- Back to Black – £2,772,698 – NE
Took £959k 34.6% Friday; £1.04m 37.52% Saturday; £773k 27.89% Sunday.
583rd biggest opening between Batman Returns and Don’t Worry Darling (close to The Holiday, Ticket To Paradise, Black Swan and School of Rock) and 954th biggest inflated opening between My Best Friend’s Wedding and Don’t Worry Darling (close to Death Becomes Her, Billy Elliot, Jackie Brown and Straight Outta Compton).
5th biggest opening for Studiocanal between Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and The Imitation Game (close to Non-Stop, RoboCop, Mirror Mirror and Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa); had Studiocanal’s 3rd biggest opening day after Paddington 2 and Legend ahead of Paddington (£738k).
Opened in 719 cinemas 14th widest opening between The Lion King and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1 (close to Super Mario Bros, Rocketman, Mary Poppins Returns and Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again); Studiocanal’s widest opening ever topping Wicked Little Lies (683) with the film playing on multiple screens in many cinemas was playing in 1,500+ screens.
Performed strongly in Camden where Amy Winehouse spent her early adulthood years to her death in 2011.
There is no reason why these films open so wide as it just makes them more front-loaded seen by screen £3,856 average the 1,264th biggest between Mama and The Dukes of Hazzard (close to Insomnia (264), Cocktail (213), The Wedding Singer (270) and Calendar Girls (462).
Taking 34.6% of its opening from Friday was similar to Don’t Worry Darling, Barbie. M3gan, Titanic (Re: 2023), Fifty Shades of Grey, Maleficent and Scream VI.
Amy Winehouse generated huge media coverage when she was alive. In January 2023 a week after production started on the film pictures of Marisa Abela and Eddie Marsan as Amy and her father, Mitch Winehouse found their way to social media generating much criticism. The film had its world premiere on Monday and the embargo ended Tuesday morning, received mixed reviews as it gives a vanilla version of her life while also being too soon for a biopic compared to Bohemian Rhapsody, Rocketman and most recently Bob Marley: One Love.
After the death of Amy Winehouse, there were several attempts to make a biopic about Amy Winehouse including in 2015 Noomi Rapace was in talks to star with Kirsten Sheridan directing. They didn’t progress until 2018 when Winehouse’s estate announced they had signed a deal for a film about her life and career with Studiocanal.
Sam Taylor-Johnson previously directed 2009’s Nowhere Boy opened £148,157 #7 176 screens taking £1,292,610; 2015’s Fifty Shades of Grey opened £13,550,290 #1 586 screens taking £34,662,255 and 2019’s A Million Little Pieces opened £25,746 #32 from 59 screens.
Showing the huge popularity of Amy Winehouse in the UK the 2015 documentary Amy opened £523,192 #5 133 screens taking £3,763,429.
Music biopics have been extremely popular in the UK over recent years and Amy Winehouse’s Back to Black 2018 album sold 3.93m copies in the UK and is the 12th biggest-selling album in the UK.
It’s hard to compare with other musician biopics as most had previews inflating their openings.
2024’s Bob Marley: One Love opened £6,950,773 (£2,707,330 previews) taking £16,607,577
2022’s I Wanna Dance With Somebody opened £3,325,458 taking £11,383,690
2006’s Walk the Line £1,111,142 #2 198 screens taking £9,737,493
2022’s Elvis opened £4,023,572 #1 740 screens; £1.25m (31.1%) Fri; £1.45m (36%) Sat £1.29m (36%) Sun; taking £27,492,430; had long legs staying in top 5 for 7 weeks and top 10 for 11 weeks.
2018’s Bohemian Rhapsody opened £9,530,463 (£3,054,530 previews) taking £55,376,188.
2019’s Rocketman opened £5,381,904 #2 705 screens (including £1,360,606 from three days of previews) taking £23,502,881: top 5 for 5 weeks and top 10 for 7 weeks.
1993’s Tina, What’s Love Got To Do With It opened £471,570 (£1,163,500 inflated) taking £3,703,961 (£9,138,745 inflated)
Spoof musician biopics.
2008’s Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story Walk Hard opened £240,833 #13 296 screens; others include 1984’s This Is Spinal Tap; 2000’s Almost Famous; 2016’s Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping; 1996’s That Thing You Do! And 2001’s Josie and the Pussycats.
These films had the musician’s estate approval Rocketman was produced by Elton John while Queen produced Bohemian Rhapsody. The difference between those biopics is the main musicians died 20+ years ago while Amy Winehouse is only 14 years after her death which feels too soon for a biopic.
