Blu-ray Sales: Ted Loves Being High (Definition)

January 22nd, 2013

Like it did on the DVD sales chart, Ted led a trio of new releases that placed high on the Blu-ray sales chart. The film earned first place with 1.28 million units / $25.64 million for an opening week Blu-ray share of 43%. That's very strong for a comedy, even one aimed at the prime demographic for Blu-ray. More...

Blu-ray Sales: Dark Knight One-Two Punches Its Way to the Top

January 20th, 2013

Batman was even more dominant on the Blu-ray sales chart than it was on the DVD sales chart with two new releases earning the top two spots. The Dark Knight Rises earned first place with 2.26 million units / $42.13 million giving it an opening week Blu-ray share of 53%. Meanwhile, the Trilogy Box Set earned second place with 453,000 units / $12.68 million for an opening week Blu-ray share of 58%. The combined totals are not quite as good as The Avengers' debut was, but was still a fantastic start. More...

DVD Sales: Dark Knight Shines on the Home Market

January 20th, 2013

New releases dominated the top of the December 9th edition of the DVD sales chart with four of them placing within the top six. Unsurprisingly, The Dark Knight Rises led the way with a stunning result of 2.03 million units / $26.96 million during its first week of release. More...

Blu-ray Sales: Green Film Wins Big on Blu

August 22nd, 2012

Doctor Seuss' The Lorax was the first new release to top the Blu-ray Sales Chart in a while. It sold 1.73 million units and generated $34.65 million in revenue. Its opening week Blu-ray share was 47%, which is outstanding for a kids movie. In fact, it generated more revenue from Blu-ray than it did from DVD, so it is clear Blu-ray has taken over the mainstream market. Granted, some types of releases, like dramas, live action kids movies, documentaries, TV shows, etc. still sell much better on DVD than they do on Blu-ray, but those days could be numbered as well.

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Blu-ray Sales: Beginning of the End for Batman?

August 15th, 2012

It looks like the Batman films will finally be slipping out of the top five in the coming weeks. Batman Begins came in first place in terms of units topping Hatfields & McCoys 192,000 units to 186,000 units. However, Hatfields & McCoys easily won in terms of revenue with $4.63 million to $1.91 million. Its opening week Blu-ray share was 34%, which is good for a TV mini-series, but below average for the format. More...

DVD Sales: New Releases in a Feud with Holdovers

August 14th, 2012

There were not a lot of new releases to make an impact on the DVD sales chart this week. However, we did have a new number one, as Hatfields and McCoys DVD sold 363,000 units and generated $7.25 million in revenue. That's an excellent start for a TV mini-series. More...

Blu-ray Sales: Star Trek's Next Generation Debut

August 7th, 2012

There was very little activity from the new releases on the Blu-ray sales chart this week, but slightly more than there was on the DVD sales chart. Batman Begins and The Dark Knight remained in the top two spots. Batman Begins added 253,000 units / $2.53 million over the week for totals of 2.1 million units / $26 million. That would be really good for a first run release, for a film that predates Blu-ray, it is awesome. The Dark Knight sold 213,000 units / $4.53 million over the week for totals of 7.5 million units / $121 million. It has likely sold more units than Avatar, but will need a few more weeks like this to top Avatar's total revenue. More...

DVD Sales: New Releases Were Silent

August 7th, 2012

There was only one new release to chart on this week's DVD sales chart this week, and it didn't even reach the top ten. This left The Three Stooges in first place with 182,000 units / $3.62 million for the week, lifting its totals to 601,000 units / $12.02 million. More...

Blu-ray Sales: Begins in First, Knight Rises to Top

August 1st, 2012

There were quite a few new releases to reach the Blu-ray sales chart this week, including three in the top five. However, the top two spots were held by holdovers: Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. Batman Begins sold 313,000 units / $3.11 million for the week for approximate total sales of 1.8 million units / $23 million. The Dark Knight sold 280,000 units and generating just under $6.00 million for the week and has now sold 7.3 million units sold and generated $116 million in total revenue. It is very likely the best-selling Blu-ray of all time overtaking Avatar, although Avatar did generate more total revenue. (Unfortunately, it started on Blu-ray while the market was small enough that there's uncertainty with early numbers.) More...

Blu-ray Sales: Reunions Make People Blu

July 24th, 2012

There were only two new releases to chart this week, but one of them, American Reunion, led the way with 352,000 units / $7.04 million. Its opening week Blu-ray share was 46%, which is excellent for a comedy. On the other hand, it has missed expectations nearly every step of the way, so this isn't enough to make the studio really happy. More...

Blu-ray Sales: Holdovers Overshadow New Releases

July 18th, 2012

Like on the DVD sales chart, there were no new releases to reach the top ten on the Blu-ray sales chart. In fact, the best selling Blu-ray was Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, which leapt up from fourth to earned first place with 156,000 units / $2.55 million for the week giving it totals of 2.22 million units / $51.32 million after four. More...

