2020 Awards Season: Oscar Nominations

January 13th, 2020

The Oscar nominations were announced on Monday, and the results were... well, there were some puzzling results. Joker led the way with eleven nominations. ... A film with 69% positive reviews earned the most nominations. It’s not the worst-reviewed movie to earn a Best Picture Nomination—after all, Bohemian Rhapsody was nominated just last year. However, this film is arguably the worst-reviewed movie to ever earn the most nominations in a single year. More...

Home Market Releases for January 7th, 2020

January 8th, 2020

The home market returns to normal after two of the worst weeks I’ve ever seen. Keep in mind, I said normal, not good. There’s only one big release of the week, Joker, and not much else that is selling well enough to make the main list. In fact, not everything in the main list is selling well enough to get there on just an average week. The contenders for Pick of the Week include Brick, The Lighthouse, and Zombie Land Saga: Season One. It was a really close call and it came down to the roll of the dice, with Zombie Land Saga winning out. More...

Theater Averages: Frozen Floats on Water

November 28th, 2019

Frozen II led the way on yet another chart, this time the theater average chart, earning an average of $29,339 during its opening weekend. Dark Waters was right behind with an average of $25,652 in four theaters, which does suggest at least some potential to expand. Jay and Silent Bob Reboot continues its impressive road show run earning an average of $16,140 in five theaters. Citizen K was the final film in the $10,000 club with an opening of $10,571 in its lone theater. More...

2020 - Awards Season: Independent Spirit Awards - Nominations

November 21st, 2019

The Independent Spirit Awards nominations were announced and thus the 2020 Awards Season begins. There are two changes to this year’s coverage of Awards Season. Firstly, we’re going back to using the year the awards are handed out and not the year the movie came out, even though the latter makes so much more sense. We are doing this, because every one else does this and being accurate takes a back seat to being easily understood. Secondly, since the Independent Spirit Awards are not particularly good indicators of Oscar success, we are just going to do summaries and not a full list of nominees. More...

Theater Averages: Honey is in the Money

November 14th, 2019

Honey Boy easily led the way on the theater average chart earning just over $300,000 in four theaters for an average of $75,266. Jay and Silent Bob Reboot was way back with an average of $15,613 in 15 theaters during its fourth week of release. Granted, it is a road show with greatly inflated ticket prices, but it also has very limited showings, so this is a fantastic run. The final film in the $10,000 club was Better Days with an opening weekend of nearly $1 million in 70 theaters for an average of $14,136. More...

Theater Averages: The Irishman Enters Witness Protection

November 7th, 2019

It appears Netflix will not be reporting box office numbers for The Irishman. We’ve seen reports by third parties that the film earned $350,000 in eight theaters for an opening weekend average of $43,750. The only confirmed member of the $10,000 club was Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, which earned an average of $15,097 in 15 theaters. However, it is a roadshow tour and ticket prices for some shows are greatly inflated. This is still an impressive number, but don’t expect it to expand truly wide. More...

Theater Averages: Most New Releases Struggle, but Holdovers Thrive

October 31st, 2019

There was only one new release in the $10,000 club, No Safe Spaces, which earned $45,548 in its lone theater. While this is a great start, its reviews suggest it won’t stick around long, as the film is preaching to the choir. Jojo Rabbit expanded from five to 55 theaters, but still managed an impressive average of $18,983. Parasite was next with an average $14,158 in 129 theaters during its third weekend of release. Jay and Silent Bob Reboot expanded to 17 theaters, and earned an average of $12,774. It will likely continue to expand, as a lot of shows on its road tour were sold out weeks in advance. More...

Theater Averages: Jay and Silent Bob Give Limited Releases a Kick in the Pants

October 24th, 2019

It was an amazing week on the theater average chart with five films in the $10,000 club, incluing three new releases that earned averages of more than $50,000. Jay and Silent Bob Reboot opened with two days of special engagements where the film earned just over $1 million, before having a roadshow performance in one theater over the weekend earning $93,520. However, this wasn’t a usual run and tickets range from about $50 to over $200 for the VIP packages at some shows. That said, even with normal ticket prices, it would still have earned a spot in the $10,000 club. Second place went to Jojo Rabbit with an impressive opening of average $69,911 in five theaters. This is more than enough to expand significantly, perhaps even enough to justify a wide expansion. The Lighthouse also opened well enough to justify significant expansions earning an average of $53,475 in eight theaters. Parasite was the only holdover in the $10,000 club earning an average of $37,616 in 33 theaters. The film topped $1 million over the weekend and it has plenty of room to grow. The final film in the $10,000 club was The Cave, which earned an average of $10,593 in two theaters. More...

Limited and VOD Releases: Will Jojo Light the Way?

October 18th, 2019

There are not a lot of films on this week’s list that are earning both great reviews and loud buzz. The Lighthouse is one of the best, both in terms of buzz and in terms of reviews, but Jojo Rabbit is the one I want to see the most. More...