The question was always whether audiences embrace Back to Black as they have with other musician biopics over recent years that also received mixed reviews, whilst opening #1 opened lower than would have expected. The question is how it will hold over the next few weeks, looking at its Fri-Sun daily split looks like it will be front-loaded despite little competition over the next few weeks.
It’s hard to make second-weekend comparisons as many had extended openings which saw them drop about 50%; Bob Marley: One Love dropped 65.7%; 44% without previews and Rocketman 37% without previews so would expect a similar drop for Back to Black. £1.6m+ should see Back to Black remain #1 in its second weekend.
After Wicked Little Letters has taken £9.3m and with Paddington in Peru opening later in the year Studiocanal are likely to have their best year at the UK BO.
There are many more musician biopics on the way with Robbie William’s Better Man later this year and then Micheal Jacksom’s Micheal early next year along with 4 individual Beatles films directed by Sam Mendes in 2027, Bee Gees directed by Ridley Scott and most recently 20th Century Studio announced they were making Deliver Me from Nowhere Bruce Springsteen biopic starring The Bear’s Jeremy Allen White
British audiences like their biopics despite many of them receiving mixed reviews as they are popcorn movies with amazing musical elements like Queen’s Live Aid performance in Bohemian Rhapsody.
2. Civil War £1,823,179 – NE
Took £216k (15.94%) from Tuesday IMAX previews.
Took £499k 27.4% Friday; £612k 33.6% Saturday; £712k 39% Sunday.
951st biggest opening between True Grit and This Means War (close to Edge of Tomorrow, Red Sparrow, Deep Impact and Battle: Los Angeles) and 1,471st biggest inflated between The Adjustment Bureau and Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters (close to Top Gun, The Avengers (1998), Red Heat and Contact).
Opened in 651 cinemas 93rd widest opening similar to John Wick: Chapter 4, The Creator, Spectre, Coco and The Duke; 200th 600+ cinema opening since 2015’s Jurassic World.
Civil War has received positive reviews with some comparing it to 28 Days Later as instead of Zombies the characters are travelling through a war and the film isn’t about a Civil War but about the journalists who are following the story.
Alex Garland previously directed 2022’s Men opened £519,907 #3 568 screens taking £1,004,483; 2018’s Annihilation was released theatrically in the US and internationally on Netflix; 2015’s Ex Machina opened £1,093,952 #5 442 screens taking £2,890,149.
2002’s 28 Days Later opened £1,500,079 (£2,769,377) taking £6,315,553 (£11,659,482 inflated)
2006’s Children Of Men opened £1,284,254 #1 (£2,088,561 inflated) taking £4,858,150 (£7,900,729 inflated)
2013’s The Purge opened £1,019,877 #6 taking £3,365,209; 2014’s The Purge: Anarchy opened £1,165,143 #3 taking £4,430,522; 2016’s The Purge: Election Year£5,904,674.07,803 #5 taking £1,908,983; 2018’s The First Purge opened £1,778,157 #1 taking £5,904,674
Other similar films include.
2005’s War of the Worlds opened £8,644,787 (including £1,116,200 previews) £14,536,457 inflated taking £30,600,000 (£51,454,777 inflated)
1999’s The Siege opened £845,954 (£1,591,438 inflated) taking £3,143,307 (£5,913,300 inflated)
2006’s V for Vendetta opened £1,188,058 (£1,932,119 inflated) taking £3,331,295 (£5,417,630 inflated)
Also wrote screenplays for 28 Days Later, Sunshine, Never Let Go and Dredd and wrote the scripts for follow-ups to 28 Months Later, and 28 Years Later.
3. Kung Fu Panda 4 – £1,754,440 – £17,291,699
Dropped 38.1%
£545k 31.1% (-47.6% £1.04m) Friday; £681k 38.8% (-23.31% £888k) Saturday; £528k 30.1% (-58.3% £906k) Sunday.
287th biggest third weekend between Logan and Mad Max: Fury Road (close to Cinderella, Mrs Doubtfire, Cats and Dogs and Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb) and 513th biggest inflated between The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy and American Sniper (close to While You Were Sleeping, My Best Friend’s Wedding, Lethal Weapon 3 and Disclosure).
61st biggest third weekend animated between Trolls Band Together and Cats and Dogs (close to Tangled, Inside Out, Madagascar and Coco) and the 86th inflated animated between How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World and Smallfoot (close to Chicken Little, Bolt, Hotel Transylvania 3: A Monster Vacation and Robots).