DVD Sales: Dark Knight and Up Share Black Friday Honors

December 12th, 2009

Black Friday sales gave a decidedly retro look to the DVD sales chart for the week ending November 29. All major retailers were offering deeply discounted prices of catalog titles, including $4 deals at Target for Elf, Sex and the City and Forgetting Sarah Marshall, among others, and Best Buy offering Hellboy 2: The Golden Army, Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor and Forgetting Sarah Marshall at the same price. Walmart wasn't going to be outdone though, and offered some DVD titles, including Hellboy 2, Mummy 3, I am Legend and Casino Royale in limited quantities at just $2. The real champion of the bargain basement, however, was The Dark Knight, which was available for $5 at Walmart, and $4 at both Target and Best Buy. With low, low prices, the unit volumes for the week were astronomical, but overall spending was actually down from 2008 thanks to the price cuts. More...

New Moon Sets New Record for Midnight Screenings

November 20th, 2009

Everyone in the industry was expecting the opening of The Twilight Saga: New Moon to be big, but few would have predicted that it would top the performances of The Dark Knight and Harry Potter to record the biggest midnight opening in movie history. But that's exactly what it did, as it earned a massive $26.27 million in 3,514 theaters to beat the previous record of $22.2 million, held by Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. More...

Potter Alert: Half-Blood Prince Pulls in Estimated $20 Million at Midnight Screenings

July 15th, 2009

Variety reports that Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince grossed an estimated $20 million at midnight screenings last night. If that number holds, it will set a new record for the biggest gross from midnight screenings, topping the $18 million earned by The Dark Knight last year. It's also streets ahead of the $12 million picked up by The Order of the Phoenix two year ago. If the new release maintains this pace, it should comfortably top $200 million by the end of the weekend, and beat Dark Knight's five-day record of $203.7 million. We'll keep you posted on news as we get it. More...

Tuesday Grosses, Developing News on Transformers

June 24th, 2009

Variety reports that Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen opened with $16 million in midnight screenings last night -- a record for a movie opening on a Wednesday, and only slightly behind the $18.5 million earned by The Dark Knight at its Friday midnight screenings last year. Paramount will be including the midnight screenings in its calculation of the total opening receipts, which will be released in its official report tomorrow. We will post the numbers as soon as we receive them (most likely around 12.30pm, Pacific, although Paramount may release data earlier).

Revenge of the Fallen is playing in 4,234 theaters today, and will be gunning for an opening day in the mid-$50 million range. (see list of biggest single days). We'll keep you posted on any news as it breaks. More...

DVD Sales - Going Out of Business is Good Titles

March 11th, 2009

A combination of terrible new releases and two massive store sales (including the Circuit City Going out of Business sale) meant this week's sales chart was dominated by some of the biggest hits from last year. However, the number one DVD remained High School Musical 3 - Senior Year, which sold an additional 543,000 units for the week to give it a total of 2.05 million units sold and $36.14 million in consumer retail spending. More...

Awards Season - Slumdog Wins More than the Oscars

March 3rd, 2009

It's been just over a week since Slumdog Millionaire won big at the Oscars, and it won again last weekend. It was the only one of the ten theatrical winners to show a significant bounce at the box office, as its theater count and per theater average both rose. This helped its box office climb by 43% to just over $12 million, the best weekend haul in its run. More...

DVD Sales - Escape Greater

February 24th, 2009

There were four or five new releases to reach the top 30 on this week's sales chart depending on how you count Madagascar 2 - Escape to Africa. During its first full week of release it sold 1.83 million units, giving it totals of 3.51 million units and $56.55 million, which is easily the best sales figures for any DVD this year. More...

Awards Season - Slumdog Rich in Awards

February 22nd, 2009

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced their winners tonight in a star-studded gala. While there were plenty of winners, Slumdog Millionaire walked away with eight Oscars, easily the most of any film tonight. More...

International Details - Recep Ivedik is No Turkey

February 22nd, 2009

Recep Ivedik opened in its native Turkey and a few other markets scoring sixth place with $8.32 million on 483 screens in 4 markets. Of that total, $6.10 million was earned on 390 screens during a first place opening in its native market, which is above the pace of its predecessor. The film managed fourth place in Germany with $1.75 million on just 75 screens. An excellent start for the film. More...

Oscar Contest - Category Highlight - Supporting Acting Roles

February 19th, 2009

With our annual Oscar Prediction contest underway, now is the best time to look at the nominees and try and figure out who the favorites are and which films should just feel honored to be nominated. Today we look at Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role and Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role. More...

DVD Sales - All Max and No Payne

February 3rd, 2009

New releases were all over the top 30 this week, including Max Payne, which took first place with 543,000 units sold for the week and $12.92 million in sales. More...

Blart Beats Back Competition

January 26th, 2009

New releases missed expectations, but enough of the holdovers excelled that that overall box office was still strong. Granted, it was down 17% from last weekend, but given the post-holiday slump, this is not bad. Also, $160 million is 14% more than the same weekend last year and it keeps 2009 well ahead of 2008 $861 million to $707 million, or 22%. More...

DVD Sales - Sales Don't Have a Prayer

January 26th, 2009

There were plenty of new releases to reach the top 30 on the sales chart this week, but none were particularly strong. The best was The Family that Preys, but it failed to crack a half million units with 491,000 units and $10.78 million for the week. More...

Awards Season - Slumdog Continues its Streak

January 26th, 2009

The latest Awards Season ceremony was held last night by the Screen Actors Guild, and yet again Slumdog Millionaire came out a winner. However, it was not the only winner. More...

