Thursday Night Previews: Bewitching Results
February 19, 2016
The Witch had the fastest start on Thursday, with $630,000 from preview shows. This is almost identical to what Krampus earned late last year and that film earned $16 million during its opening weekend. Granted, Krampus was the only wide release that weekend and didn’t have to deal with any film as big as Deadpool. That said, this is still a good result for the film and it suggests it will top predictions, especially if moviegoers like it as much as critics did. Additionally, A24 said the advertising budget was “nominal” and that it was focused on the planned VOD / home market release in three months. It could break even by this time next week.
Risen was next with $425,000 in previews. It’s aimed at a more mature target demographic than The Witch. Worse than that from a box office analyst’s point-of-view, it is aimed at the churchgoing crowd, so there are very few films we can compare it with. War Room managed $600,000 on its way to an $11.35 million opening weekend. Risen does have better reviews, so I don’t think it will miss expectations by a significant margin.
Race only pulled in $205,000 during its previews. This is less than half of what When the Game Stands Tall earned in 2014 and that film wasn’t a box office hit. This could be a bad weekend for the movie.
- Risen comparisons
- Race comparisons
- The Witch comparisons
Filed under: Midnight Previews, Deadpool, Risen, Krampus, Race, The Witch