16th biggest Dreamworks Animation third weekend between Trolls Band Together and Madagascar (close to The Boss Baby, Trolls, Mr Peabody And Sherman and How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World) and the 22nd biggest inflated between How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World and How to Train Your Dragon (close to Antz, Kung Fu Panda, Rise Of The Guardians and Over The Hedge).
10th biggest Dreamworks Animation after 3 weeks between Monsters Vs. Aliens and Trolls (close to Shark Tale, The Croods, Trolls and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.
Took £12,271,099 over two weeks of Easter holidays from April 1st-14th; took £6,661,830 Mon-Thurs in first week and £4,499,125 Mon-Thurs; taking an average £876k over the last 14 days and £960k over the last 18 days. With schools reopening this week Mon-Thurs daily BO will be less than half.
As with the February half-term (Migration), there was only one family film released for the Easter holiday, over previous years there would be several major family films released and they would take £30m+ between then.
Third weekends
2008’s Kung Fu Panda dropped 42.6% £1,512,603 (£2,318,355 inflated) and £13,824,968 of £19,634,723 (£29,905,193 inflated)
2011’s Kung Fu Panda 2 dropped 32.7% £1,532,459 (£2,015,462 inflated) and £11,333,985 of £16,199,968 (£21,172,235 inflated)
2016’s Kung Fu Panda 3 dropped 31.1% £1,198,616 (£1,289,200 inflated) and £8,961,602 of £13,993,060 (£14,956,145 inflated)
38 Dreamworks Animation films have taken over £730m and £1bn inflated.
In 2010 Jeffrey Katzenberg said that there were plans for six films in the series. In August 2022 Dreamworks Animation confirmed Kung Fu Panda 4 was in production with details released at CinemaCon 2023. The trailer was released in December and viewed over 142m times in the first 24 hours more than The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Minions: The Rise of Gru, Sing 2 and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.
With the lucrative Easter holidays ended Kung Fu Panda 4 will be limited to weekend BO and dropped much heavier than normal family films over the last weekend of the Easter holidays. There are another two months until the next two major animation films Inside Out 2 and Despicable Me 4.
365th biggest between Ralph Breaks The Internet and Mission: Impossible II (close to Stuart Little, The Mummy (1999), The Matrix and Godzilla (1998) and 650th biggest inflated between JFK and Santa Claus The Movie (close to Free Guy, The Rock, Parenthood and Rocky IV).
75th biggest animated film between Ralph Breaks The Internet and How to Train Your Dragon (close to Elemental, Coco, Kung Fu Panda 2 and Cars) and 103rd biggest inflated between Flushed Away and Rio (close to Over the Hedge, Mulan (1998), The Jungle Book (1993 re-issue) and The Good Dinosaur).
4. Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire – £1,185,986 – £11,886,417
Down 39.3% in the third weekend
Took £368k 31.1% (-42.9% £644) Friday; £484k 40.8% (-28.6% £678k) Saturday; £333k 28.1% (-52.7% £632k) Sunday.
504th biggest third weekend between Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle and P.S. I Love You (close to Lucy, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Ready Player One and Dungeons & Dragons) and 804th biggest inflated between Dungeons & Dragons and Prisoners (close to Star Trek V The Undiscovered Country, District 9, Terminator Salvation and Highlander 2: The Quickening).
The fifth film of the MonsterVerse and sequel to 2021’s Godzilla vs. Kong
Third weekends
2014’s Godzilla dropped 64% £982,401 #5 453 screens and £15,491,394 of £17,074,621 (£20,123,660 inflated)
2017’s Kong: Skull Island dropped 58% £1,132,269 #4 507 screens and £13,237,783 of £15,616,015
2019’s Godzilla: King of the Monsters dropped 52% £500,120 475 screens and £6,434,410 of £6,901,606
2021’s Godzilla vs. Kong dropped 37% £159,230 #6 283 screens and £2,213,658 of £6,779,991
575th biggest between Cats and Indecent Proposal (close to Back to the Future, Batman, Jaws and A Quiet Place) and 978th biggest inflated between The Delinquents and The Talented Mr. Ripley (close Face/Off, Shaun of the Dead, Moonwalker and 28 Days Later).
5. Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire – £787,096 – £14,066,300
Down 42.6% in the fourth weekend
Took £243k 30.88% (-49.06% £477k) Friday; £321k 40.79% (-29.61% £456k) Saturday; £223k 28.34% (-50.91% £438k) Sunday.