Will the Box Office Continue to Rise?

January 23rd, 2009

2009 looks to continue its winning streak with two wide releases and a lot of high-powered holdovers. It is unlikely that any of them will live up to last week's number one film, but the overall effort should live up to last year's overall box office and maintain 2009's winning streak. More...

Awards Season - Oscar Nods far from Curious

January 22nd, 2009

For a year without an obvious front-runner for the Oscar race, there were not a whole lot of surprises when it came to the nominations. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced their nominations today and leading the way was The Curious Case of Benjamin Button with thirteen while Slumdog Millionaire was second with ten. More...

Millionaire Richer after Golden Wins

January 21st, 2009

The Golden Globe bounce wasn't exactly overwhelming after the winners were announced, but many of the winners have been in theaters too long to really benefit from the added publicity. More...

DVD Sales - Eye Sees Its Way to the Top

January 13th, 2009

There were a handful of new releases on the first sales chart of the year, including Eagle Eye, which led the way with 1.39 million units during the week. Adding in previous sales, the film has sold 1.58 million units and generated $34.29 million in consumer retail spending. More...

DVD Rentals - New Releases Nearly Invisible

January 13th, 2009

There was not a single new release to chart this week on the rental side of the home market. At least not an entirely new release. Eagle Eye led the way, but it placed fourth during its early release last week. More...

Awards Season - Golden Globes are Slumming It

January 12th, 2009

The first of the major awards ceremonies were held last night as the Hollywood Foreign Press handed out the 66th annual Golden Globes awards. There were very few films that earned more than one award, but the big winner was Slumdog Millionaire with four wins. It is instantly an Oscar favorite. More...

Awards Season - Hat Trick Of Guild Nominations

January 9th, 2009

The final guild nominations were recently announced, and there are several theatrical categories to get to. The three guilds, DGA, PGA, and WGA, announced out eight nominations in total, which really help to fill in the gaps for prediction the Oscar nods. Or in some cases, just make matters more confusing. More...

DVD Sales - Knight Rises

January 7th, 2009

This week, new releases were practically non-existent on the DVD sales chart. In fact, the best selling releases to make their debut on the chart were the late releases from last week. The best seller overall this week was The Dark Knight with 1.69 million units and $37.11 million in consumer retail spending for the week, giving it just a hair under 12.00 million units sold and $252.82 million in sales after three. This is clearly the best selling DVD of 2008 having sold over 1 million units more than WALL-E and nearly $70 million more in retail sales. More...

DVD Rentals - Burn, Baby, Burn

January 7th, 2009

This week on the rental charts we have late releases from the week of the 16th, all the releases from the week of the 23rd, and early releases from the 30th. The number on rental for the week was Burn After Reading, which generated about a sixth more revenue than second place Death Race. More...

DVD Sales - Mamma Hot on Sales Chart

January 1st, 2009

There were only three new releases to chart this week, sort of. Call in three and a half new releases, but we will get to that in a bit. On the top of the sales chart this week was Mamma Mia!, which sold 3.72 million units for $77.68 million in consumer retail spending. More...

DVD Rentals - Mummy not Mamma Leads the Way

January 1st, 2009

There were five new releases to chart this week, including The Mummy - Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, which topped the charts just ahead of last week's winner, The Dark Knight. More...

2009 Preview: January

January 1st, 2009

Happy New Year! If it's January 1, it must be time to take a look at this month's releases, and analyze how 2009 at the box office will compare to 2008. 2009 is looking to get off to a fast start, but I'm not sure that's going to happen. For one thing, 2008 stumbled down the stretch, which means the box office is relatively soft at the moment. Also, 2008 got off to a great start, which means it will be harder for 2009 to keep pace early on. (On a side note, if the box office is sluggish as expected, it could set the tone for the box office coverage and bad news tends to beget more bad news.) While there are a few films that are aiming for $50 million or more, none have the advance buzz that Cloverfield had, and it is unlikely that any will match its box office. More...

Awards Season - SAG Strikes Back

December 28th, 2008

The Screen Actors Guild nominations were announced last Friday, but in the holiday rush, they fell through the cracks. Perhaps that's because most SAG talk these days revolves around possible strike action. The big player here is undoubtedly Doubt, which picked up four individual nods and one for its primary cast. More...

DVD Sales - Dark Knight Shines Bright

December 22nd, 2008

Not many new releases charted this week, but that doesn't matter as we had a record breaking release at the top. Not only did The Dark Knight become the fastest selling DVD of the year with 7.50 million units and $158.74 million, it also became the first Blu-ray to sell more than 1 million units during its first week of release, as it just crossed into seven digits. More...

DVD Rentals - Knight Becomes King

December 22nd, 2008

Only two new releases charted this week, but we still had a new number one with The Dark Knight. More...

DVD Sales - A Prince's Ransom

December 15th, 2008

New releases dominated the top of the sales chart this week, earning the top three spots. This included The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, which sold 3.34 million units and generated $54.72 million in revenue. More...

Awards Season - The Curious Case of the Frost/Nixon Globe Nominations

December 12th, 2008

The latest set of Awards Season nominations were handed out today as the Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced their nominations. There was not much in the way of surprises, and it is hard to look at one film and say it was the big winner, but Frost/Nixon and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button come the closest. More...

