William Fichtner, and the rest of the Andrea Gail crew against a monster wave they couldn’t hope to survive. It’s an amazing image, and the fact that it isn’t an exaggeration of what the open sea may hold makes it that much more terrifying.
(Photo by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)
The 2018 Electronic Entertainment Expo offered some promising new titles inspired by our favorite films and television shows when it hit the Los Angeles Convention Center June 12-14. Games based on movies and serialized TV are nothing new, but the genre has a history of pushing out products more focused on promoting an IP than offering a quality interactive experience.
That’s changing. Game developers, passionate about the same titles as the rest of us, are shelving the marketing-spun schlock in favor of crafting ambitious projects that put us in our favorite fictional worlds.
Here are 10 we can’t wait to play!
Luc Besson’s return to the big space opera scene with Valerian and the Thousand Planets comes at a hefty price: a reported $180 million, easily making it the most expensive French production ever. And such fiscal modesty inspires this week’s gallery of the 24 most expensive movies ever made! (Budgets and box office are adjusted for inflation, with the base numbers from Box Office Mojo, natch.)
Aye yo, it be Talk Like a Pirate Day on Rrrotten Tomatoes! We have plundered the internet for pictures of our fellow piratanical hearties for yer sole entertainment! Let’s crack open the barrel and see what crawls out of the bung hole, savvy?
With anticipation so high theaters across the country were adding midnight and early a.m. shows to meet demand, Christopher Nolan‘s Batman sequel The Dark Knight took in an estimated $66.4 million on opening day. If projections are accurate, it could also become the highest-grossing opening weekend of all time.
According to Box Office Mojo and Exhibitor Relations, The Dark Knight recorded the highest-grossing single opening day in history, beating the $59.8 million mark set by previous record holder Spider-Man 3.
The Certified Fresh Dark Knight has already earned the approval of critics (see this week’s Critics Consensus column). At 94 percent on the Tomatometer, it is one of the best-reviewed films of the year. This weekend it may also become the rare blockbuster that reaches both critical and commercial success, as three-day estimates have it projected to take in a weekend total of $155 million — topping previous record holder Spider-Man 3 ($151 million).
Pre-opening projections had The Dark Knight pegged to approach $132 million territory, but Warner Bros.’ decision to open in a staggering 4,366 theaters and in higher-priced IMAX showings, exhibitors’ move to slot in midnight and early morning screenings, incredibly high buzz generated by stellar reviews and the appeal to fans of attending multiple screenings on opening weekend have contributed to a greater than expected performance. [Check back Sunday for Gitesh Pandya’s Box Office Wrapup report.]
Numbers provided by Exhibitor Relations also state that this weekend’s overall box office take (combining all films) is expected to gross $250 million. The highest previous weekend was recorded in 2006 when the combined forces of Superman Returns and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest helped to rake in an overall $218 million weekend.
Find more news, reviews, showtimes and movie information at the Dark Knight movie page, watch this week’s Review Revue video for our discussion of The Dark Knight and this week’s opening films, and check out the Critics Consensus column to find out what exactly the critics are saying about The Dark Knight.
Matt Damon aims to gun down his competitors and rule the North American box office this weekend with The Bourne Ultimatum, the third in the popular spy series, which opens on Friday aiming to sell more tickets than the frame’s four other new wide releases combined. The Universal release reteams the actor with director Paul Greengrass who helmed the last installment in the franchise The Bourne Supremacy which bowed to $52.5M in July 2004 on its way to a stellar $176.1M domestic cume. The Bourne series has been very well-received and fans do not seem sick of it yet so expect most to return for this new threequel.
Ultimatum has three major advantages over Supremacy – 500 more theaters, slightly higher ticket prices, and less competition from action flicks. Three years ago when the last Bourne bowed on top, the next three films on the charts were all action titles gobbling up a similar $53.5M between them. This time, Hollywood has taken a break with comedies and wizardry filling up the top five so audiences should be ready for an action-packed film from a reliable brand name. As is often the case with the third part in a franchise, there will be some who feel they saw this twice before and don’t need to spend money yet again for the same entertainment. And others will feel that the summer’s eleventh sequel will be a bit too much.
However, ticket sales from adults over 25 should be solid since Ultimatum‘s serious tone counters the wave of immature films flooding the marketplace. Plus critics
are showering the new Bourne with praise which will help convince those with some doubt. Invading 3,661 locations, Universal could possibly score its biggest
opening in four years with The Bourne Ultimatum which might bow to around $55M this weekend.
LAST YEAR: Will Ferrell raced to the top spot with the comedy Talladega Nights which bowed to an impressive $47M. The Sony release went on to gross $148M. Debuting far back in second place was the animated film Barnyard with $15.8M to kick off a leggy run that resulted in a $72.6M final for Paramount. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest placed third with $11M followed by Miami Vice which tumbled by 60% in its second weekend to $10.2M. Lionsgate opened its horror flick The Descent with $8.9M on its way to $26M.
Author: Gitesh Pandya, www.BoxOfficeGuru.com
Bart, Lisa, and the whole gang from Springfield will charge into multiplexes across North America and much of the world this weekend in the highly anticipated animated comedy The Simpsons Movie which looks to easily conquer the box office. But competing studios do have other menu items in store for moviegoers. Catherine Zeta-Jones stars in the romantic comedy No Reservations, Lindsay Lohan headlines the grisly thriller I Know Who Killed Me, and hip hop star Big Boi tries out the world of golf comedy in Who’s Your Caddy?
Fox is aiming for hardcore followers and casual fans alike with its long-in-the-works comedy The Simpsons Movie which hits screens at midnight on Thursday night. The PG-13 film has a substantial built-in audience and should play out like a semi-sequel. To some extent it will be one of the more unpredictable openings of the summer since there is no track record of Simpsons fans leaving their TVs and paying money at the box office, however the fan base is sizable and will definitely come out upfront. Reviews have been good too so those who tuned out a decade ago and miss the Bobo years should return to try out what the feature-length entree is like.
The studio gets major points for executing what is certainly one of the best marketing campaigns of the year. From turning a dozen 7-11s into Kwik-E-Marts to the SimpsonizeMe web promotion, The Simpsons Movie has been generating substantial interest and has jumped from the entertainment pages to the front pages becoming a major pop culture event. That should lead to a powerful opening weekend, even if large drops follow. The marketplace will get crowded this weekend, however Simpsons will tower over its foes with ease. In fact its nearest competitors should only be in the teen millions so Krusty and company will get the attention of most folks. Busting into 3,922 theaters, The Simpsons Movie could open in the neighborhood of $54M.
Adam Sandler comedies typically drop by 45-50% on the second weekend depending on how well received they are. I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry is not exactly a fan favorite so sales could get sliced in half and fall to about $17M. That would still give the Universal comedy about $70M after ten days.
New Line enjoyed a better than expected bow for the musical Hairspray which gave the studio its best opening in two years. However its Friday-to-Saturday drop of 15% last weekend indicates that it might be a front-loaded title. Look for a 50% fall to around $14M giving the John Travolta vehicle a ten-day tally of $59M.