473rd biggest fourth weekend between Black Widow and Black Adam (close to Tenet, T2 Trainspotting, Planet of the Apes and Looper) and 762nd biggest inflated between 300 and The Rock (close to 12 Monkeys, The Fisher King, Bad Boys and Clear And Present Danger).
Fourth weekend
2021’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife dropped 45% £585,505 #5 588 screens and £10,130,382 of £11,494,268
2016’s Ghostbusters dropped 53% £284,109 #7 344 screens and £9,995,592 of £10,554,557
1989’s Ghostbusters 2 dropped 53.5% £272,961 (£933,691 inflated) and £4,551,721 54.83% of £8,301,000 (£28,216,275 inflated)
1984’s Ghostbusters took £12.4m (£54,258,564 inflated)
482nd biggest between Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues and Flash Gordon (close to The Emoji Movie, The Fugitive, American Pie and True Lies) and 810th biggest inflated between Dragonheart and Music and Lyrics (close to Arachnophobia, The Bourne Identity, Death Becomes Her and Rush Hour).
UK box office in detail
The weekend’s top 10 box office took £x up 8.4% from last weekend’s £9,166,231: 1,255,151 admissions up 8.45% from 1,157,352 admissions.
29th biggest weekend of the last 52 weeks between 02 February 2024 #1 Migration £3,577,676 (35.17%) and 15 December 2023 #1 Wonka£6,362,786 (64.27%)
69th biggest since cinemas reopened out of 178 weeks between 28 October 2022 #1 Black Adam £3,488,800 (34.94%) and 25 June 2021 #1 Fast & Furious 9 £6,014,132 (60.56%)
614th biggest top 10 of the last 22 years (out of 1,150) between 17 February 2005 #1 Meet the Fockers £1,893,131 (18.97%) and 25 June 2021 #1 Fast & Furious 9 £6,014,132 (60.56%) and 910th biggest inflated between 13 May 2022 #1 Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness £5,690,351 (59.29%) and 21 May 2021 #1 Peter Rabbit 2 £4,605,673 (49.27%)
The top 3 took (£6,350,317) 63.9% of the top 10; Back to Black 27.89% (£2,772,698); Civil War 18.34% (£1,823,179); Kung Fu Panda 4 17.65% (£1,754,440).
776th highest #1 percentage (27.89%) between #1 17 October 2008 Burn After Reading (27.9%) and 13 August 2021 Free Guy (27.89%)
889th biggest admissions #1 (350,088) between 05 March 2004 #1 Along Came Polly (350,139) and 01 November 2002 #1 28 Days Later (349,669)
Down 19.5% from 2023; (£12,342,706); Renfield (£680,661); Suzume (£469,100); Der Rosenkavalier – Met Opera 2023 (£96,666); Assassin Club (£43,187); Raging Bull (4K Restoration) (£27,981); #1 Super Mario Bros £7,568,523 2nd week 51% drop 722 screens (61.32% of top 10)
Down 15.1% from 2022 (£11,707,957); Fantastic Beasts 3 (£5,884,934); The Outfit (£96,600); Julia (£1,471); #1 Fantastic Beasts 3 £5,884,934 1st week 711 screens (50.3% of top 10)
2021; Lockdown 2
2020: Lockdown 1
Down 8.8% from 2019; (£10,896,294) Wonder Park (£1,586,003); Hellboy (£989,562); Wild Rose (£772,060); Little (£540,579); Mid90s (£100,454); #1 Dumbo £2,345,046 down 33% 3rd-week 2nd-week #1 split over 3 weeks 697 screens (21.5% of top 10)
Down 21.8% from 2018: (£12,710,945); Rampage (£4,109,247); Truth or Dare (£931,250); Luisa Miller Met Opera 2018 (£231,297); #1 Rampage £4,109,247 55 screens 1st week.
Down 33.8% from 2017: (£15,013,493); The Boss Baby (£8,025,886); Peppa Pig: My First Cinema Experience (£1,050,962); Going in Style (£569,392); Table 19 (£130,602); City of Tiny Lights (£28,038); Raw (£67,042); #1 The Boss Baby £8,025,886 1st week.
Down 10.3% from 2016: (£11,079,652); The Huntsman: Winter’s War (£3,032,962); Midnight Special (£497,109); Hardcore Henry (£201,827); The Man Who Knew Infinity (£147,990); #1 The Huntsman: Winter’s War £3,032,962 1st week.