DVD Releases for December 9, 2008

December 8th, 2008

It's a deceptively light week with most of the top ten DVDs on Amazon's sales chart coming from The Dark Knight. In fact, that film is dominating sales so much that it has scared away most of the competition. Don't get me wrong, it's not the only release worth picking up, but the either the Two-Disc Special Edition DVD or the Blu-ray w/ Digital Copy are probably the best picks this week. Personally, I went with the Limited Edition Blu-ray w/ Batpod, but I clearly should not be trusted with money. There are other DVDs coming out this week that are also worthy of the DVD Pick of the Week, including Man on Wire - Buy from Amazon and Lost - Season Four - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray. More...

2008 - Holiday Gift Guide - Part I

December 3rd, 2008

Thanksgiving is over and that can only mean on thing, Christmas shopping! And that means it is time for our annual Holiday Gift Guide. This week we will look at some of the recent releases, as well as some soon to be released Blu-ray films. More...

International Details - United Germany Lifts Teutonic Offering

October 12th, 2008

German Unification Day helped The Baader Meinhof Complex grow by 10% as it remained in second place in Germany with $4.82 million on 594 screens for a total of $10.99 million after two weeks. Adding in two smaller markets and the film made $5.35 million on 660 screens in 3 markets for a total of $12.06 million. More...

International Details - Eye on the Prize

October 5th, 2008

Eagle Eye opened in sixth place on the international chart with $4.51 million on 1,124 screens in 13 markets, much of that coming from two markets: Australia and Mexico. In the former it made $1.42 million on 231 screens while in the latter it made just a hair under $900,000 on 350 screens. In both markets the film finished in second place, while it opens in major markets every week until the end of October, while it doesn't end its run until early next year. More...

International Details - Mummy Still Rules

September 28th, 2008

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor fell more than 50% this past weekend down to $4.24 million on 2905 screens in 46 markets for a total of $276.19 million internationally. It had no major market openings this past weekend, but added $1.36 million on 361 screens during its second weekend in Australia for a total of $5.13 million. More...

Weekend Weakness from the Top on Down

September 23rd, 2008

It was not a good weekend at the box office with just one of the four new releases beating expectations, and even then it was by just a rounding error. Overall box office receipts were $88 million over the weekend, which was down 13% from last week. More importantly, it was down 9% from the same weekend last year, which was not expected. Year-to-date, 2008 is still behind 2007, but at a margin of just $6.98 billion to $7.04 billion, and a strong fall and holiday box office would be enough to catch up. More...

International Top Five - Another Milestone for Mamma Mia

September 17th, 2008

Mamma Mia! remained in first place with $20.27 million on 4303 screens in 45 markets for a total of $309.59 million. It is only the fifth film this year to reach $300 million internationally and I think most would agree it is the least likely. Openings this week were highlighted by France, where it made $2.4 million, which was enough for first place in that market. Additionally, it remained flat in South Korea adding $3.35 million on 518 screens for a total of $9.79 million after two weeks of release. It was not as strong in its opening in Mexico, on the other hand, placing second with just $785,000 on 292 screens. Strong holds and a number of markets remaining, it could hit $400 million internationally. More...

Burn on Fire at the Box Office

September 15th, 2008

Four films opened wide this weekend, and all four finished in the top four, which is the first time that's happened in more than a year and a half. The strength of the new releases helped the overall box office bounce back, as it was up 49% from last weekend at $101 million. More importantly, it was up more than 28% from the same weekend last year, which ended a seven-week losing streak. Year-to-date, 2008 is still behind, but the gap was closed somewhat with 2007 leading with $6.92 billion to $6.87 billion. More...

New Releases Come Together

September 11th, 2008

There are four wide releases this week, and the odds are that all four will place in the top four on the chart. However, there are some disagreements among analysts on which films have a shot at topping the chart, and which will struggle. But (almost) everyone agrees that the overall box office will grow from last weekend, and most agree it will grow from the same weekend last year. More...

International Top Five - Mamma Mia Hits a High Note

September 10th, 2008

Mamma Mia! captured top spot thanks to a record-breaking debut in South Korea. In that market, it opened with $3.40 million on 513 screens over the weekend for a total of $5.08 million, which was the best opening for a musical in South Korean history; however, it still had to settle for second place. The film was also in second place in the U.K. with $2.52 million on 493 screens for a total of $99.42 million after two months of release. Overall, the film made $16.36 million on 3,430 screens in 39 markets for a total of $281.54 million internationally and $417.98 million worldwide. More...

Box Office in Dangerous Territory

September 8th, 2008

After the summer comes the fall, which was certainly true this past weekend. Bangkok Dangerous and rest of the market only pulled in just $68 million over the weekend, which is 45% lower than last weekend. However, while that's a huge drop-off, more importantly it is nearly 15% lower than the same weekend last year and the ninth weakest weekend since 2000, and worst weekend in five years. Year-to-date, 2008 is now behind 2007 by just over 1% at $6.75 billion to $6.82 billion, but hopefully it will bounce back next weekend. I can't imagine it will be worse. More...