LAST YEAR: Universal’s summer action entry Miami Vice opened atop the charts with $25.7M on its way to $63.5M domestically and $164M worldwide. After three weeks at number one, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest slipped to second with $20.6M. Fox’s teen comedy John Tucker Must Die enjoyed a solid opening in third with $14.3M leading to a $41M final. The animated film Monster House followed with $11.7M in its sophomore frame. Rounding out the top five was rival toon The Ant Bully with a $8.4M opening on its way to a disappointing $28.1M for Warner Bros. Introducing herself to the world in limited release was Abigail Breslin in Little Miss Sunshine which went on to become a critical and commercial hit grabbing $59.9M at the box office plus four Oscar nominations.
Author: Gitesh Pandya, www.BoxOfficeGuru.com
The Hogwarts posse is back with the highly anticipated launch of "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix", the fifth film in the blockbuster wizard series which has already grossed $3.53 billion worldwide.
The PG-13 film reunites the major cast members and features British television director David Yates at the helm this time. Unlike previous installments, this new one began with a record $44.2M Wednesday launch instead of the usual Friday bow. This spreads the opening weekend audience out over five days and reduces the amount of comparisons the industry will make to "Spider-Man 3" which set a new all-time debut record in May with its gargantuan $151.1M three-day launch.
Opening weekend grosses for the most part have gotten bigger through the "Potter" series. "Sorcerer’s Stone" bowed to a then-record $90.3M and was followed by "Chamber of Secrets" with $88.4M, "Prisoner of Azkaban" with $93.7M, and "Goblet of Fire" with $102.3M. "Prisoner" was the only summer release (early June when most kids were still in school) and remains the lowest grossing of the franchise with $249.4M. This time, Warner Bros. has positioned "Potter" in the middle of July when all students are out of school and can go to the movies seven days a week. The move was smart since these films usualy don’t have good legs and absorb the bulk of their business upfront.
By Friday, "Phoenix" will be playing in an eye-popping 4,285 theaters making it the second widest opening in history after the 4,362 of May’s "At World’s End" which grossed $139.8M in its first four days. The new "Potter," however, is more likely to play out like "Spider-Man 2" which launched on a Wednesday in late June/early July of 2004. It captured a stunning $152.4M in its Wednesday-to-Sunday frame with the Fourth of July holiday falling on day 5. "Phoenix" does not have a holiday to utilize, but it does stand as a another megahyped sequel from one of the most popular franchises of this decade.
The studio’s marketing has been strong as usual for their favorite son. A record 91 Imax locations are playing the soon-to-be-blockbuster which will help add more potency to the numbers. Plus, excitement is extra high this time because of the anticipation surrounding the seventh and final book which by some strange coincidence will be released at the end of next week. Film 5 and book 7 will join forces and help market each other and push the media to do even more stories than usual on the property.
Competition for the long-titled film will come from pics with short names like "Transformers" and "Ratatouille," but that should not be too much of a factor since "Potter" has a clearly-defined audience. Despite some negative reviews from key critics, overall the film has earned good marks. Again this should not matter much since die-hard fans would never miss being part of the opening weekend anyway. What will matter is word-of-mouth. With the Wednesday bow, the studio will need fans to love the picture in order to spread positive buzz to more casual fans and to come back again for repeat viewing. The film’s B+ average grade from over 9,000 votes on Yahoo Movies is a decent but not spectacular start in that department.
Warner Bros is not out to break records this weekend. It’s all about collecting cash over as many summer nights as possible. "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" might be able to open to about $90M over the Friday-to-Sunday period and around $155M over the five-day debut frame.
The magic trio is back
Elisha Cuthbert enters the horror scene in the new gorefest "Captivity," a new fright flick quietly being tossed into the marketplace. Released by After Dark Films, the R-rated entry chronicles the capture and torture of a successful model and is aimed at genre fans who like the most extreme form of horror. The marketing push has not been very strong and aside from "1408," most fright films in recent months have all flopped. This should be no different. With Optimus Prime, Mr. Potter, and John McClane all offering brand name summer action, "Captivity" should find it difficult to get noticed. Opening in about 1,500 locations on Friday the 13th, a $4M debut seems likely.
No one told her she’d be opening opposite "Harry Potter."
Last weekend, "Transformers" rocked the box office with its extended opening week haul of $155.4M. A severe drop is in store this weekend thanks to the wizard sequel. Had both "Transformers" and "Potter" opened on a Friday, a weekend drop of 60% or more would result. But since frames are diluted down from their full potential, a 50% decline may instead occur. That would give Paramount about $35M for the frame and a cume of $222M after 13.5 days.
Disney’s "Ratatouille" is holding up well but will lose some of its kid audience to the Hogwarts flick. Since the "Potter" pics are getting darker, parents of younger children will probably avoid it and opt for the G-rated rodent cartoon instead. A 35% drop to around $19M would give the toon a plump $143M after 17 days.
LAST YEAR: Despite dropping 54%, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest" topped the box office with a colossal $62.3M in its second weekend. In a close race for the silver medal, Sony’s comedy "Little Man" edged out a second place debut with $21.6M followed closely by Universal’s rival comedy "You, Me and Dupree" which bowed to $21.5M. The Wayans brothers found their way to $58.3M while the Owen Wilson pic enjoyed better legs with a $75.6M final. Rounding out the top five were "Superman Returns" with $12.3M and "The Devil Wears Prada" with $10.4M.
Author: Gitesh Pandya, www.BoxOfficeGuru.com
Megatron and his sinister robot chums invade the North American box office aiming to extract riches from the multiplexes over the extended Fourth of July holiday week with the tentpole action vehicle "Transformers."
Also entering the marketplace, but likely to gross only a fraction of the cash, is the comedy "License to Wed" starring Robin Williams. With Independence Day falling on a Wednesday, moviegoers have all different kinds of schedules with some having only one day off from work while others are taking extra time for themselves. That will make for a tricky box office trajectory since ticket buyers have many films to choose from and many days to make their trip to cinemas.
Paramount sets off the fireworks with "Transformers" which already got an early start to the holiday week with a strong $8.8M in ticket sales on Monday night with shows beginning at 8pm. The PG-13 film from director Michael Bay is adapted from the popular toys and cartoon series that became a cult favorite in the 1980s, but instead has been geared up to fit modern summer movie standards with action, humor, and plenty of special effects. Shia LaBeouf stars alongside Tyrese Gibson, Jon Voight, Anthony Anderson, and John Turturro.
[Editor’s Note: "Transformers" broke records for having the biggest opening on a Tuesday at $27.9 million, according to Boxofficemojo.com. As of Wednesday night (the original "official" release date), "Transformers" had raked in $36.7 million at the box office — a figure that grants the flick the title of Best 4th of July opening ever. That number (what many have pointed out amounts to over $36 million in 36 hours of release, or $1 million per hour and $16,666 per minute) results from the Paramount release’s $8.8 million Monday night take combined with $27.9 million on Tuesday. An additional $29.1 million from Wednesday’s moviegoers bumps the current "Transformers" box office to $65.7 million — and there are four more days to go.]