Down 55% from 2015; (£22,075,680); Fast & Furious 7 (£12,765,033); The Water Diviner (£521,546); While We’re Young (£427,151); Blade Runner: The Final Cut (Re: 2015) (£267,452); #1 Fast & Furious 7 £12,765,033 1st week.
Down 20.8% from 2014: (£12,545,501); Rio 2 (£2,882,680); Noah (£2,511,397); Divergent (£1,767,295); La Boheme – Met Opera 2014 (£374,522); The Double (£281,794); #1 Rio 2 £2,882,680 1st week.
Up 24% from 2013: (£8,015,138); Dark Skies (£1,031,948); Spring Breakers (£345,153); The Odd Life of Timothy Green (£269,465); A Late Quartet (£107,158); #1 The Croods £2,364,348 3rd week 28% drop
Down 27.9% from 2012 (£13,797,117); Titanic 3D (£2,856,540); Mirror Mirror (£2,389,033); The Pirates! In An Adventure with Scientists (£2,166,162); The Cold Light of Day (£503,985); Headhunters (£264,769); #1 Titanic 3D £2,856,540 1st week 427 screens (20.7% of top 10)
Up 108.4% from 2011; (£4,770,365); Rio (£1,515,853); The Roommate (£120,365); Mars Needs Mums (£113,559); Tomorrow, When the War Began (£85,841); Silent House (£8,539); #1 Rio £1,515,853 1st week.
Up 12.2% from 2010: (£8,861,394); Whip It! (£353,041); I Am Love (£171,959); Shelter (£141,452); The Infidel (£135,448); #1 Clash of the Titans £2,441,682 2nd week 57% drop.
Down 2.3% from 2009; (£10,172,026); Monsters vs. Aliens (£4,345,711); The Boat that Rocked (£1,804,773); Religulous (£18,736); #1 Monsters vs. Aliens £4,345,711 1st week.
Up 50.1% from 2008; (£6,623,644); Son of Rambow (£897,089); Never Back Down (£845,530); Awake (£546,562); One Missed Call (£432,327); Funny Games (£88,376); How She Move (£78,771); #1 27 Dresses £1,028,661 2nd week 41% drop.
Up 41.5% from 2007: (£7,026,692); Blades of Glory (£1,023,836); Sunshine (£1,021,063); The Messengers (262,562); #1 Mr Beans Holiday £2,451,283 2nd week 62% drop
Down 30.1% from 2006; (£14,229,376): Ice Age II (£9,775,974); She’s The Man (£994,304); Alien Autopsy (£796,119); The Dark (£265,084); #1 Ice Age II £9,775,974 1st week 502 screens (68.7% of top 10)
Up 45% from 2005 (£6,854,564); Sahara (£1,370,577); The Assassination of Richard Nixon (£157,756); Man of the House (£126,331); #1 Sahara £1,370,577 399 screens 1st week (20% of top 10)
Up 2.2% from 2004 (£9,743,104); 50 First Dates (£1,651,544); Shaun of the Dead (£1,603,410); Capturing the Friedmans (£66,689); Blind Flight (£6,634); #1 Scooby-Doo Too £2,038,602 2nd week 43% drop 20.9% of top 10 (20.9% of top 10)
Up 132.8% from 2003 (£4,270,657); Shanghai Knights (£749,655); A Man Apart (£527,730); Blue Crush (£491,419); #1 The Recruit £923,834 2nd week (3rd weekend down 17% 378 screens (18.1% of top 10)
Up 53.7% from 2002 (£6,466,007); Collateral Damage (£434,639); 24 Hour Party People (£265,428); Kate & Leopold (£204,325); #1 Blade 2 £1,335,594 2nd week 47% drop
2023 Next week: (£8,951,596); Evil Dead Rise (£1,477,840); Missing (£382,054); The Three Musketeers: D’Artagnan (£161,609); Coldplay – Music Of The Spheres: Live At River Plate (£145,544); #1 Super Mario Bros £4,271,315 3rd week down 44% 707 screens (47.72%)
US Box Office
- Civil War – A24
Opened $25.71m; received positive reviews (83% Rotten Tomatoes) and B- CinemaScore.
Took $2.9m from Thursday midnights similar to San Andreas $3.1m; Inception $3m; M3GAN $2.75m; Lucy $2.74m; The Purge: Anarchy $2.64m.
Took $4.2m from 400 IMAX screens (16.5%) with IMAX/PLF taking almost 50% of opening.