Post-Labor Pains

September 5th, 2008

Can Tropic Thunder do it? Can Tropic Thunder match The Dark Knight's winning streak? ... Probably not, but it has a shot, thanks to the weakness in the new releases this week (or should that say new release?), and the historically slow post-Labor Day weekend. More...

International Top Five - Milestone Weekend for Knight

September 4th, 2008

The Dark Knight fell hard this past weekend, but it still managed a major milestone reaching $400 million internationally while topping $900 million worldwide. The lack of new markets meant its weekend haul was down 43% to $19.46 million on 6124 screens in 62 markets and now has $413.73 million internationally and $916.02 million worldwide. Its best market of the weekend was Germany, where it remained in first place with $4.58 million on 754 screens over the weekend for a total of $17.61 million after two. This is already more than double what the original made in total. Meanwhile the film's best market overall remained the U.K. where it has made $84.08 million, including $1.67 million on 396 screens over this past weekend. More...

Summer's Stormy End

September 2nd, 2008

The Dark Knight did what few films in the past decade were able to do, lead the box office charts for four weeks in a row. Now Tropic Thunder is one weekend away from tying that mark. However, it was able to win this weekend thanks to weakness in the new releases, which caused the box office to slump. From Friday to Sunday the industry brought in $98 million, which was 8% lower than last weekend and 17% lower than the same weekend last year. Over four days, $124 million was earned, which was again 17% lower than the same weekend last year. Year-to-date, 2008 fell further behind $6.67 billion to $6.73 billion, but that is still less than a 1% difference and certainly not an insurmountable lead. More...

Laborious Weekend for New Releases

August 28th, 2008

Labor Day long weekend is the final weekend of summer, but far from ending on a high note, it is arguably the slowest long weekend of the year. And this year it looks to be no different, at least in terms of box office numbers. In terms of new releases, well, that's a another story with four movies opening wide, and another expanding wide. It is very unlikely that they will all succeed; in fact, it is more likely that they will all bomb. This makes it very difficult to predict which new release will come out on top, if any do. More...

International Top Five - Knight is King

August 27th, 2008

The Dark Knight remained in first place with $34.28 million on 7194 screens in 62 markets for a total of $377.64 million internationally and $867.06 million worldwide. This week the film debuted in first place in Germany with $9.79 million on 754 screen, which is roughly five times what the original made when it opened there in 2005. It also remained in first place in France with $5.8 million on 820 screens for a total of $17.7 million, which is more than the original made in total. Its best market so far remains the U.K. where it has made $79.84 million, including 2.67 million on 440 screens this past weekend. On the other hand, the film is running out of markets to open in, and it will have trouble matching its domestic total. Perhaps it will reach $1 billion worldwide, but that's not a sure thing. More...

Bunnies Make Some Noise but Tropic Stays Hot

August 25th, 2008

Summer is winding down and the overall box office numbers show that quite clearly. Over the weekend, $106 million worth of tickets were sold, which is 15% lower than last weekend. On the other hand, it is a mere 1.3% lower than the same weekend last year, which continues the month-long slump. However, while 2008 is behind 2007's pace, it is by just 0.5% at $6.50 billion to $6.53 billion. More...

Race to the Top

August 22nd, 2008

Four films are opening in wide release this week, none of which can be called marquee releases. However, most of them should be able to cut out a slice of the shrinking summer box office pie. Most of them. A couple even have a shot at first place. More...

International Top Five - Knight Returns to Top

August 21st, 2008

The Dark Knight reclaimed first place on the international chart with $42.4 million on 7700 screens in 61 markets for a total of $328.6 million internationally and just over $800 million worldwide, which puts it ahead of Kingdom of the Crystal Skull for the year. This week it opened in first place in France and Spain $9.6 million on 818 screens in the former and $6.85 million on 570 screens in the latter. Meanwhile in South Korea the film was down just 23% earning $3.47 million on 463 screens for a total of $13.92 million after just two weeks. The film is also still in first place in the U.K. added $4.30 million on 499 screens for a total of $74.91 million, which is still a bit behind Mamma Mia!'s running tally of $84.34 million, and it is unlikely that it will catch it in the end in that market. More...

Thunder Rumbles to the Top

August 18th, 2008

We finally had a new box office champion last weekend, as Tropic Thunder earned top spot and dethrowned The Dark Knight. Additionally, overall box office receipts of $124 million were stronger than they have been in a few weeks. That's 3.5% higher than last weekend, but sadly just over 4% lower than the same weekend last year. Year-to-date, 2008 is still behind 2007, but by less than a percent, $6.34 billion to $6.37 billion. More...

Thunder Starts to Make Noise

August 14th, 2008

As summer winds down, the box office potential of the wide releases slumps, but the number of wide releases increases. This week we have three (and a couple of not so wide releases that we will get to later), including one that is already in theaters. None are likely to set the box office on fire. That said, there's almost no chance that The Dark Knight will repeat as the box office winner, which will bring an end to its nearly month-long reign. However, it will hit a milestone of its own. More...

