2024 At The Box Office (1 Viewer)

[Colin Jacobson]

The Color Purple had the best opening for any film released on Christmas Day since Sherlock Holmes in 2009. That is really impressive. But I think what happened there is that the audience who really wanted to see it rushed out quickly, and it isn't expanding its audience beyond the core fan base for that material. I was very much looking forward to it and had planned to go on opening day but got sick with the flu. When I was finally well enough to go see it earlier this week, there were less than ten other people in the auditorium with me.

I'd love to be wrong about this because I think the movie is really good. But I'm not sure how much of an "Oscar bump" this particular movie would have. Alice Walker's novel and Steven Spielberg's original film are already widely known quantities for the general public. The stage musical has had two major Broadway productions since its debut in 2005, plus multiple national tours and subsequent regional productions. How many people who weren't already planning to see this version will change their mind and do so if it receives Oscar nominations? It's not like this is some small indie film that people haven't heard of which will get a wider release after receiving awards attention.

Yeah, the film got a major rush immediately... and that was pretty much that.

It may get an Oscar bump from people averse to musicals or who feel like they've already seen the movie so why bother with a new one.

Or not. Just sayin' some awards love and the subsequent publicity looks like its only hope to rebound financially given how quickly it's fading.

 

[Jake Lipson]

Just sayin' some awards love and the subsequent publicity looks like its only hope to rebound financially given how quickly it's fading.

I agree with you that is the hope now. And I want to be clear that I am not rooting against the movie by any means. I liked it a lot and I do plan to add it to my Blu-ray collection. I would certainly like to see it succeed. I just don't think it is necessarily a realistic expectation given the factors I already pointed out.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

I agree with you that is the hope now. And I want to be clear that I am not rooting against the movie by any means. I liked it a lot and I do plan to add it to my Blu-ray collection. I would certainly like to see it succeed. I just don't think it is necessarily a realistic expectation given the factors I already pointed out.

And I agree with you there.

The film would need to nab a slew of Oscars to stir any real ticket sales, and given that Oscar wins don't seem to goose the box office like they used to, I'm not even sure that would make a big difference.

It's highly unlikely that "bunch of awards" scenario will manifest anyway.

I'm guessing it gets noms in music categories as well as costumes and production design, with maybe 1 acting nod.

No idea if it actually wins anything.

Be ironic if both versions of the property got shut out at the Oscars!

 

[Jake Lipson]

The film would need to nab a slew of Oscars to stir any real ticket sales, and given that Oscar wins don't seem to goose the box office like they used to, I'm not even sure that would make a big difference.

I think most people who follow the awards season closely are already aware of The Color Purple, so those who make a point of seeing everything that could be nominated have likely seen it already. The Color Purple is already in wide release, so it won't be opening in any new markets following nominations that haven't already had it. American Fiction will get some kind of bump this weekend because it is going into new markets, but there are no more new markets for Color Purple to release in because it's already everywhere in North America.

I'm guessing it gets noms in music categories as well as costumes and production design, with maybe 1 acting nod.

The two songs which are eligible for nomination are "Keep It Movin'" and "Superpower." Fantasia sings the latter and she is the lead. But it only plays over the credits. "Keep It Movin'" is sung by the actresses playing younger Celie and Nettie early in the movie, but it has the advantage of actually being integrated into the narrative. If I was going to choose one, my vote would be for "Keep It Movin'." But I think it will be in line to lose to Barbie in the original song category regardless.

 

[Jake Lipson]

The film would need to nab a slew of Oscars to stir any real ticket sales

Anecdotally, I can say that my local 20-screen multiplex is cutting The Color Purple down again beginning this weekend. For the first two weeks, it was on two screens. This past weekend, it went down to one screen but still had four showtimes. Now, it is going down to just two shows per day.

I suppose they could add more screenings back if there is a huge Oscars bump. But unfortunately this just feels like a precursor to getting rid of it altogether.

 

[Malcolm R]

Anyone But You has taken over #1 on the mid-week box office for the past two days.

 

[Joe Wong]

Anyone But You has taken over #1 on the mid-week box office for the past two days.

Who would have thought?

 

[Tino]

Who would have thought?

Anyone but you I guess.

 

[Jake Lipson]

From Deadline, boldface emphasis mine:

Exhibitors are lighting candles and saying prayers that Paramount's feature musical redux Mean Girls carries them big-time throughout January after a dry spell caused by the double strikes. Ya see, for the next three weeks following Mean Girls, there isn’t a major studio wide release until Apple Original Films’ Argylle arrives on February 2 via Universal.