"Transformers" is trying hard to follow in the footsteps of "Independence Day" which eleven years ago this week wreaked havoc on the box office with a Fourth of July opening week gross of $96.1M over five and a half days beginning with Tuesday night shows starting earlier at 6pm. That would amount to about $125M at today’s ticket prices from 1,129 fewer theaters than what the robots in disguise now control. Both films are essentially disaster pictures about alien forces that invade Earth that are driven by amazing special effects and feature ensemble casts with no huge stars.
The fanboy crowd has been energized for months for "Transformers" so that vote is locked in. To really see the grosses soar, Paramount and DreamWorks will need non-fans to pony up the dough and take interest not because they remember watching the cartoon as a kid, but because it looks and feels like good escapist summer fare. Luckily the pic delivers on that. Appeal to teens and young adults is potent but older adults looking for action may be tempted to buy a ticket for Bruce Willis in the latest "Die Hard" sequel. In addition, younger children afraid of mean transforming robots will instead line up for "Ratatouille." But so far reviews have been pretty good for its genre and fans are giving high marks too as witnessed by the encouraging A- average grade from over 6,000 votes on Yahoo Movies.
Other effects-driven sci-fi action tentpoles opening over this extended holiday week include 2002’s "Men in Black II" with $87.2M over five days, 2003’s R-rated "Terminator 3" with $72.4M over five and a half days, and $100.5M over five days for "War of the Worlds" in 2005. Optimus Prime should soar higher since it has a full six and a half days of play this week by the time Sunday night arrives. Invading 4,011 theaters, "Transformers" might gross about $67M over the Friday-to-Sunday period and a stellar $130M from Monday night through Sunday.
"Transformers"
Taking one of his worst beatings from critics in years, Oscar winner Robin Williams hit multiplexes on Tuesday with his latest comedy "License to Wed" playing a wacky priest who puts a newly engaged couple through a series of tests before marrying them. The PG-13 film stars Mandy Moore and "The Office"’s John Krasinski as the lucky twosome. The Warner Bros. title is slotted into this extra long holiday week as counter-programming to the Decepticons and hopes to appeal to women and adult couples not interested in the summer’s umpteenth action extravaganza.
Aside from the former Mork, "License" has no real starpower at the box office. Even Williams has struggled to pack them in on opening weekend in recent years. His last film "Man of the Year" bowed to $12.3M last fall. Word-of-mouth is not likely to be very positive and if anything, the early opening may spread bad buzz as by Friday many will hear from friends that they should avoid this pic. The midweek debut will also dilute the weekend numbers too. A stronger title could have excelled this week with the target audience given all the testosterone flicks, but this one just doesn’t have the goods. Opening in 2,401 theaters, "License to Wed" might collect about $11M over the weekend and $18M during the extended Tuesday-to-Sunday debut period.
"License to Wed"
Disney and Pixar enjoyed a brief three-day stint in the number one spot last weekend with "Ratatouille" before being pushed aside by the Autobots on Monday. Second weekend drops for Pixar’s summer toons include 44% for last year’s "Cars" and a slimmer 34% for 2003’s "Finding Nemo." The rodent flick is well-liked by moviegoers and competition for younger children is not too direct this coming weekend so a decline in between those two may result. A 35% drop would give "Ratatouille" about $30M for the weekend and a ten-day cume of $109M.
"Ratatouille"
Bruce Willis will have his hands full with "Live Free or Die Hard" on the second weekend thanks to fierce direct competition from "Transformers." A 50% drop would not be surprising and would give Fox around $16.5M for the session boosting the 12-day tally to $83M. Universal’s "Evan Almighty" should continue its rapid slide and dip by 45% to roughly $8M. That would put the Steve Carell comedy at $78M after 17 days.
LAST YEAR: After a long four-year term as the top opening of all-time, "Spider-Man" had its record stolen by Captain Jack as "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest" crushed the industry mark with an eye-popping three-day bow of $135.6M. The Disney smash easily became the biggest blockbuster of the year with $423.3M domestically and a towering $1.065 billion worldwide and it still stands as the third largest global grosser of all-time. "Superman Returns" tumbled down to second place falling by a disturbing 59% to $21.8M for Warner Bros. Fox’s "The Devil Wears Prada" enjoyed a better sophomore hold dropping 46% to $15M for third place. Rounding out the top five were Adam Sandler‘s "Click" with $11.9M for Sony and Disney/Pixar’s "Cars" with $10.7M.
Author: Gitesh Pandya, www.BoxOfficeGuru.com
Source: Boxofficemojo.com
The battle of the summer’s biggest smash isn’t decided just yet, but it looks like "Spider-Man 3" will have to be content with the biggest domestic release — while "At World’s End" takes the global prize.
According to Deadline Hollywood Daily, "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End" has pulled in over $907 million in worldwide box office, making it only the 9th film to ever accomplish that feat. In comparison, the third "Spider-Man" adventure has made about $882 million across the planet — and it’s been out longer.
In North America alone, "SM3" has done about $333 million, while "P3" has done "only" about $296 million.
According to Box Office Mojo, the top ten all-time global grossers are: "Titanic," "Return of the King," "Dead Man’s Chest," "Sorcerer’s Stone," "Two Towers," "Phantom Menace," "Shrek 2," "Jurassic Park," "At World’s End," and "Goblet of Fire" — with "SM3" presently holding at number 11.
Source: Deadline Hollywood Daily, Box Office Mojo
Disney and Pixar aim for their eighth straight number one hit together with the latest computer animated film from the industry experts, "Ratatouille."
For those looking for a higher body count in their weekend entertainment, Fox offers the actioner "Live Free or Die Hard" which stands as the ninth sequel in nine weeks this summer. In more limited national release, Lionsgate expands its Michael Moore documentary "Sicko" while Focus opens its anti-"Die Hard" pic "Evening." This weekend’s box office champ will only have a short-lived stay at number one since "Transformers" will begin its assault on the multiplexes on Monday night attacking at 8pm.
Scurrying into its usual position atop the charts, Pixar returns to capture the family audience with "Ratatouille" hoping for what could be a long run at the summer box office. The G-rated pic tells of a lovable rat with a gift for cooking that finds itself working secretly in a famous Paris restaurant with a clumsy human boy. Brad Bird ("The Incredibles," "The Iron Giant") directs and the voice cast includes Patton Oswalt, Peter O’Toole, Brian Dennehy, and Janeane Garofalo. Not the biggest names in the biz, but this one will not be sold on the starpower of actors. It is the Pixar brand name, and to an extent the Disney logo, that will bring in paying customers. Parents and children know they are guaranteed a great time so the brand will sell itself. Reviews have also been glowing across the board which will help too.