It was tracking to open between $15m-$24m with $50m budget with P&A of $20m+
Civil War had A24’s biggest-ever opening ahead of 2018’s Hereditary $13.6m taking $44.1m and $82.8m worldwide.
761st biggest opening between Captain Phillips and Fantastic Four (close to Evil Dead (2013), Miami Vice, V for Vendetta and Total Recall (1990).
2014’s Ex Machina opened $534m (expansion) taking $25.44m and $36.86m worldwide
2018’s Annihilation opened 511.07m taking $32.73m and $43.07m worldwide (Netflix had many international territories)
2022’s Men opened $3.29m tsking $7.58m and $11.15m worldwide
2002’s 28 Days Later opened $10.06m taking $45.06m and $84.66m worldwide
2007’s 28 Weeks Later opened $9.8m taking $36.4m and $65.04m worldwide
Other similar films include.
1998’s The Siege opened $13.93m taking $40.98m and $116.67m worldwide
2005’s V for Vendetta opened $25.64m taking $70.51m and $134.68m worldwide
2006’s Children of Men opened $10.91m (expansion) taking $35.55m and $70.45m worldwide
- Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire – Warner Bros
Dropped 50% in the third weekend $15.53m #2 and $158.02m.
391st biggest third weekend between Double Jeopardy and Sully (close to What Lies Beneath, The Great Gatsby, The Departed and The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.
383rd biggest between The Longest Yard and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts; 948th biggest inflated between Dragnet and The Legend of Tarzan; 3rd biggest 2024 between Kung Fu Panda 4 and Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire; 64th biggest sci-fi between Star Trek Beyond and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts; 64th biggest Warner Bros between Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald and San Andreas.
The budget was $135m with Legendary funding 75% and Warner Bros 25% with Warner paying P&A costs which are another $65m+ with promotional partners.
Previous MonsterVerse film’s third weekends
2019’s Godzilla: King of the Monsters dropped 43.1% $8.78m and $94.37m of $110.5m; $387.3m WW
2021’s Godzilla vs. Kong dropped 43.5% $7.84m and $80.65m of $100.91m and $470.11m worldwide
2014’s Godzilla dropped 61.2% $12m and $174.43m of $200.67m and $524.97m worldwide
2017’s Kong: Skull Island dropped 47.3% $14.67m and $133.74m of $168.05m and $568.65m worldwide
While
1998’s Godzilla dropped 46.1% $9.71m and $114.01m of $136.31m and $379.01m worldwide
2005’s King Kong up 16.5% (Christmas) $24.77m and $167.5m of $218.08m and $556.9m worldwide
Took $33.7m (47% drop) internationally from 71 territories $278.6m total and $437.92m; China $108.8m; Mexico $27.7m; UK $14.6m; India $12.8m; Australia $9.5m.
Took $38m globally from IMAX; China $14.8m.
308th biggest worldwide between Transformers: Rise of the Beasts and Les Misérables; 5th biggest 2024 between Kung Fu Panda 4 and Bob Marley: One Love; 66th biggest sci-fi between Transformers: Rise of the Beasts and Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines; 55th biggest Warner Bros between Godzilla vs. Kong and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.
- Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire – Sony Pictures
Dropped 36% taking $5.75m #3 in the fourth weekend and $96.92m.
856th biggest fourth weekend between G.I. Joe: Retaliation and 8 Mile; Ghostbusters 2 $5.26m #985; Ghostbusters: Afterlife $7.1m #630; Ghostbusters (1984) $11.14m #249
843rd biggest between The Social Network and Schindler’s List; 1,754th biggest inflated between White House Down and The Peacemaker; 4th biggest 2024 between Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire and Bob Marley: One Love; 108th biggest Sony Pictures between The Social Network and Zero Dark Thirty.
Fourth weekends
2021’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife dropped 31.4% $7.1m and $112m of $129.36m and $204.33m worldwide
2016’s Ghostbusters dropped 53.8% $4.67m and $116.58m of $128.35m and $229.14m worldwide.
1989’s Ghostbusters 2 dropped 40.2% $5.26m and $85.52m of $112.49m ($297m inflated) and $215.39m worldwide
1984’s Ghostbusters down 14.6% $11.14m and $80.63m $243.57m ($763.35m inflated) and $296.57m worldwide; was #1 for 7 consecutive weeks and returned #1 for another 7 weeks over the following 5 months.
It’s a strange coincidence all previous Ghostbusters films have taken similar BO in the US.
