Blasters ablaze, ‘Rogue One’ dominates in opening weekend

LOS ANGELES, United States — The latest blockbuster episode in the “Star Wars” anthology dominated weekend box offices in North America, humbling another popular Disney film, “Moana,” according to industry estimates.

“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” raked in $155 million for the three-day weekend, Exhibitor Relations said. It has brought in $290 million globally, and has yet to open in the vast Chinese market.

The North American figure was less than last year’s $248 million weekend opening of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” but still ranked the new film as 12th among all-time openings and third-best this year, according to Forbes.

“The movie lived up to expectations,” said Paul Dergarabedian, an analyst with comScore. Based on the success of these latest two films, “The next film in the Star Wars saga has the potential to claim the title as the biggest movie of all time,” he said.

“Rogue One” blew away the $11.7 million weekend take of second-place film “Moana,” the computer-animated musical fantasy about a brave Polynesian teenager, which had ruled the box office for three straight weekends and has grossed $161.8 million to date.

Produced by Lucasfilm and directed by Gareth Edwards, “Rogue One” stars Felicity Jones, Diego Luna and Forest Whitaker. The first stand-alone chapter in the Star Wars epic — it is set shortly before the events of the original 1977 film — it tells the story of Rebel Alliance fighters trying to steal plans for the Empire’s feared Death Star.

Placing third in weekend box offices was “Office Christmas Party,” a Paramount comedy starring Jennifer Aniston, which took in $8.4 million.

Fourth was the Warner Bros. film “Collateral Beauty,” which notched $7 million in its opening weekend. With an ensemble cast including Will Smith, Kate Winslet, Keira Knightley and Helen Mirren, it tells the story of a man trying to cope with his daughter’s death.

In fifth place was the Harry Potter spin-off “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” which chalked up $5 million, for a total so far of $207.6 million. Based on a 2001 book by J.K. Rowling, the Warner Bros. film stars Eddie Redmayne as a wizard in 1920s New York.

Rounding out the top 10 films were:

“Manchester by the Sea” ($4.2 million)

“La La Land” ($4 million)

“Arrival” ($2.8 million)

“Doctor Strange” ($2 million)

“Nocturnal Animals” ($1.4 million)

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

‘Minions’ dominates with $115.2-M debut

LOS ANGELES - "Minions" ruled the weekend box office, racking up a massive $115.2 million in North America, for the second biggest animated film opening in history.

The Universal and Illumination Entertainment spin-off to "Despicable Me" just missed the domestic record set by "Shrek the Third's" $121.6 million kickoff in 2007, while continuing animation maestro Chris Meledandri's hot streak at the multiplexes. What makes Meledandri so valuable to studios is that he keeps budgets low. "Minions" cost $74 million to produce, a modest number considering that Pixar and DreamWorks Animation routinely spend north of $100 million on their animated features.

"I'm not sure the public is mindful of what films cost, they're more concerned with how they resonate," said Nick Carpou, Universal's domestic distribution chief. "Chris is able to produce films that speak to families, to children, to people everywhere."

The studio left nothing to chance when it came to reminding moviegoers why the loved the nattering, mischievous, highlighter-hued critters. Universal partnered with the likes of Snapchat, McDonald's, and Amazon to deliver nearly $600 million in publicity and promotions, according to a recent article by Bloomberg. The titular characters were ubiquitous popping up on everything from Twinkies to Chiquita bananas.

Carpou said he was made aware of the Minions' cultural currency this weekend while on an outing to a mall. A store featuring plush toys prominently displayed the "Despicable Me" characters.

"They're everywhere, those yellow guys," he said. "In a way they exist in the culture without even having a film attached to them."

The opening weekend crowd for "Minions" was 59% female, 55% under the age of 25, and 60% comprised of families.

"With anything that opens to over $100 million, you breach all demographics," said Jeff Bock, an analyst with Exhibitor Relations. "The Minions are the stars of the 'Despicable Me' franchise...kids love them, teens love them, and adults love them."

"Minions" also enjoyed a sprawling rollout, debuting in 4,301 theaters. In recent months, there's been a lot of celebrating taking place on the Universal lot. The studio is the leader in market share thanks to hits like "Pitch Perfect 2" and "Fifty Shades of Grey," and has two films that have crossed $1 billion at the global box office with "Furious 7" and "Jurassic World."

"Minions" was such a behemoth that two newcomers, "Self/Less" and "The Gallows," risked getting washed away. Of them, "The Gallows" fared better, picking up $10 million, across 2,720 locations. The Warner Bros. found footage chiller cost less than $2 million to make, so it could be profitable. Entertainment 360 and Blumhouse Productions backed the picture about a high school play gone terribly, terribly wrong...and not in that teenagers putting on "The Crucible" kind of way.

Warner Bros. executives say the film is a modestly priced single, but was an important showcase for writers and directors Travis Cluff and Chris Lofing.

"We're cultivating young filmmakers and giving them a chance to grow and prosper," said Jeff Goldstein, Warner Bros. distribution executive vice president. "These are really sharp guys, who have a long career in front of them."

Focus Features' "Self/Less" was not so fortunate, picking up roughly $5.4 million from 1,953 locations. The science-fiction thriller about a radical medical procedure is the latest film fumble for Ryan Reynolds, who is still laboring to get out from under the massive flops that were "The Green Lantern" and "R.I.P.D." The good news for the actor is that a trailer for "Deadpool," his upcoming R-rated comic book adaptation, rocked the Comic-Con crowd. Box office redemption may be nigh.

"Self/Less" was produced for $26 million, but the blow is softened in part by foreign pre-sales that limited Focus' and co-backer Endgame's financial exposure.

"Minions" also took a chunk out of some of the turbo-charged blockbusters still kicking around cinemas. "Jurassic World" slid 54% to $18.1 million, bringing its Stateside haul to $590.6 million, while "Inside Out" dipped 43% to $17.1 million, pushing its domestic total to $283.6 million.

Overall ticket sales were robust, improving nearly 40% over the year-ago period when "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" kicked off with $72.6 million. —Reuters

'2 Guns' shoots past 'Smurfs', 'Wolverine' to claim box office

LOS ANGELES/NEW YORK - "2 Guns," starring Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg as rival federal agents, shot through its weekend competition at movie theaters, collecting $27.4 million to lead the North American box office, according to studio estimates.

"The Wolverine," last weekend's box office leader, finished second with $21.7 million in ticket sales, and has totaled $95 million during its two weeks in theaters.

"Smurfs 2," the newly-released sequel to Sony's 2011 movie "The Smurfs" starring Neil Patrick Harris and a band of small blue elf-like creatures, was third with $18.2 million in ticket sales. — Reuters

source: gmanetwork.com