R-rated, restricted-audience films and gooey all-family films propped up domestic cinema boxoffice in 2024. “Venturing into R-rated territory for the first time paid off in spades as Disney and Marvel’s ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ — the third installment in Ryan Reynold’s doozy-of-a comic-book-franchise became the top-grossing R-rated film of all time — while Pixar and … [Read more...] about F-Bombs, Family Films Save 2024 Cinema
cinema distribution
‘Terrifier 3’ Success Boosts Unrated Films
Low-budget horror flick “Terrifier 3” (website screen grab above) cracks open the door wider for unrated films to play mainstream theaters, after grossing a solid $37 million in its first 11 days in cinemas. “It is well on its way to becoming the top-grossing unrated film of all time domestically against a minuscule budget of $2 million and barely any marketing spend,” notes … [Read more...] about ‘Terrifier 3’ Success Boosts Unrated Films
Rereleases Pile Into Cinemas
Theatrical rereleases are multiplying, driven by nostalgia, consumers’ desire to get out-of-home and gaps in release schedules after Hollywood labor strikes. And audiences are flocking to cinemas to see them. Later this week, 2009 music-school drama "Whiplash" gets a rerelease (Miles Teller, left, and J. K. Simmons pictured above). The stop-motion Laika Studios film … [Read more...] about Rereleases Pile Into Cinemas
‘Twisters’ Storming Mid-America, 4DX
Tornado yarn “Twisters” surpassed audience tracking estimates by a wide margin, playing exceptionally well in middle America and the Southeast (where real twisters are a menace!) and on big-screen cinema. Universal Pictures collected a sizeable $81.2 million in domestic boxoffice July 19-21, as “Twisters" surpassed prerelease tracking estimates by 60% (the estimate was $50 … [Read more...] about ‘Twisters’ Storming Mid-America, 4DX
Coppola Wants to Prove Hollywood Wrong on ‘Megalopolis’
Filmmaker extraordinaire Frances Ford Coppola is struggling with placating puzzled film critics, marketing an esoteric film to wide audiences and struggling for industry sales for his “Megalopolis.” The $120 million self-financed social commentary epic is in competition at the Cannes Film Festival in France, where Coppola hopes those problems will be solved by critical acclaim … [Read more...] about Coppola Wants to Prove Hollywood Wrong on ‘Megalopolis’
Marketing Often Exceeds Film Costs
Deadline.com’s annual rankings of film profitability highlights one of oddities of the movie biz. How much one spends on making “the product” — meaning film production cost — frequently has little bearing on profitability and is sometime dwarfed by basic marketing expenses. Universal Pictures spent just $20 million to make cheapie horror film “Five Nights at Freddy’s” but … [Read more...] about Marketing Often Exceeds Film Costs
Cinema Ascends, But Still Off-Peak
Domestic boxoffice climbed a healthy 21% in 2023, though that’s still 15% below pre-pandemic levels, in a pattern experienced around the world. Universal Pictures became the top-grossing distributor (major studio), snapping Walt Disney Studio’s seven-year reign. Disney was torpedoed by late-year underperformance of cinema adaptations from its Marvel comics … [Read more...] about Cinema Ascends, But Still Off-Peak
Marvel Film Universe Gets Too Inbred
Once considered a strength, the Marvel Cinematic Universe that interconnects movies and comic books has become a drag. New theatrical film “The Marvels” generated a disappointing $47 million over the Nov. 10-12 premiere weekend, the lowest of any big-budget movie in the modern era of adapting Marvel comic books to cinema screens. And stumbles have become a trend in which three … [Read more...] about Marvel Film Universe Gets Too Inbred
‘Freddy’s’ Boxoffice Pops Despite Peacock Streams
Horror film “Five Nights at Freddy’s” achieved amazing premiere boxoffice despite its simultaneous run on the Peacock video streaming service. Just a $20 million movie production, “Freddy’’s” posted a humongous $80 million domestically (U.S. and Canada) for Universal Pictures for the Oct. 27-29 weekend while streaming concurrently on Peacock. Both Universal and Peacock are … [Read more...] about ‘Freddy’s’ Boxoffice Pops Despite Peacock Streams
Cinema Forecast: Snap-Back by 2025
Consultancy PwC forecasts that global cinema revenue will surpass pre-pandemic levels in 2025 at a projected $46.6 billion worldwide, compared with $43 billion in 2019. The 2025 figure is the sum of $43 billion in boxoffice (ticket sales) plus another $3.3 billion in on-screen advertising. That’s according to PwC’s mammoth annual “Global Entertainment & Media Outlook” … [Read more...] about Cinema Forecast: Snap-Back by 2025