• Box Office

World Box Office Oct 5-11

Warner Brothers knew that Pan, Joe Wright’s Peter Pan’s original story, was going to be a difficult sell but they probably did not expect the disappointment to be as big. Specifically that they would be beaten so hard by The Martian<i; as=”” awards=”” buzz.=”” exceptional=”” generating=”” i=”” in=”” its=”” kept=”” numbers=”” of=”” ridley=”” s=”” sci-fi=”” second=”” week=”” well=””>The Martian grossed $58 million from 74 territories for an international total of $120 million. Among new countries, South Korea was in near-record territory with $12.7 million. Russia, with $2 million, generated twice as much as Gravity. In the UK The Martian was on its second week, but it kept the top spot and grossed over $6 million. In the meantime the space adventure starring Matt Damon dropped only 32% from last week in the U.S. and Canada, and is now at over $110 million, for a global total close to $230 million. </i;>

<i; as=”” awards=”” buzz.=”” exceptional=”” generating=”” i=”” in=”” its=”” kept=”” numbers=”” of=”” ridley=”” s=”” sci-fi=”” second=”” week=”” well=””></i;><i; as=”” awards=”” buzz.=”” exceptional=”” generating=”” i=”” in=”” its=”” kept=”” numbers=”” of=”” ridley=”” s=”” sci-fi=”” second=”” week=”” well=””>Things were also pretty good for Hotel Transylvania 2. In its third weekend, it expanded from South America and Asia to Europe and the result was an additional $22.7 million and an international total, so far, of $90 million. The animated feature generated over $3 million in Italy and France and it kept doing well in Mexico where it added $2.2 million. On its third week in the U.S., Transylvania 2 added $20 million, crossing the $100 million mark on Friday, a big win for Sony. And for Adam Sandler – just when many commentators had started to address him as a has-been he has generated the highest box office numbers of his career. </i;>

<i; as=”” awards=”” buzz.=”” exceptional=”” generating=”” i=”” in=”” its=”” kept=”” numbers=”” of=”” ridley=”” s=”” sci-fi=”” second=”” week=”” well=””>Pan ended up with the bronze medal, but its third place tells only part of the story. This week it added 52 markets, but 11,000 screens were good for a total tally of $20 million. Domestically, the film grossed $15 million. That’s half of what was generated in the first weekend by bombs such as Tomorrowland ($33m) and The Lone Ranger ($29m). It was a kids-targeted movie, but only 23% of Pan’s audience was under 18 and 52% were over 25. With a reported cost of $155 million, it’s hard to see how Warner can ever turn this film into a success. </i;>

<i; as=”” awards=”” buzz.=”” exceptional=”” generating=”” i=”” in=”” its=”” kept=”” numbers=”” of=”” ridley=”” s=”” sci-fi=”” second=”” week=”” well=””>Even so Pan’s numbers were not as bad as those of The Walk, whose expansion to 60 markets was good for just $5 million. The saga of Philippe Petit’s walk across the Twin Towers back in 1974 also expanded in the North American market, where 2,500 theaters were good for just $3.6 million, for a disappointing worldwide cumulative, after two weeks, of just over $13 million. Sony was counting on a much bigger response to Robert Zemeckis’ latest effort, but there is a consolation: the film cost only $35 million to produce. </i;>

<i; as=”” awards=”” buzz.=”” exceptional=”” generating=”” i=”” in=”” its=”” kept=”” numbers=”” of=”” ridley=”” s=”” sci-fi=”” second=”” week=”” well=””>Number 4 in the international charts was Good Bye Mr. Loser, a Chinese success that has generated $32 million this week and a total of $132 million in two weeks. Next we find two surprising holdovers. One is The Intern: the comedy directed by Nancy Meyers and starring Anne Hathaway and Robert DeNiro as the title’s namesake, reached $50 million in the North American market. Internationally, it is close to an extra $60 million. The other holdover, Inside Out, has been around forever, or more precisely since May 18. But it opened in China with $12 million. In Germany it held on to the top spot, for a local total of $13 million. In Italy the Pixar pic is a $25 million phenomenon, stronger than Frozen. And its worldwide total stands at a remarkable $818 million. </i;>

<i; as=”” awards=”” buzz.=”” exceptional=”” generating=”” i=”” in=”” its=”” kept=”” numbers=”” of=”” ridley=”” s=”” sci-fi=”” second=”” week=”” well=””>Next, we have Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials, Sicario and Everest. The first film added $5 million in the domestic market and $16 million internationally, 9 of those millions came from France alone where it had its debut. The worldwide total is now around $240 million. The drug war drama Sicario starring Emily Blunt, Josh Brolin and Benicio Del Toro added $7 million domestically, for a total of $27 million. It added $6.5 internationally and its UK debut alone was good for $2.5 million and France for $1.4. Finally, the mountaineering adventure Everest added $3 million domestically and $8 million from foreign markets, for a worldwide total of $160 million. Next week, Guillermo del Toro’s Crimson Peak is going head-to-head against Steven Spielberg’s Bridge of Spies and Sony’s Goosebumps. Then, on October 23 Steve Jobs, now showing in 4 theaters in Los Angeles and New York (which were good for $521,000) will have its nationwide expansion. This means that the Danny Boyle directed biopic starring Michael Fassbender in the title role had an extraordinary and very promising $130,236 per-theatre average. </i;>

<i; as=”” awards=”” buzz.=”” exceptional=”” generating=”” i=”” in=”” its=”” kept=”” numbers=”” of=”” ridley=”” s=”” sci-fi=”” second=”” week=”” well=””>Lorenzo Soria</i;>