International Top Five - Mummy's Milestone

August 13th, 2008

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor significantly expanded its reach this weekend, which allowed it to remain in top spot with $55.96 million on 6396 screens in 50 markets for a total of $141.94 million. The film had a trio of major market debuts this weekend earning first place in Germany with $6.42 million on 650 screens, in France with an estimated $5 million on 572 screens, and in Taiwan with $3.6 million on 61 screens, which was the best opening of the year so far. On the other hand, the film had to settle for second place in the U.K. with $5.70 million on 477 screens over the weekend, however, it has earned $8.53 million in total, which would have been enough for first place. As for holdovers, the film is still in first place in Mexico adding $2.36 million on 431 screens over the weekend for a total of $10.50 million after two weeks. Tomb of the Dragon Emperor will have little trouble reaching $200 million internationally, and it should become the biggest hit of the franchise on the international scene. More...

Olympic-Sized Box Office Haul

August 11th, 2008

Four. The Dark Knight has reigned on top of the box office charts for four weekends now. The last film to last on top so long was Return of the King, which opened more than four years ago. That said, while The Dark Knight is dominating, the new releases are not pulling their weight and the overall box office slipped to $120 million over the weekend, which was 21% lower than last weekend, and 22% lower than the same weekend last year. Year-to-date, 2008 has earned $6.14 billion, which is lower than 2007's pace but by less than 1%, as this time last year movies had earned $6.17 billion at the box office. More...

Weekend Estimates: Dark Knight Makes it Four in a Row

August 10th, 2008

The Dark Knight made it four weekend wins in a row, according to Sundays studio estimates. The Batman movie picked up another $26.030 million, which was enough to hold off The Pineapple Express. The Judd Apatow comedy had started strongly on Wednesday, but was performing weakly by the end of the weekend, and ended up with $22.4 million. That still represents a good $7,300 per theater average, and Express has already topped $40 million, thanks to strong mid-week numbers. More...

Weekend Preview, Friday Edition: Pineapple Heading for Winning Weekend

August 8th, 2008

There was a lot of doubt about where this weekend was headed when The Pineapple Express debuted on Wednesday. The Judd Apatow stable has produced some box office champions in the past, but its recent form has been mixed. Meanwhile, The Dark Knight continues to churn out records, and looks a decent bet to become only the second movie in history to top $500 million at the box office. So, while we gave Pineapple Express the nod as favorite to win the weekend, nothing seemed certain. Then Wednesday's box office figures arrived. More...

Will Pineapple Defeat Batman?

August 6th, 2008

Like last week, this week we have two more new wide releases, and like last week, The Dark Knight has a shot at retaining its crown. Also of note, the two new releases are coming out tonight because the Olympics are starting on Friday and they want to avoid going up against the Olympic opening ceremonies... Wait... People watch the Olympic opening ceremonies? More...

International Top Five - Mummy Ends Summer on Strong Note

August 6th, 2008

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor started its international run in about a third of the world scoring first place with $61.93 million on 4094 screens in 27 markets. This includes $9.24 million on 723 screens in South Korea over the weekend, and $13.11 million in total, which represents the best opening for a non-local film this year. The film was also fantastic in its opening in Russia scoring a reported $12.7 million there. Meanwhile in Spain it pulled in $6.48 million on 554 screens while in Mexico it earned $4.99 million on 430 screens, finishing first by significant margins in both markets. Next up for the film is the U.K., France, and Germany this weekend, Japan next weekend, while it doesn't end its run till September when it debuts in Italy. More...

Siberia Heats Up on the Per Theater Chart

August 5th, 2008

It took three weeks, but Transsiberian landed on top of the per theater chart with an estimated $27,000 in just 2 theaters for an average of $13,500, which was a little more than it earned last week. Also in limited release, Man on Wire saw its overall number drop by a small amount despite doubling its theater count to 4, which resulted in its average falling to $12,119. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor opened with an average of $10,760 in 3,760 theaters. Frozen River barely reached the $10,000 mark with an average of $10,033 in 7 theaters, although it wasn't as close as The Dark Knight was, as that film earned an average of $10,001. More...

Dark Knight Continues to Light Up Box Office

August 4th, 2008

For the third weekend in a row, The Dark Knight came out on top at the box office -- the first time this year we've had a three-time champ. Unfortunately, the film didn't come out on top because it beat expectations by a massive margin, but because The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor missed expectations. That led to a drop at the overall box office by just over 15% from last weekend to $153 million. This is also lower than the same weekend last year by just under 14%. Meanwhile, 2008's and 2007's year-to-date numbers are nearly identical at $5.93 billion, with this year a tiny, tiny amount lower. More...

Dark Days for New Releases? - Correction

July 31st, 2008

Two more new wide releases make their debut tomorrow, but we could have the first threepeat winner of the year as the new number one movie of the year, The Dark Knight, is still going strong. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor does have a slight edge going into this weekend, but it could be close. There is a troubling sign as neither film looks likely to match last year's number one film and with 2008 barely ahead of 2007, any weakness could result in 2008 losing its lead. More...

International Top of the Chart - Knight Rises to the Top

July 30th, 2008

The Dark Knight saw boisterous growth this week as it shot to the top with $63.38 million on 6249 screens in 45 markets for a total of $125.49 million internationally and $439.27 million worldwide, which is already more than the original made in total. This weekend the film opened in first place in a number of markets, including the U.K. where it earned $17.26 million on 502 screens over the weekend and $22.23 million in total, which was more than 150% more than the original opened with and only 30% less than that film made in total. It was not quite as impressive in Italy, but it still showed double-digit growth from the previous installment pulling in $3.10 million on 616 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $4.97 million. More...

