Horror Report

Tag: box office

  • SMILE!! You did well at the box office this weekend

    SMILE!! You did well at the box office this weekend

    SMILE did great this weekend .. in the United States Box office: $22 mil.. Friday alone fetched in $8.2 mil..

    We have this dispatch late Sunday from DEADLINE, explaining that SMILE did pretty well globally, too, at the box office:

    Landing the top offshore debut for the studios was Paramount’s Smile with $14.5M from 58 markets, and $36.5M globally. The horror audience grinned in all areas with good word of mouth for the Parker Finn-directed movie that was also tops domestically. 

    Reinforcing that audiences want to go back to the cinema for something fresh, on a like-for-like basis, the offshore start on Smile is 18% above Truth or Dare, 55% ahead of Hereditary and on par with The Black Phone. Smile, whose first footage intrigued exhibition at CineEurope earlier this year, was led by the UK with $2M from 520 locations at No. 2. France was also a No. 2 debut with $1.4M from 303 sites. In horror-leaning Mexico, the movie scored a No. 1 start of $1.1M from 855 locations. Rounding out the Top 5 were Germany ($1M from 316) and Australia ($800K from 206)

    We saw the movie this weekend as well. Amazing cinematic effects–the upside down camera angles.. the dreadful music.. the dark hallways that did NOT have something jump out, and the scenes where something did..

    It was all effective.

    However there were some less than great things. It felt like a horror movie that turned into a thriller and then back into a horror again, with a twist ending that went right back to the ending that no one seemed to want..

    We ended up liking the thriller angle of the film more than the horror. But boy. those jump scares. We thought someone walking down the aisle to go to the bathroom in the theater was going to fall backwards–they chose the scene that featured the jumpiest of the jump scares to walk down the dark steps..

    The marketing for the movie was brilliant, with smiling people gracing baseball games and public locations for the past two weeks. Nice move!

    But what few are talking about with this is the ‘smile’ concept. It is based on a short horror film.. but it also seems to borrow a lot of the concept of IT FOLLOWS. In that movie, what followed was a sexually transmitted disease and bad reputation. In this film, it is mental illness. We cloud it and hide it with a smile.

    I am not sure if the film makers went for a deeper meaning than what we got, but it sure felt like something much more meaningful was hiding under the surface.

    THE WOKE CHOKE

    But what did NOT do well this weekend was BROS:

    Despite glowing reviews for the Judd Apatow-produced film, Bros has not been a hit at the box office and is estimated to only make $4.8M during its opening weekend, half of what Universal was estimating. Eichner acknowledged that the romantic comedy he stars in isn’t tracking within a certain segment of the population in the country.

    Homophobia is the excuse for the film doing poorly..

    More from the DEADLINE article:

    “Even with glowing reviews, great Rotten Tomatoes scores, an A CinemaScore, etc, straight people, especially in certain parts of the country, just didn’t show up for Bros. And that’s disappointing but it is what it is,” he continued.

    The comedian stands by the movie and encouraged “everyone who ISN’T a homophobic weirdo” to go watch Bros.

  • Theater owners desperate for business: $3 movie day in the works

    Theater owners desperate for business: $3 movie day in the works

    Just as the box office experiences its lowest profit weekend of the entire summer, this news is being reported to inspire your business:

    For one day, movie tickets will be just $3 in the vast majority of American theaters as part of a newly launched “National Cinema Day” to lure moviegoers during a quiet spell at the box office.

    The Cinema Foundation is a non-profit arm of the National Association of Theater Owners.. They are involved with this announcement.

    The date: September 3.

    It will be a nationwide discount day in more than 3,000 theaters and on more than 30,000 screens.

    Major chains, including AMC and Regal Cinemas, are participating, as are all major film studios.

    In participating theaters, tickets will be no more than $3 for every showing, in every format.

    Organizers of National Cinema Day described the event as a trial that could become an annual fixture. While some other countries have experimented with a similar day of cheap movie tickets, the initiative is the first of its kind on such a large scale in the U.S.

    But will this be enough?

    Despite having a few blockbusters weekends this summer, and record breaking movies, the last few years have been pretty awful. COVID can be blamed with theater shut downs.

    Now that the COVID nightmare has quelled, the streaming platforms seem to have captured the dull imagination of movie-goers.. We have lost our zeal for a air conditioned and amazing popcorn filled frenzy of new movies.

    This group seems to hope to make that return again.

    Good luck.

    It seems unlikely that we will have the beauty of the experience we once did.

    And frankly, during a recession or even depression, spending money sure ain’t available to millions of people. Choosing between necessity and entertainment, we obviously know where the fundage will nbe thrown, right?

    That perhaps is what makes this dicey.

    Theaters have grown dark–but without movies being played.

    At some point it breaks.

    We lament when it will, and until then enjoy the moments we get to bask in the pale light of a projector screen inside a building or outside in a drive-in.

    Three dollar day may help. A bit. It just won’t be the silver bullet to end all fears for future theaters..

  • No confidence in Halloween Ends release ?

    No confidence in Halloween Ends release ?

    Halloween Kills was released on both Peacock and in theaters. That made sense due to Covid still being in high gear..

    But Halloween Ends following the same path? Peculiar ..

    Jamie Lee Curtis announced that both platforms would reveal Halloween Ends on release date ..

    A part of us feel that it may show low confidence in the film doing very in theaters.