Last summer, the Disney/Pixar team saw its "Cars" drive off with $60.1M on opening weekend on its way to a $244.1M final which by the end of the year made it the second biggest blockbuster of 2006 after "Dead Man’s Chest." "Night at the Museum"’s prolonged run into 2007 allowed it to eventually surpass "Cars." Pixar’s previous toons "The Incredibles" and "Finding Nemo" both bowed at the $70M mark however. "Ratatouille" will cater to the same audience, but direct competition for families will be tougher than it was with the prior pics. Though fading fast, "Evan Almighty" and the "Fantastic Four" sequel are both PG films specifically designed to appeal to kids and should steal away close to $25M combined. But the rat film should enjoy an extended stay in North American multiplexes as word-of-mouth will be very positive and moviegoers will enjoy having a new story with new characters instead of the same old sequels all the time. Launching in over 3,500 theaters, "Ratatouille" could gross about $57M this weekend.
"Ratatouille"
Bruce Willis returns to his signature franchise after a dozen-year gap with "Live Free or Die Hard," Fox’s next big entry into the summer movie sweepstakes. Keeping with the new fad of tamer ratings, the fourth installment of the series keeps the action high but cuts back on extended shots of blood and foul language in order to secure the PG-13. The previous "Die Hards" were all R-rated with the last two being number one openers. Directed by Len Wiseman, who helmed both "Underworld" pics, "Live Free" co-stars Justin Long and finds Bruce’s John McClane character assigned to protect a computer hacker who holds the key to stopping a virtual terrorist from taking control of the country electronically.
Since today’s teenagers never felt the excitement of rushing out to the theaters to see a new "Die Hard" flick, the studio has worked hard to make it relevant to the most sought after demographic so they don’t think of this as their father’s action movie. The new rating, the high-tech plot, and the Mac-friendly Long could certainly help. Plus in a summer filled with super heroes and pirates, "Die Hard" gets retro with action not driven by effects, but by stunts. The audience should skew male and older. Plus there are die hard "Die Hard" fans that have been waiting patiently for twelve years that will be out upfront to see their hero return. Reviews have been good and the film actually delivers solid entertainment without being the type of creative disappointment that audiences have unfortunately become used to this summer. Opening Wednesday in 3,172 theaters, "Live Free or Die Hard" could generate about $31M over the three-day weekend and around $48M over the five-day debut period.
"Live Free or Die Hard"
Oscar winner Michael Moore turns his wrath on the health care system in his latest documentary "Sicko." The PG-13 entry comes with the filmmaker’s usual desperate need to generate controversy in order to sell tickets. The new film does not carry with it the monstrous buzz that propelled "Fahrenheit 9/11" to a surprise number one opening three years ago. Given the subject matter, "Sicko" should skew older. Lionsgate is rolling the film out slowly instead of opening nationwide on the first weekend as it should take a little longer to get people interested in buying a ticket. The distributor is hoping that last weekend’s solo New York debut, last Saturday’s sneak previews in Moore-friendly markets, and this frame’s limited expansion to a few hundred sites will get people talking as the country heads into the Fourth of July holiday week ahead. Holiday buzz would then justify a wider rollout. Expanding to 441 theaters on Friday, "Sicko" could collect about $7M and generate a sizzling per-theater average.
"Sicko"
In the weekend’s toughest sell, acclaimed Hollywood actresses band together to define the term "chick flick" with the dying-mother drama "Evening." Vanessa Redgrave, Meryl Streep, Glenn Close, Claire Danes, and Toni Collette star in the Focus release which should see most of its business come from white adult women. The PG-13 film is trying to offer summer ticket buyers an alternative to the endless string of testosterone-fueled action sequels, but it comes up short when it comes to commercial bells and whistles. Sure there is some well-respected starpower, but comedy always sells better than drama with female-skewing pictures. And look for mothers to join their kids for "Ratatouille" which take many in the target audience out of the picture. Opening nationally in 978 theaters, "Evening" might gross about $3M this weekend.
"Evening"
Last weekend’s top earner "Evan Almighty" wasn’t exactly explosive out of the gate. This weekend will be a tough one as well since Pixar will steal away the family audience and John McClane will take away his share of summer moviegoers too. A 50% drop to about $15M would leave Universal with $60M after ten days.
"1408" scared up some strong sales last weekend in its debut. But fright flicks fall hard on the second weekend so a 55% decline would give the John Cusack thriller around $9.5M for the frame and a ten-day cume of $39M.
A similar fate could await "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer" which tumbled by 66% in its sophomore session. Fox might drop down to roughly $9M boosting the 17-day total to $115M.
LAST YEAR: Warner Bros. flew into the top spot with the ultraexpensive comic flick "Superman Returns" which bowed to a not-so-muscular $52.5M over three days and $84.6M in its first five days. The Man of Steel made its way to $200.1M domestically and $390M worldwide which fell below industry expectations. Exceeding pre-release expectations was Meryl Streep‘s "The Devil Wears Prada" which bowed to $27.5M for Fox. The sleeper hit went on to gross a surprisingly strong $124.7M in North America and did exceptionally well overseas too with a global tally of $325M. Rounding out the top five were Adam Sandler‘s "Click" with $19.9M, the Disney/Pixar hit "Cars" with $14.6M, and Jack Black‘s "Nacho Libre" with $6.6M.
Author: Gitesh Pandya, www.BoxOfficeGuru.com
Fox scored its first number one hit in five months with "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer" which grossed an estimated $57.4M on its opening weekend, tripling its nearest competitor’s sales.
Carrying a milder PG rating into 3,959 theaters, the super hero sequel averaged a sturdy $14,499 and just barely edged out the $56.1M bow of the first "Fantastic Four" pic from July 2005. A sequel has now topped the box office for seven consecutive weekends.
Reviews were mixed, but were better than for its predecessor which was critically panned. The sequel brought back director Tim Story along with the four main cast members Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans, and Michael Chiklis. However, the iconic Marvel Comics character Silver Surfer was prominently added to the film, and even to its title, to help bring back comic fans who may have had a bad taste after the first "Fantastic" pic. Laurence Fishburne provided the voice for the computer-generated space traveler.
The latest summer sequel kicked off the weekend on Friday with $22M, dipped an understandable 11% to $19.6M on Saturday, and is projected to drop by another 19% on Sunday to $15.8M. Fox also reported that "Rise of the Silver Surfer" opened in 32 overseas markets with a combined $25.4M this weekend although most were minor territories. Russia, Italy, and the United Kingdom were among the only major international markets that launched this frame with more to come in the weeks ahead.
"Ocean’s Thirteen" enjoyed a good hold in its second weekend dropping only 47% to an estimated $19.1M in its sophomore frame. Warner Bros. has now made off with $69.8M in ten days. Threequels often drop by 55% or more and "Ocean’s Twelve" even fell by 54% in its second try. That caper sequel grossed $18.1M in its second weekend and bagged a similar $68.5M worth of loot in its first ten days. "Thirteen," which will not benefit from holidays like Christmas and New Year’s prolonging its run, could be on track to finish with $105-110M domestically which would still be the lowest in the "Ocean’s" series.