IMAX - The Dark Knight Nears $20 million Worldwide

July 29th, 2008

The Dark Knight had the best sophomore stint of any IMAX film, earning $4.6 million on 94 screens and now has $16.3 million, which is also a record for an IMAX film at this point in its run. Additionally, the film has made $2.8 million internationally, including $1.6 million on 28 IMAX screens this past weekend, and it is expected to reach $20 million worldwide after Monday numbers are added in. The highlight of the film's international IMAX run was in London where the film premiered at the BFI IMAX theater, where it broke the previous record with $221,000 over the weekend. More...

Wire Towers Higher than Bat

July 29th, 2008

Man on Wire topped the per theater chart this week by pulling in an impressive average of $25,696 in two theaters. This was ahead of the overall box office leader, The Dark Knight, which earned an average of $17,216 in more than 4,000 theaters. Transsiberian also repeated in the $10,000 club, down roughly 23% to $13,280. Brideshead Revisited opened in 22 theaters, which is a lot of a limited release, but still managed an average of $10,291 during its opening weekend, which bodes well for its prospects at expansion. The final film to reach $10,000 did so by the narrowest of narrow margins as Step Brothers topped that milestone by less than 24 cents. More...

Dark Knight Continues its Record Breaking Run

July 29th, 2008

The Dark Knight added a few more records to its impressive list of accomplishments, but it wasn't enough to prevent the overall box office from suffering, as it was down to $181 million over the weekend. That represents a stunning 31% drop-off from last weekend. However, since last weekend was the largest weekend on record, this was not surprising. What was a little surprising was the year-to-year decline; granted, it was down less than 2% from the same weekend last year, but that's still disappointing. As for the year-to-date numbers, strong midweek numbers helped push 2008 into the lead, barely, with 2008 earning $5.68 billion to $5.67 billion for 2007. More...

I Want to Believe in the New Releases

July 24th, 2008

Two new wide releases make their debut today, but neither of them have a legitimate shot at first place. In fact, it would take a shocking result for Step Brothers and X-Files: I Want to Believe to earn more combined than The Dark Knight will make during its second weekend of release. The real competition for The Dark Knight is The Simpsons movie, which opened this time last year. More...

International Top of the Chart - Hancock Holds Off Batman

July 23rd, 2008

Hancock fell 35% to $45.65 million on 8,506 screens in 71 markets for a total of $257.64 million internationally and $449.18 million worldwide. This is already Will Smith's fourth biggest hit worldwide, and it should have no trouble becoming his fourth $500 million movie as well. This week the film opened in Spain with an outstanding $9.26 million on 575 screens, which was easily enough for first place. It is also doing extremely well in Germany with $4.31 million on 749 screens over the weekend for a total of $30.74 million after three. Likewise, the film earned $4.03 million on 437 screens over the weekend in the U.K., which pushed its total of $41.50 million after three weeks of release. Next up for the film is Japan at the end of August and Italy in the middle of September. By then the film should have reached more than $350 million internationally and perhaps even $600 million worldwide. More...

Contest - Good Knight - Winning Announcement

July 23rd, 2008

The winners of our Good Night contest were determined and they are... More...

Good Knight on the Per Theater Chart

July 22nd, 2008

During its record-breaking weekend, The Dark Knight set the record for best per theater average for a wide releases, so it comes as no surprise it tops the per theater chart this weekend, and did so with $36,283. The only other film to top $10,000 was Transsiberian with an average of $17,308 in two theaters while Before I Forget came close with $9,676 in one theater. More...

IMAX - The Dark Knight is Too Big for IMAX to Contain

July 22nd, 2008

The Dark Knight broke countless IMAX records over the weekend starting with its midnight shows on Friday, as it made $641,508 in 93 theaters. On Friday the film made $2,590,581 while over the whole weekend it made $6.3 million from 94 theaters, for an average of $67,036. All four of those stats were records, as was the film's $7 million worldwide opening weekend. More...

Record Number of Records?

July 22nd, 2008

Wow.

It is always better to underestimate demand and be pleasantly surprised, but The Dark Knight beat practically all expectations. It is such a huge hit that its weekend haul was better than the industry as a whole managed last weekend, and more than the industry made the same weekend last year. In fact, the $254 million weekend haul was a biggest all time. Needless to say, there was substantial growth this past weekend and the overall box office was up 68% from last weekend and 64% from the same weekend last year. Meanwhile, 2008 is still behind 2007 $5.37 billion to $5.41 billion, but that lead won't last. More...

Weekend Estimates: Dark Knight Sets New Weekend Record

July 20th, 2008

After a massive opening day on Friday, a new weekend record looked inevitable for The Dark Knight, and it delivered the goods this morning with Warner Bros. estimating an opening weekend total of $155.34 million. Since the movie actually scored better on Friday than originally projected, it seems likely that WB is being cautious in their projection, and a good day on Sunday could see the movie come close to $160 million when all is said and done. More...

Friday Estimates: Dark Knight Smashes Single Day Record

July 19th, 2008

The Dark Knight smashed the all-time single day record on Friday, according to Warner Bros.' estimate, with an extraordinary $66.4 million. That's more than $6 million ahead of the previous record-holder, Spider-Man 3, which earned $59,841,919 on its opening day last year. (See complete list of biggest single days at the box office.) More...