    Some have revealed that experiences at test screenings were met with mixed results. Perhaps the movie makers are hedging their bets and creating a back up plan JUST IN CASE word of mouth ruins the film’s prospects opening weekend..

    Then again.. it’s Halloween. Even the worst of the films have a decent opening weekend…

    Time will tell. Soon too. Believe it or not in just weeks now (where’s time going?!)

  • DOCTOR STRANGE SCORES BIG IN OUR UNIVERSE

    DOCTOR STRANGE SCORES BIG IN OUR UNIVERSE

    RESULTS ARE IN: Benedict Cumberbatch as DOCTOR STRANGE has made an estimated $185 million domestically for its opening this weekend, according to Disney..

    That is on the higher end of expectations..It had the been predicted that it would make around $170 million to $185 million in North America. It also makes “Multiverse of Madness” the 11th biggest opening in domestic box office history.

     The film’s more than doubled the opening weekend of the original “Doctor Strange.” ..

    The summer box office season appears to have started with a bang.. call it the post COVID boom?

    Other films are slated to be big hits in the summer months.

    Marvel will premiere another potential hit in July:

    “Thor: Love and Thunder,” the next film in the blockbuster franchise starring Chris Hemsworth in the mid summer..

    INTERESTINGLY, the newest STRANGER did not get the grand ratings that SPIDER-MAN did.. Right now on Rotten Tomatoes, the critics score is hovering in the mid 70% range and fan rating did not have the movie above 90%..

    The Strangest Moments In Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness

    The horror version of Doctor Strange?

    Some felt the Sam Raimi style made the film more of a horror than action–but that played well among several demos..

    But… perhaps who cares when showcased aside of the box office results..

    Money talks.

    Rotten Tomatoes walk.

  • Some of the coolest images of Strange and Wanda from UNIVERSE OF MADNESS

    Some of the coolest images of Strange and Wanda from UNIVERSE OF MADNESS

    BOX OFFICE SHOULD BE BIG..

  • SCREAM IS A HIT!

    SCREAM IS A HIT!

    Children of the parents of the SCREAM generation have gone to the movies this weekend..

    The newest installment in the SCREAM films is a hit..

    Estimates now in, and the horror film will take the number one spot on the box office charts from “Spider-Man: No Way Home” as it meets pre-release projections with a $30.6 million 3-day/$35 million 4-day opening from 3,664 theaters on Martin Luther King weekend…

    The return on investment will be decent too: SCREAM 5 was cheap to make. . It only cost $24 mil–which means it is already making profit.

    Martin Luther King weekend seems to be a strong weekend for horror releases at the box office..

    “Scream” is set to top the $32.6 million of Andy Muschietti’s “Mama” in 2013 while settling below the $46.5 million opening of M. Night Shyamalan’s “Glass” in 2019.

  • SCREAM GLEAMS

    SCREAM GLEAMS

    Paramount’s Scream is doing strong business in its box office opening, earning $13.4 million on Friday from 3,664 theaters for a projected weekend debut north of $30 million, based on early projections.

    The horror franchise created by the late Wes Craven should gross roughly $31 million for the three-day weekend and as much as $36 million for the four-day Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend ..

  • Spidey box office tingling

    Spidey box office tingling

    “Spider-Man: No Way Home” has generated even more money in its box office debut than initially reported.

    Sony’s movie featuring the Tom Holland-led comic book trilogy collected $260 million in North American theaters over the weekend, above Sunday’s estimates of $253 million. It means “No Way Home” has now surpassed “Avengers: Infinity War” ($257 million) to land the second-biggest debut in Hollywood history behind only “Avengers: Endgame” ($357 million)..

    Internationally, “Spider-Man: No Way Home” captured $340.8 million from 60 overseas markets, bringing its global tally to $600.8 million. It stands as the third-biggest worldwide launch ever after “Avengers: Endgame” ($1.2 billion) and “Avengers: Infinity War” ($640 million..

    This movie definitely now has bragging rights as being not only the biggest film during the pandemic, but the second biggest thing of all time. That’s an amazing feat for the amazing Spider-Man.

    There are many people who believe that seen this movie in the theater is not just seeing a film, but going through an experience. There was so much emotional fandom taking place during the movie it was impossible not to get taken away down the path of applause, cries, and joy.

    What does box office dollars equal the greatest movie of the year? The Horror Report will be working working on it’s a year in review: will Spider-Man make the cut?

  • GHOSTBUSTER BOOM!

    GHOSTBUSTER BOOM!

    Ghostbusters: Afterlife made its debut over the weekend and proved to be quite the box office champ as it exceeded its early tracking numbers. The sequel grossed $44 million over the weekend which was well ahead of the $30-35 million the film was tracking at ahead of the weekend.

    The opening is slightly less than the $46 million opening for the 2016 reboot but the key difference at play is budget. ..

    The 2016 film carried a staggering $140 million budget before marketing costs while the latest entry is a relatively slim $75 million…

    Reviews from critics slammed the new film… however fans, who dressed up in nostalgic gear at movie theaters and clapped and cheered certain scenes, loved it.

    The fans ate it up like Muncher chewing on prison bars…

  • MICHAEL MYERS MAKES KILLING AT BOX!

    MICHAEL MYERS MAKES KILLING AT BOX!

    Halloween Kills released on Friday both in theaters and on Peacock, and absolutely dominated at the box office with a $55 million take. Most of it came from North America and its love for Jamie Lee Curtis and John Carpenter, and the $50 million debut came above original expectations.

    People seemed to ditch the at home experience in place for theaters..