Universal’s sleeper hit "Knocked Up" continued to capitalize on strong word-of-mouth and held onto third place with an estimated $14.5M, off only 26%, for a $90.5M cume. The R-rated smash will join the century club next weekend making it the studio’s first $100M hit since its last June romantic comedy offering "The Break-Up."
Disney’s "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End" followed dropping 43% to an estimated $12M in its fourth adventure. Cume stands at $273.8M which is up 31% from 2003’s "Curse of the Black Pearl" after its fourth weekend, but down 24% from last summer’s "Dead Man’s Chest" at the same point. "At World’s End" did manage to rise to number 32 on the all-time domestic blockbusters list sailing past the $267.7M of 2001’s "Shrek."
A trio of kidpics followed. The animated penguin movie "Surf’s Up" sank 47% in its second weekend to an estimated $9.3M giving Sony a not-so-cool $34.7M after ten days. A final gross of about $60M could result. "Shrek the Third" landed in sixth place with an estimated $9M, off 41%, for a $297.2M total. Knocking on the triple-century mark, the Paramount release now stands at number 24 on the all-time list just behind the first "Pirates" film which banked $305.4M four years ago.
Moviegoers passed on solving a mystery with "Nancy Drew" which opened poorly in seventh with only $7.1M, accoridng to estimates. Averaging a weak $2,732 from 2,612 theaters, the PG-rated film starring Emma Roberts failed to make a dent in the summer box office this weekend. "Nancy" opened in the same neighborhood as other films aimed at tween girls like "Ice Princess," "Little Black Book," and "Aquamarine" which all bowed to roughly $7M a piece.
Lionsgate saw its horror sequel "Hostel Part II" tumble 64% after its weak opening to an estimated $3M this weekend. With only $14.2M taken in thus far, the torture pic should finish with just under $20M, or less than half of the $47.3M of the first "Hostel" flick from last year. MGM’s "Mr. Brooks" grossed an estimated $2.8M, off 43%, pushing the cume to only $23.4M for the Kevin Costner thriller.
"Spider-Man 3" rounded out the top ten with an estimated $2.5M falling 42% from last weekend. With $330M after its seventh frame, the Sony sequel climbed to number 15 on the list of all-time domestic blockbusters right behind "Finding Nemo" which took in $339.7M in 2003.
Opening dead on arrival was the new actioner "D.O.A.: Dead or Alive" which bowed to an estimated $232,000 from 505 theaters for a pathetic $460 average. The Weinstein Co. title was released with little fanfare and should see most of its business on DVD.
A pair of hits fell from the top ten over the weekend. Fox Searchlight’s indie darling "Waitress" grossed an estimated $1.3M, down only 21%, for a $14.1M cume to date. A final tally of $17-20M from a limited national release is likely. Paramount’s Shia LaBeouf thriller "Disturbia" collected an estimated $250,000 in its tenth frame pushing the stellar cume to $78.3M. Look for a $79M final which will serve as an appetizer to the studio’s next Shia offering — "Transformers" opening July 3.
The top ten films grossed an estimated $136.8M which was down 2% from last year when "Cars" remained at number one with $33.7M; but up 8% from 2005 when "Batman Begins" debuted in the top spot with $48.7M over three days.
Author: Gitesh Pandya, www.BoxOfficeGuru.com
Call it the weekend of the actor/producer. Three new films with stars that do double duty behind the scenes (or have good agents that can snag a free credit) enter a marketplace filled with big-budget tentpole pics quickly eroding away.
Seth Rogen headlines and executive produces the new comedy "Knocked Up," Kevin Costner stars and produces the crime thriller "Mr. Brooks," and Elisabeth Shue acts in and co-produces the sports drama "Gracie." Following an explosive May at the box office, the first weekend of June should see ticket sales calm down a bit before George and Brad usher in the next big wave of sequels.
For adult moviegoers sick of pirates, ogres, and webslingers, Universal has the answer – the raunchy romantic comedy "Knocked Up." The R-rated film from Judd Apatow ("The 40-Year-Old Virgin") stars Rogen and Katherine Heigl as a stoner loser and a just-promoted entertainment newswoman, respectively, who share a one night stand which leads to an unplanned pregnancy. Older teens, young adults, and couples make up the target audience here and the studio is hoping to bring back the same folks that opened "Virgin" to $21.4M on its way to a stellar $109.3M (five times its debut) two summers ago.
With mindless popcorn sequels dominating the marquees for the past month, "Knocked Up" brings a breath of fresh air into the multiplexes. Moviegoers looking for new characters and new situations will be pleased. The marketing push has been strong but television spots are not too funny, mostly because the bulk of the humor is too racy to feature on broadcast television. But when opening weekend audiences find out how much funnier the actual film is compared to the trailer and commercials, red hot word-of-mouth will keep the pic playing week after week.
The public’s appetite for studio comedies has been healthy over the last six months with "Wild Hogs," "Night at the Museum," "Blades of Glory," and "Norbit" selling an amazing $626M worth of ticket stubs combined. "Hogs" even popped back into the top ten last weekend in its thirteenth session signaling the hunger in the marketplace right now for something good that will make people laugh. Universal enjoys going after adults on the weekend after Memorial Day. In 2005 it debuted the serious Russell Crowe–Renee Zellweger boxing pic "Cinderella Man" to $18.3M while last year the studio exceeded expectations with the $39.2M bow of the date flick "The Break-Up." "Knocked Up" should play to much of the same audience as the Jennifer Aniston film, although with less starpower and no tabloid gossip about the star’s personal lives, the grosses won’t soar as high.
Critics have been praising "Knocked Up" and its strong cross-gender appeal will make it a hit with the date crowd. A unique concept and a great title will also help sell the film. "Pirates" will only be in its second weekend and will still be pulling in a broad audience so there will be some competition. But "Knocked Up" has great buzz and will start selling itself after people begin pouring out of the Friday night shows. Opening in 2,873 theaters, the Universal release may gross about $24M this weekend and witness small declines in the weeks ahead.
"Yay, pregnancy."
Less than a year after co-starring with Ashton Kutcher in "The Guardian," Kevin Costner teams up with the "Punk’d" star’s gal pal Demi Moore in the new psychological thriller "Mr. Brooks." In the R-rated film, the former bodyguard plays a family man who moonlights as a serial killer while the ex-G.I. Jane stars as a detective hot on his trail. The MGM release should play to the oldest audience of any major release out now. That’s a good thing since direct competition will not be too fierce. But despite some moderately good reviews, Brooks is anchored by two aging actors who were bulletproof box office stars fifteen years ago, but are not all that reliable at the turnstiles nowadays.
"Knocked Up" has much more buzz around it and will take away much of the thirtysomething crowd, but the forty-plus audience might give "Mr. Brooks" a try. Older adults did little for "Georgia Rule" which bowed to just $6.8M but April’s "Fracture" had a decent $11M opening. Costner should draw an audience more like the one that came out for the Anthony Hopkins thriller. The marketing push has not been too forceful so a large turnout is not likely. Invading 2,453 theaters, "Mr. Brooks" may generate a $9M debut.
