Theater Counts: Jigsaw Has Halloween, But Thor Looms Large
October 26, 2017
Although technically this isn’t Halloween weekend, it looks like we’re going to celebrate it early this year, judging by the line-up of films playing in theaters. Jigsaw joins the throng this weekend, and is the widest new release, playing in 2,941 theaters. That’s not a huge amount, to be honest, but its path into theaters is blocked by a plethora of horror alternatives: Happy Death Day adds 233 new theaters, and is the widest release playing at the moment, with 3,531 locations in total; It is still showing in 2,538 movie houses; and, if your taste runs towards lighter fare, Boo! 2 is available in 2,388 theaters this weekend.
Theater owners aren’t showing a lot of love for anything other than horror at the moment, and Thank You for Your Service (2,054 locations) and Suburbicon (2,046) look like the big losers this weekend. The movie business is inherently cyclical, and horror is clearly perceived as the most popular form of the art right now, but sometimes that can become a self-fulfilling prophecy, with theaters booking this weekend what worked last weekend.
This trend will be broken next weekend, however, with A Bad Moms Christmas coming out on Wednesday in approximately 3,500 theaters, and Thor: Ragnarok debuting in about 3,800 theaters on Friday. Both films have a shot at doing well, but all eyes will be on Thor, partly because the Marvel Cinematic Universe hasn’t enjoyed a $150-million opening weekend since Captain America: Civil War in May last year, and partly because it kicks off the end-of-year rush for Hollywood, at a time when the industry is heading for its worst year in two decades, in terms of tickets sold. No pressure.
Theater Counts for Weekend of October 27-29
Estimates for Weekend of November 3
Movie Distributor Estimated
TheatersThor: Ragnarok Walt Disney 3,800 A Bad Moms Christmas STX Entertainment 3,500 Last Flag Flying Lionsgate 4 Frank Serpico IFC Films 1
Filed under: Theater Counts, Marvel Cinematic Universe