Took $10.8m from 58 territories $63m total and $160m worldwide; UK $5.3m; Mexico $2.7m; Australia $2m; Germany $1.7m; Spain $1.3m.
1,195th biggest worldwide between Jack Reacher: Never Go Back and 21; 9th biggest in 2024 between Bob Marley: One Love and The Beekeeper; 150th biggest Sony Pictures between Underworld: Awakening and 21.
- Kung Fu Panda 4 – Universal Pictures
Dropped 29.2% in the sixth weekend $5.53m #4 and $173.72m.
263rd biggest sixth weekend between Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol and Everything Everywhere All at Once
66th biggest animated film between The Boss Baby and Tarzan; 316th biggest between Apollo 13 and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York; 834th inflated between Collateral and Inglourious Basterds; 2nd biggest 2024 between Dune: Part Two and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire; 40th biggest Universal Pictures between Apollo 13 and F9: The Fast Saga.
Since acquiring Dreamworks Animation success has come from existing properties with original films underperforming their next two The Wild Robot and Dog Man are more important titles.
Sixth weekends
2008’s Kung Fu Panda dropped 39.7% $4.41m and $202.15m of $215.77m and $632.08m worldwide
2011’s Kung Fu Panda 2 dropped 60.1% $1.66m and $156.85m of $165.24m and $665.69m worldwide
2016’s Kung Fu Panda 3 dropped 59.9% $3.57m and $133.87m of $143.52m and $521.17m worldwide
48 Dreamworks Animation films have taken $6.37bn from the US and $17.06bn worldwide.
Upcoming Dreamworks Animation films The Wild Robot opens in September and Dog Man in January with two untitled films also set for release in 2025.
Took $25.9m from 81 territories and $243.52m total and $453m worldwide; China $44.9m; Mexico $33.1m; UK $21.5m; Germany $14.1m; Italy $10.9m.
67th biggest animated film worldwide between Cars and Tarzan; 291st biggest between 300 and Gladiator; 34th biggest Universal Pictures between Lucy and The Secret Life of Pets 2.
- Dune Part 2 -Warner Bros
Dropped 42% in its seventh weekend $4.33m #5 and $272.11m.
239th biggest seventh weekend between Bad Boys for Life and Porky’s (close to Dunkirk $4.37m #235; Inception $4.87m #116; Oppenheimer $5.75m #133; Gravity $6.1m #122; The Martian $6.71m #97; Joker $5.33m #156.
Losing IMAX screens to Civil War Dune Part 2 had one of its biggest drops since opening, the film is released this weekend on VOD.
Dune Part 2 for a sixth weekend is again coincidentally similar to Oppenheimer’s weekend BO.
126th biggest between Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch and Sing; 385th biggest inflated between Driving Miss Daisy and Logan; 30th biggest sci-fi between The Matrix Reloaded and Star Trek (2009); 24th biggest Warner Bros between Gravity and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
Seventh weekends
2021’s Dune dropped 11.2% $1.84m and $104.6m of $108.89m and $433.79m worldwide
2010’s Inception dropped 37.8% $4.87m and $270.51m of $292.58m and $839.03m worldwide
2023’s Oppenheimer dropped 30% $5.75m and $308.78m of $329.01m and $957.59m worldwide
2013’s Gravity dropped 28.5% $6.1m and $240.37m of $274.09m and $773.03m worldwide
2014’s Interstellar dropped 50.4% $2.7m and $171.53m of $188.02m and $731.07m worldwide
2015’s The Martian dropped 26% $6.71m and $207.39m of $228.43m and $630.62m worldwide
2016’s Arrival dropped 63.8% $1.07m and $89.37m of $100.54m and $203.38m worldwide
2017’s Blade Runner 2049 dropped 57.1% $626,039 and $89.27m of $92.07m and $267.68m WW
2017’s Logan dropped 51.8% $1.93m and $221.65m of $226.27m and $619.02m worldwide
2009’s Avatar dropped 10.5% $31.28m and $595.75m of $749.76m and $2.743bn worldwide
Visual cinematic films including Oppenheimer, Interstellar, Gravity, Prometheus and Inception are comparable titles. At the same time, as Tenet, Dune Part 2 will have all IMAX/PLF/Dolby screens which Oppenheimer never had as Barbie had some PLF screens.
Took $7.2m from 73 territories $411.8m total and $684.51m worldwide; UK $48.1m; China $48.1m; France $41.8m; Germany $38.7m; Australia $22m.
Has taken $142m worldwide from IMAX; 7th biggest ever for IMAX.