Where Dane Cook gets his career advice.
Picturehouse targets the Lady Foot Locker crowd with its new drama "Gracie" which tells the true story of a teenage girl in the late 1970s who fought to play competitive soccer when the sport did not open its doors to her gender. The PG-13 flick stars Dermot Mulroney, Elisabeth Shue, and Carly Schroeder and has been marketed squarely to its core audience of teenage girls. "Gracie" is unlikely to score any goals with other audience segments and is not being released in too many theaters so a modest opening is likely. Reviews have been mixed. Kicking its way into about 1,000 locations, "Gracie" might find itself with an opening weekend take of around $3M.
The mullet-headed heckler is always an important training component.
Fox Searchlight invades the arthouses once again with its Russian fantasy epic "Day Watch," the sequel to Timur Bekmambetov‘s "Night Watch" which became a mammoth blockbuster in its home country in 2004. Last year, "Night Watch" bowed in the U.S. to a sturdy $35,475 average from only three theaters and eventually collected $1.5M from 158 sites. "Day Watch" continues the battle of Light vs. Darkness in an adventure set in Moscow with digital effects that could rival any $200M-budgeted Hollywood tentpole pic. The R-rated film debuts on Friday in New York and Los Angeles with two theaters in each city plus a solo house in San Francisco. More markets across the country will be added in the weeks ahead.
"Day Watch"
None of the newbies looks like first-place material so "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End" should easily retain its box office crown. However, a substantial fall is likely. As a third part of a franchise coming off of a big holiday bow, the drop would of course be large. "Dead Man’s Chest" fell by 54% in its sophomore frame. Add in the fact that fan reaction isn’t exactly stellar and the ship should sink by a large amount. Don’t expect the latest "Pirates" to suffer the 67% crash that the third "X-Men" flick saw a year ago when it came off of the Memorial Day frame. Instead, it could perform more like 2004’s "The Day After Tomorrow" which fell 60% coming off of the same holiday weekend. Luckily for Johnny Depp and pals the competition is not too fierce this weekend. A similar 60% tumble would give "At World’s End" about $46M worth of weekend loot which would boost the ten-day cume to $218M.
"Shrek the Third" will also not have much in the way of competition for its family audience, but comedy fans will certainly abandon ship and head for "Knocked Up." The ogre franchise makes a sizable portion of its money from teens and young adults and those folks are going to be moving on. Last weekend’s 56% drop was affected by the arrival of "Pirates." This weekend, it could stabilize and fall by 45%. That would give "Shrek the Third" around $29M for the weekend and $256M after 17 days.
"Spider-Man 3," the only May threequel with the actual number three in its title, has also been fading away. A 45% drop would give the Sandman saga roughly $8M boosting the cume to $319M.
LAST YEAR: Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn proved more popular than super heroes as their romantic comedy "The Break-Up" knocked "X-Men: The Last Stand" out of the number one spot in only its second weekend. The Universal comedy opened to $39.2M on its way to a better-than-expected $118.7M. The mutant sequel tumbled 67% to $34M in its sophomore frame for the runnerup position. Paramount’s toon sensation "Over the Hedge" held up well in third with $20.6M followed by "The Da Vinci Code" with $18.6M and "Mission: Impossible III" with $4.7M.
Author: Gitesh Pandya, www.BoxOfficeGuru.com
Multiplexes are stocking up on popcorn, soda, and overpriced candy in anticipation of record crowds that could make this Memorial Day holiday frame the biggest weekend in box office history.
Leading the charge will be the Johnny Depp-anchored megaflick "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End," the followup to last year’s number one hit and the third biggest global grosser of all-time. Ashley Judd is set to take in a little less cash with the long weekend’s other new nationwide release, the horror film "Bug." And with holdovers like "Shrek the Third" in its second round and "Spider-Man 3" in its fourth spin, the North American box office will expand greatly as moviegoers may just spend all their free time at the local moviehouse.
Hysterical anticipation for the return of Captain Jack Sparrow will help Disney become a much richer studio. After the cliffhanger ending of last summer’s "Dead Man’s Chest," "At World’s End" is ready to bring all those fans back once again for another ticket purchase. Its spot at the top of the charts this weekend, and probably next weekend too, is guaranteed so the real question is will the new "Pirates" film break the all-time opening weekend record set just three weeks ago by "Spider-Man 3"?
If the ultimate answer ends up being no, that won’t necessarily be a bad thing or anything to be disappointed by. "At World’s End" is having a different type of debut so it will not be an apples-to-apples comparison. Firstly, the new high seas adventure begins its run with 8pm shows on Thursday night which are being aggressively advertised. "Dead Man’s Chest" grossed a scorching $9M from its Thursday night shows which began at midnight so with the earlier time, the treasure chest will be much more full. But the night-before shows will pull millions of dollars of sales from hardcore fans out of the official weekend period of Friday-to-Sunday thus diluting the three-day take. "Spider-Man 3" began with midnight shows on Thursday night so those numbers were all concentrated within the official opening weekend tally.
Also, "At World’s End" will face tremendous competiton, something Spidey did not have to deal with. The rest of the top five is likely to steal away over $80M during the three-day portion of the holiday weekend. For the latest webslinger’s bow, the next four films in the market made less than $16M. And although "Pirates" will secure thousands of screens, it will still enter a box office where close to 15,000 auditoriums will already be booked up with the third servings of "Shrek" and "Spider-Man." It will be tougher for "Pirates" to land that sixth or seventh screen within a megaplex.
But working in Sparrow’s favor is the Monday holiday which will make Sunday perform more like a Saturday which will certainly help its quest for new records. Also overall anticipation for the franchise seems to be higher than it was for Peter Parker. MovieTickets.com reported that advance sales for "At World’s End" is beating both "Spider-Man 3" and "Dead Man’s Chest" at the same point in their sales cycles. Plus "Pirates" has the highest female appeal for any action movie franchise out there which is a key contributor to its immense grosses. This one will bring in everyone and with all Americans having extra time off, there will be plenty of time for people to eventually find a showtime that’s not sold out.
Reviews have been mixed for the latest "Pirates" and its running time with trailers is close to three hours. But the two biggest openings of all-time were also long pics at about two-and-a-half hours in length each without trailers so multiplexes will find a way to dump underperforming titles (and there are plenty to choose from) and make room for Davy Jones and his gang. Friday-to-Monday starts for those smashes were $161.4M for "Spider-Man 3" and $153.8M for "Dead Man’s Chest." Seizing screens in over 4,000 theaters, "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End" might open to about $162M over four days and roughly $183M from Thursday to Monday.
"Hey Professor, what’s another word for pirate treasure?"