Movie Website Reviews for Weekend of July 18, 2008

July 19th, 2008

There were a lot of movies released this week, and while not all of them had real sites, it was still busier than usual. No one site really wowed this week, but The Dark Knight's Official Site, plus its two side sites combined into an award worthy effort. More...

Dark Knight Earns Huge $18.489 Million at Midnight Screenings

July 18th, 2008

The Dark Knight earned an incredible $18,489,000 in 12.01am screenings last night to set the ball rolling on what is certain to be a massive opening weekend. The movie previewed in 3,040 theaters, and the numbers are for the 12.01am screenings only -- they do not include data from the 3am and 6am shows that many theaters had added to their schedules More...

Darkest Before the Dawn

July 17th, 2008

One of the most anticipated films of the year opens today and The Dark Knight should be huge. Absolutely huge. In fact, there are even those who think the film will make more than the top five did this time last year, which would be a huge boost to 2008 in its race with 2007. More...

Contest - Good Knight

July 11th, 2008

The Dark Knight is one of this Summer's most anticipated films. It is also this week's target film. In order to win, one must simply predict the opening weekend box office of The Dark Knight. Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going over, will win a copy of Meet Bill on DVD, as well as a signed poster from that movie. Meanwhile, whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going under, will also win a copy of Meet Bill on DVD, as well as a signed poster from that movie. Entries must be received by 10 a.m., Pacific Time on Friday to be eligible, so don't delay! More...

2008 Preview: July

July 1st, 2008

July is going to have a tough time following June. Last month only one movie missed expectations by any meaningful degree which helped 2008 climb above 2007's pace. Perhaps if The Dark Knight can become the biggest hit of the year so far and 2008 tops 2007's pace in terms of ticket sales, July will be seen as a better month than June, but that will be very tough to do. Compared to last year, July doesn't seem to have as much strength at the top, but its strength is in the midrange hits and it should at least keep pace with 2007. More...

IMAX - Panda Softer Than Expected

June 11th, 2008

Kung Fu Panda's opening weekend box office was big, but no bigger than on IMAX where it earned $2.3 million on 95 screens (89 screens domestically and 6 internationally). This is actually weaker than expected, but assuming the movie shows some serious legs, which most IMAX films do, it should still be a success for the format. Next up for IMAX is The Dark Knight starting July 18th. More...

Cast Updates - April 4, 2008

April 4th, 2008

This week's round of new casting information contains updates for The Informant, The Surrogates, War, Inc., and more! More...

Cast Updates - December 27, 2007

December 27th, 2007

This week's round of new casting information contains updates for Fly Me To the Moon, Justice League, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and more! More...

Movie Website Updates for September 2 - September 8, 2007

September 9th, 2007

Another week without any top-notch websites, at least one that hasn't previously won the award. At least there are a few with possibilities and the fall blockbusters should start coming launching their sites shortly so the pace should pickup soon. More...

Movie Website Updates for July 22 - July 28, 2007

July 29th, 2007

Server upgrades went... less smoothly than anticipated, which delayed this column, but at least there are a huge number of sites to check out. Many of these sites are making their first appearance on the list while quite a few are making their last appearance. Unfortunately, while it's a big list, there are not many that are even close to being award worthy at the moment. 30 Days of Night - Official Site comes the closest, but I'm waiting for the missing features to be added before I make that decision. More...

Movie Website Updates for May 20 - May 26, 2007

May 26th, 2007

Another slow week. If this keeps up I'm going to have to rethink my methodology. Not only were there not as many sites as I would like, there were none that really stood out as award-worthy. The best was Stardust - Official Site, but here I will wait for more of the content to be added before I make a final decision. More...

Movie Website Updates for May 6 - May 12, 2007

May 12th, 2007

Not the best week for sites as there was only one that had even a chance of winning, Surf's Up - Official Site. There were a couple others that showed potential, but they will need a little more work to win. More...

New Movie US Release Dates - November 19, 2006

November 19th, 2006

This week's round of new movie release information contains release dates for Charlotte's Web, Speed Racer, The Dark Knight and more. More...

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Territory	Release Date	Opening Weekend	Opening Weekend Screens	Maximum Screens	Theatrical Engagements	Total Box Office	Report Date
Australia	7/11/2008	$0	0	62	161	$32,936,769	1/15/2021
Japan	8/2/2008	$0	0	0	0	$122,460	7/24/2020
Lithuania	7/3/2020	$0	0	1	1	$37	7/22/2020
Mexico	7/18/2008			0	0	$0
Netherlands	7/25/2008	$0	0	77	132	$5,706,062	7/13/2020
New Zealand	7/24/2008	$0	0	14	62	$4,345,322	10/7/2024
North America	7/18/2008	$158,411,483	4,366	4,366	39,170	$534,235,491
South Korea	8/6/2017	$1,874	1	378	980	$25,216,276	12/6/2023
United Kingdom	7/24/2008	$0	0	332	1480	$62,760,476	10/30/2024
Rest of World						$342,372,879
Worldwide Total						$1,007,695,772	10/30/2024