145th biggest worldwide between Gravity and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 1; 30th biggest sci-fi between Transformers and The Hunger Games; 26th biggest Warner Bros between Gravity and Man of Steel.
UK Box Office Top 10
UK Box Office Preview
With a lack of major releases Back to Black will stay #1 for a second weekend down 40% taking £1.6m-£1.9m similar to Bob Marley: One Love and Rocketman with Civil War dropping 45%-50% taking £1m-£1.2m.
Early reviews for vampire horror Abigail have been positive, comparing it to Ready Or Not.
The film is directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett; previously directed 2019’s Ready or Not; 2022’s Scream and 2023’s Scream VI and stars Melissa Barrera who recently starred in the last two Scream films but was fired from Scream VII after social media posts for her pro-Palestine posts.
2019’s Ready Or Not opened £947,958 taking £1,637,064
Vampire films include.
1996’s From Dusk Till Dawn opened £501,303 (£1,073,059 inflated) taking £2,458,967 (£5,263,519 inflated)
1988’s The Lost Boys opened £204,521 (£704,264 inflated) taking £774,362 (£2,666,499 inflated)
2014’s Dracula Untold opened £1,713,283 taking £4,454,648
2011’s Fright Night opened £680,543 taking £1,512,699
2007’s 30 Days of Night opened £1,532,976 taking £4,374,809
Recent horrors Night Swim opened £590,691 and Imaginary (£652,808) while the same weekend last year Evil Dead Rises opened £1,477,840 taking £5,288,972 and 2013’s Evil Dead £1,375,842 (£1,668,709 inflated) taking £3,355,676 (£4,069,978 inflated).
With school holidays now over Kung Fu Panda 4 will drop about 40% in its fourth weekend taking £1m+ with Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire and Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire dropping about 50%.
Opening in two weeks
- Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes – Disney
Sci-fi action starring Owen Teague, Freya Allan, Kevin Durand, Peter Macon, and William H. Macy and directed by Wes Ball. It’s a to 2017’s War for the Planet of the Apes, the fourth instalment in the second Planet of the Apes reboot franchise.
Development started on a fourth film in 2016 before War was released, but after the film was released Matt Reeve decided to take a break from Planet of the Apes and it wasn’t until after Disney acquired 20th Century Fox in 2019 that development started up again as it was one of several of Fox’s IP’s Disney wanted to expand further.
Wes Ball was due to direct Mouse Guard for 20th Century Fox in April 2019, but the film was cancelled two weeks before it was due to start filming after Disney acquired 20th Century Fox, it was one of several films Disney cancelled after buying the studio.
20th Century Fox rebooted the classic 60’s sci-fi series originally in 2001 with Tim Burton directing starring Mark Wahlberg; opened £5,445,983 (£10,484,175 inflated) taking £16,850,987 (£32,440,185 inflated). The studio had plans for a sequel, but Tim Burton said, “I’d rather jump out a window.”
The studio decided to reboot it a second time in 2011 with Rise of the Planet of the Apes which took almost double BO of Planet of the Apes and received positive reviews, the two sequels Dawn and War were similarly as successful with the trilogy taking £75m+ in the UK (£90m inflated).
2011’s Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes opened £5,835,140 (£7,674,268 inflated) taking £20,549,440 (£27,026,244 inflated)
2014’s Dawn of the Planet of the Apes opened £8,705,995 (£9,363,938 (inflated) taking £32,526,416 (£34,984,553 inflated)
2017’s War For The Planet Of The Apes opened £7,195,773 (£7,656,917 inflated) taking £20,094,984 (£21,382,780 inflated)
The three films took $533m in the US and $1.67bn worldwide, and 2001’s film took $180m in the US and $362m worldwide, so had Disney not brought Fox in 2019 they would have made a fourth film, but it would have been released much sooner.
In February World of Reel reported Disney had a test screening of the film and it was poorly received. Still, then 13 minutes with gravity-defying cliff jumping was screened last week at CinemaCon and their reaction was predictably hugely different. Always have to take CinemaCon’s reaction with a pinch of salt as so often audiences rave about footage and films screened and then a few months later come short of expectations.
Previous films opened in mid-July and August, but Kingdom is the first major summer tentpole opening a week after The Fall Guy which has generated strong buzz since SXSW. After a soft April with little competition, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga two weeks later will perform similarly to the 2017 film taking about 40% from IMAX/PLF.
The teaser trailer was released in November and the trailer premiered during the Super Bowl.
cigarette burns and missed changeovers 