The daring folks at Lionsgate will open their own film nationally on Friday challenging the triumvirate of threequels. The horror flick "Bug" stars Ashley Judd as a lonely waitress who thinks that insects (spiders that bite teenage photographers maybe?) are out to get her. The R-rated film will try to court the fright crowd not interested in ahoy matey shenanigans, but will find an incredibly tough time floating in this weekend’s marketplace. There is nothing about "Bug" that tells fans that they should pay top dollar now instead of renting the DVD a mere three months down the road. Judd’s starpower has been on the decline for years. She’s not that hot star from "Double Jeopardy" anymore. And marketing the film as being from the director of "The Exorcist" will do little as well. Opening in 1,661 theaters, "Bug" might crawl to about $6M over four days.
"Bug," going for that coveted 4th spot in the weekend box office.
Dropping to the runnerup spot with what could be one of the largest grosses ever for a second-place film will be the animated blockbuster "Shrek the Third" which is coming off of the third largest debut in box office history. "Shrek 2" had mostly the same release pattern in 2004 and saw its four-day Memorial Day weekend tally dip only 12% from its three-day opening weekend figure. The holiday is one of the busiest times for families at the multiplexes so kidpics typically hold up very well. As the third chapter in the series, audience erosion should be faster for the new ogre film. Plus with "Pirates" set to launch with such astonishing numbers, "Shrek the Third" can’t help but be pushed aside by the competition. Still a 35% drop would give Paramount a stunning $80M over four days and would make the 11-day total skyrocket to $230M.
"Spider-Man 3" will drop another notch to third and should definitely see much of its audience get swiped by Depp and company given how much overlap there is between the audiences for the two franchises. "X2: X-Men United," another Marvel super hero sequel that opened on the first weekend of May, saw its four-day Memorial Day weekend gross drop by only 24% in 2003 when "Bruce Almighty" was the new opener. "Spider-Man 3" has more direct action competition and less fan support so a larger decline is likely. The Venom flick could drop 35% and post a four-day gross of about $19M which would boost the webslinger’s cume to $308M.
LAST YEAR: Mutants were all the rage as "X-Men: The Last Stand" towered over the competition with a record Memorial Day opening of $122.9M over four days. The Fox super hero saga went on to collect $234.4M domestically, making it the third biggest grosser of the summer, and over $455M worldwide. Tom Hanks ranked second with "The Da Vinci Code" which fell sharply but still took in $42.4M over the long holiday weekend for Sony. Paramount followed with the DreamWorks toon "Over the Hedge" with $35.3M in its sophomore round. Action entries "Mission: Impossible III" and "Poseidon" rounded out the top five with $8.9M and $7.1M, respectively.
Author: Gitesh Pandya, www.BoxOfficeGuru.com
In an effort to bring you absolutely every single piece of available "Iron Man" news, there’s this: ILM was just hired to do all the fancy effects work.
Industrial Light & Magic will provide most of the FX, Skywalker Sound will provide the aural magic, and a virtual all-star team of artists and technicians are just about to get rolling on Jon Favreau‘s Marvel Comics adaptation.
The team will include John Nelson (Oscar winner for "Gladiator"), Hal Hickel (Oscar winner for "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest"), Ben Snow ("Attack of the Clones"), and four-time Oscar winning sound designer Chris Boyes ("Lord of the Rings: Return of the King"). Plus they’ve already got "practical FX" maestro Stan Winston working on that nifty suit.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Bryan Singer’s "Superman Returns" cleaned house at the Saturn Awards over the weekend. (Hey, don’t laugh. The Saturn Awards have been around for over 30 years and they pay some fine attention to the genre films we all love so much.)
Check out these winners and then tell me the Saturn folks don’t have pretty good taste:
Best Science Fiction Film: "Children of Men"
Best Fantasy Film: "Superman Returns"
Best Horror Film: "The Descent"
Best Action/Adventure/Thriller Film: "Casino Royale"
Best Animated Film: "Cars"
Best International Film: "Pan’s Labyrinth"
Best Actor: Brandon Routh ("Superman Returns")
Best Actress: Natalie Portman ("V for Vendetta")
Best Supporting Actor: Ben Affleck ("Hollywoodland")
Best Supporting Actress: Famke Janssen ("X-Men: The Last Stand")
Best Performance by a Younger Actor: Ivana Baquero ("Pan’s Labyrinth")
Best Director: Bryan Singer ("Superman Returns")
Best Writing: Michael Dougherty and Dan Harris ("Superman Returns")
Best Music: John Ottman ("Superman Returns")
Best Costume: Yee Chung-Man ("Curse of the Golden Flower")
Best Makeup: Todd Masters and Dan Rebert ("Slither")
Best Special Effects: John Knoll, Hal Hickel, Charles Gibson and Allen Hall ("Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest")
Best DVD Release: "The Sci-Fi Boys"
Best DVD Special Edition Release: "Superman II"
Best DVD Classic Film Release: "Gojira"
Best DVD Collection: James Bond Ultimate Edition
Best DVD Television Series: "Masters of Horror"
Best Retro Television Series on DVD: "Adventures of Superman"
They also gave out some TV awards, which you can check out at Sci-Fi.com. (There’s also a full list of nominees so you can see which flicks got beat up by Superman.) I think they might be just a bit too much drooling over "Superman Returns," but hey, I’m not on the voting committee.
It’s been well-reported that Johnny Depp would have no problem staying on with the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies, and it seems like producer Jerry Bruckheimer just might have a few tricks up his sleeve.
Apparently the original trilogy will remain a self-possessed unit, but that doesn’t mean there couldn’t be a few spinoff titles. Here’s what the producer told The Herald Sun: "This is the end [of the current trilogy], but whether one of the characters or a couple of the characters continue on, it’s a possibility … Certainly, in a moment at the end of the film there is a hope that something else might happen."
That seems to be about all the tidbits J.B. will divulge regarding future "Pirates" plans, but come on. We’re all experienced movie geeks. If you think this franchise is going to stop at only three mega-profitable flicks, you’re nuts!
Having said that, here are a few suggestions: "Pintel & Righetti Go to White Castle," "The Snooty Adventures of Commodore Norrington," "Mr. & Mrs. Davy Jones," and "King Kong vs. The Kraken."
Source: Moviehole.net
In what must be a first at the box office, an aerobics queen takes on killer zombies in a vicious battle for the silver medal during what no doubt will be another mammoth weekend for "Spider-Man 3."
Fox unleashes its horror sequel "28 Weeks Later," Universal counters with its femme-driven star vehicle "Georgia Rule," Lionsgate tosses in the comedy "Delta Farce," and MGM releases yet another laugher with "The Ex." Meanwhile, back in New York City, the webslinger will attempt to swing to a massive quarter-billion-dollar cume by the end of its second weekend.
As the second of ten sequels hitting theaters over the May-June corridor, "28 Weeks Later" is the follow-up to the cult hit zombie chiller "28 Days Later" which lit up theaters four years ago. Danny Boyle shifts from the director’s chair to the executive producer’s office as Juan Carlos Fresnadillo takes the helm. "Days" was very well-received which explains why a sequel was greenlit. In the new installment, the killer virus infects people once again as London tries to repopulate and madness ensues. The built-in audience will help the R-rated "Weeks" right out of the gate.
