Every week we dissect the good, the bad, and the bombs of the Aussie box office world. No talk of box office would be complete without mention of the US, so we’ll also take a look at what’s hitting big, what’s not, and where our refined Aussie movie palates differ from our blockbuster loving American brethren (Hot tip – probably not all that much). Let’s dig in…
The Challengers:
The Hold-overs:
This weekend, Pan soared into theatres, we took a Visit to creepy Grandma’s house, and Sicario put a hit out on audiences.
AUSTRALIAN BOX OFFICE – SEPT 24-27
Source: Urban Cinefile
Flying High-ish: With two Aussie stars, a big marketing push, and a prime opening in the middle of school holidays, hopes were definitely high for Pan‘s box office prospects, but it fell short of the top spot by a mere $122K. That’s got to be disappointing for Warner Bros, who were probably hoping Australian audiences would flock to see their man Hugh. Perhaps not…
Holdovers Rule: With three big new releases, the Top 10 was prime for a shake-up, but the school holidays threw up more surprises than I would have guessed. Chief among these are the amazing increase in weekend grosses for three of the family oriented pics. Pixels (up 28%), Oddball (up 82%) and Blinky Bill (up a staggering 117%) were the big winners of the weekend, soaking up that family spending money. Everest also benefited someone, as audiences continue to be drawn to the staggering true story of survival.
It’s A Hit, Man: Riding scorching buzz and great reviews, and with only Everest catering to the older adult crowd, narco drama Sicario scored a 6th place finish on $1.7 million. Playing in 228 theatres, it hunted down at $7K average. Look for it to hold well in the coming weeks as the buzz spreads.
Just Visiting The Top 10: The Shyamalan name used to guarantee at least a Top 3 placing, but audiences have been burned once to many times it seems, so he has to settle with 7th place this weekend, with $1.1 million. It was playing it less than half of the theatres that Pan was, so it’s not as dire as the placing and gross might suggest. We’ll see how it holds next weekend.
Not Lost: Boasting by far the biggest per screen average in the Top 10, Chinese import Lost In Hong Kong did massive business in just 11 theatres, grossing $441K for a $40K average. The sequel to the hit Lost In Thailand, it’s hitting big in mainland China, as well as around the world it seems.
Over in the U.S of A, it was animated Adam Sandler vs. Anne Hathaway and Robert DeNiro for the box office crown. Who took the gold?
U.S BOX OFFICE – SEPT 25-27
Source: Box Office Mojo
Such A Lovely Place: Launching to the biggest September opening ever, the toon sequel Hotel Transylvania 2 scared up a record $48.4 million to check into the top spot. It’s got to be a sigh of relief for Producer/Writer/Voice Artist Adam Sandler, who is still smarting from his live action Pixels not exactly firing up the blockbuster grosses.
Good Work Ethic: Hathaway and DeNiro, who would’ve thunk it? Fantine and the Taxi Driver teamed up to deliver the feel-good laughs and it seemed to click with US audiences, working up a $17.7 million weekend in the number 2 spot. Local audiences will judge for themselves in the coming week as it’s released here Oct 1.
Scaling The Top 5: After hitting Top 5 base camp last week from just large format theatres, Everest trekked it’s way into 2500 more theatres and increased it’s weekend tally by 83.4% to $13.2 million, climbing a rung to 4th place in the process.
Not So Easy Being Green: The Green Inferno, torture-porn maestro Eli Roth’s latest “masterpiece” landed with a thud in 9th place with a tiny $3.5 million. The jungle cannibal tale was released in less than half as many theatres as the big guys, with a tiny marketing budget as well, so I’m guessing they’ll be looking to VOD and DVD/Blu-Ray sales to make their money.
Up next week, Matt Damon is stranded on the Red Planet in The Martian, and Hathaway and DeNiro attempt to charm local audiences as The Intern starts work.
So there you go folks, any surprises? Everything pan out just as you suspected? Hit us up in the comments and let us know what you’re enjoying at the multiplex. Also, if there’s anything you’d like to see us cover in the world of box office, speak up and let your opinion be known!