Its predecessor bowed to $10.1M from only 1,260 theaters for a potent $7,986 average on its way to a solid $45.1M final. Through video and cable, it found an even larger fan base and many will give "Weeks" a try. However working against it is of course competition from "Spider-Man 3" which has a hold on fans of comics and sci-fi. Plus 2007 has seen 1,001 horror films flood theaters causing recent fright fatigue. Casual fans of scary movies may pass on "Weeks" if they’re trying to stay away from blood and gore. Fox’s marketing has been clever and effective and the target audience is excited. Plus reviews have been very positive which will help a bit too since most horror films nowadays are either not screened for critics in advance or earn poor marks. Attacking over 2,000 theaters, "28 Weeks Later" might scare up around $13M this weekend.
"28 Weeks Later"
For those looking to avoid zombies and super heroes in their weekend entertainment, Universal offers the dramedy "Georgia Rule" starring Jane Fonda, Lindsay Lohan, and Felicity Huffman. The R-rated story tells of a teenage girl dumped at her grandmother’s house for the summer by her alcoholic mother which leads to the uncovering of family secrets. Just in time for Mother’s Day weekend, "Georgia" will play almost exclusively to women as men will have to be dragged against their will. However, moviegoers from a broad age group should turn out since the cast boasts stars of different generations. The one troublespot could be the rating though. Lohan arguably still has pull with teenage girls who may be left out because of the MPAA’s tag. But the film’s two uses of the F word are essential to the story as are the adult themes so the R was unavoidable.
"Georgia Rule" should play to the same audience that the studio saw for previous chick flicks like Diane Keaton‘s "Because I Said So" ($13.1M opening, $5,195 average), Meryl Streep‘s "Prime" ($6.2M, $3,405), and Debra Messing‘s "The Wedding Date" ($11.1M, $6,566). Reaching the $23.1M debut of Fonda’s last film "Monster-in-Law" is not likely however since it won’t crossover into other demographic groups like the J. Lo pic did. The weekend’s new releases will not provide too much competition which means that the universal appeal of the webslinger sequel will be the main enemy. Bad reviews will eat into sales from mature adults, but many from the "Desperate Housewives" crowd will still make a trip out to this chick flick. "Georgia Rule" enters 2,523 theaters on Friday and could walk away with about $13M.
"Georgia Rule"
Larry the Cable Guy stars in the new military comedy "Delta Farce" which also hits theaters on Friday. The PG-13 film from Lionsgate finds three hapless men being mistaken for Army recruits who are sent to Iraq but mistakenly dropped in Mexico. Not since "Best Defense" has a film of this type been such an unwelcome entry in the marketplace. Young males are the only group likely to show interest and with Spidey in only his second swing, few will find this new comedy worth paying top dollar for. Plus starpower is lacking and none of the cast members are known for anchoring box office hits. Larry’s self-titled film last spring bowed to just $6.9M and this one will probably slump even lower. Opening in about 1,800 locations, "Delta Farce" will probably shoot up around $4M.
"Delta Farce"
Zach Braff and Amanda Peet play a thirtysomething New York couple with a new baby in the new romantic comedy "The Ex" marketed by The Weinstein Company and distributed by MGM. In the PG-13 pic, the likable duo moves to Ohio where Braff’s character gets a job at her father’s ad agency where he butts heads with his wife’s former fling from high school. Jason Bateman, Charles Grodin, and Donal Logue co-star. "The Ex" will be targeting the date crowd and young women, but will have rough sailing. "Georgia Rule" will already be tapping into the female moviegoing base and Spidey is attracting his share of women and young adults too. The promotional push has not been too forceful either so the film may end up with just the die-hard "Scrubs" fans. Mixed reviews won’t help either. Also, Braff and Peet are not box office anchors who sell lots of tickets. Sure "Garden State" was an indie hit with $26.8M in 2004, but that was a word-of-mouth platform release that made its money over time and not a commercial Hollywood comedy. Debuting in 1,009 theaters, "The Ex" might gross roughly $3M this weekend.
"The Ex"
None of these new films will come close to defeating the mighty "Spider-Man 3" which will enjoy its second comfortable box office win in a row. But a steep fall is likely. The first webslinger flick opened at the beginning of May five years ago and dropped by only 38% on the second weekend which was phenomenal. But like most sequels, especialy third-parters, "Spider-Man 3" attracted so much of its total audience upfront that rapid erosion is assured. The previous record-holder for the biggest opening weekend, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest," fell by 54% in its second adventure last July while its summer counterpart "X-Men: The Last Stand" tumbled by a troubling 67% in its sophomore frame. Of course that was coming off of a Memorial Day holiday opening so the decline was larger than normal.
"Spider-Man 3" has already been taking a hit during the week dropping to $10.3M on Monday and $8M on Tuesday. Those numbers come close to what "The Matrix Reloaded" took in on the same days after its colossal opening weekend in mid-May 2003. That sci-fi pic crashed 60% in its second weekend despite its sophomore frame being helped by a holiday. Luckily for the Sandman flick the competition this weekend will not be too menacing. "Spider-Man 3" could still fall by more than 55% to about $65M this weekend which would boost the domestic haul to a mammoth $247M in only ten days.
LAST YEAR: Tom Cruise topped the charts with "Mission Impossible: III" which dropped 48% in its second weekend to $25M. Opening in second place was the pricey disaster film "Poseidon" which debuted to $22.2M for Warner Bros. on its way to a disappointing $60.7M domestically. Worldwide, the Kurt Russell starrer grossed $182M. Robin Williams placed third with "RV" which eased by less than 10% to $10M in its third weekend. Lindsay Lohan stumbled into fourth with her new comedy "Just My Luck" which opened to a weak $5.7M on its way to $17.3M for Fox. Rounding out the top five was the horror flick "An American Haunting" with $3.6M.
Author: Gitesh Pandya, www.BoxOfficeGuru.com
It might not come as a shock to hear that director Gore Verbinski probably wants to take a break from the "Pirates" some time soon. Word is he might be collaborating with "Bloom County" creator Berkeley Breathed on a CGI flick.
One source indicates that Disney is almost assuredly going forward with "Pirates 4," but the man usually at the helm might be off adapting Mr. Breathed’s "Flawed Dogs: The Year End Leftovers at the Piddleton "Last Chance" Dog Pound" for Disney. This one would be a CGI sort of feature.
Further word states that BB’s "Mars Needs Moms" will also be made into a movie — only this one might be directed by Robert Zemeckis!
Hmm, I need to pick some of these books up, I think. I still think "Bloom County" was the funniest comic strip ever created. (Well, and "The Far Side." Oh, and "Calvin and Hobbes," obviously.)
But the big question is … who’ll they get to direct "Pirates 4"? Disney should get someone who still needs to make a good pirate movie, like Renny Harlin or Roman Polanski. (They directed "Cutthroat Island" and "Pirates," respectively, and there’s a double feature that’ll give you a fresh respect for the "POTC" series.)
Source: Jim Hill Media