That is absolutely insane and seems like very bad news if you're a theater owner.

‘Mean Girls’ Is Queen Bee Of MLK Weekend But Will Be Only Cool Kid In January – Box Office Preview

Exhibitors are lighting candles and saying prayers that Paramount’s feature musical redux Mean Girls carries them big-time throughout January after a dry spell caused by the double strikes. Y…

deadline.com

 

[TravisR]

From Deadline, boldface emphasis mine:


That is absolutely insane and seems like very bad news if you're a theater owner.

It's only two weeks. No doubt they'll be very slow weeks but whether Mean Girls is good or bad, it and Oscar hopefuls will fill that time.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

It's only two weeks. No doubt they'll be very slow weeks but whether Mean Girls is good or bad, it and Oscar hopefuls will fill that time.

And don't forget January traditionally has been Nuttin' But Crap time anyway.

Yeah, that's changed some over time, but it's still not exactly a prime period for hot new releases.

 

[Jake Lipson]

The Numbers says The Color Purple is dropping -2,040 theaters this weekend to remain in only 1,178. That's fewer theaters than Disney's moderate release of Soul (1,350), and that movie is a couple weeks past three years old. My local theater still has The Color Purple, but it is only showing twice a day. So even the theaters that are keeping it aren't necessarily all giving it a lot of play. Unfortunately, I don't see a bump in the future.

Incidentally, the release of Soul gives multiple participants two films in the marketplace. Tina Fey has Mean Girls as writer/producer and Miss Norberry. She is in Soul as 22. Jon Batiste provided the jazz score for Soul and appears in The Color Purple as Grady. Kemp Powers, who co-directed Soul, also co-directed Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, which is returning to theaters next week. I'm definitely going to be seeing both Tina Fey films this weekend.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

The Numbers says The Color Purple is dropping -2,040 theaters this weekend to remain in only 1,178. That's fewer theaters than Disney's moderate release of Soul (1,350), and that movie is a couple weeks past three years old. My local theater still has The Color Purple, but it is only showing twice a day.

My closest 22-screen AMC has 4 showings today.

It's gone from the next closest 15-screen AMC.

 

[TravisR]

It's gone from the next closest 15-screen AMC.

That's surprising as I've got an AMC with nine screens near me and even they still have it twice a day.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

That's surprising as I've got an AMC with nine screens near me and even they still have it twice a day.

Yeah - it surprised me as well.

"Color Purple" still has 1 screening a day at a local 8-screen AMC and 5 at a 12-screen.

The 15-screen where it got dropped is in a mall that attracts a lot of teens - maybe that's why it got the boot.

 

[Tino]

It’s completely gone from my local AMC.

 

[Tino]

1.) Mean Girls (Par) 3,791 theaters, Fri $11.65M, Sat $9.65M Sun $6.8M Mon $4M 3-day $28M, 4-day $32M/Wk 1

2.) The Beekeeper (AMZ MGM) 3,303 theaters, Fri $6.7M, Sat $5.7M Sun $4.3M Mon $2.3M 3-day $16.8M, 4-day $19.2M/Wk 1

3.) Wonka (WB) 3,346 (-471) theaters, Fri $1.8M (-58%) Sat $3.65M Sun $2.9M Mon $2.5M 3-day $8.38M (-40%), 4-day $10.88M Total $178.69M/Wk 5

4.) Migration (Ill/Uni) 3,224 (-488) theaters, Fri $1.15M (-62%) Sat $2.8M Sun $2.2M Mon $2.1M 3-day $6.19M (-38%), 4-day $8.3M Total $87.8M/ Wk 4

5.) Anyone But You (Sony) 2,935 (-120) Fri $2.1M (-35%) Sat $2.75M Sun $2.09M Mon $1.3M 3-day $6.94M (-29%), 4 day $8.255M Total $56.4M/Wk 4

6.) Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (WB) 2,741 (-812) theaters, Fri $1.16M (-63%) Sat $2.28M Sun $1.8M Mon $1.37M 3-day $5.265M (-50%), 4-day $6.64M /Total $109.6M/Wk 4

7.) Night Swim (Uni) 3,257 (+7) theaters, Fri $1.17M (-78%) Sat $1.98M Sun $1.5M Mon $840K 3-day $4.66M (-60%), 4-day $5.5M, Total $20M/Wk 7

8.) Boys in the Boat (AMZ MGM) 2,007 (-680) theaters, Fri $974K (-45%) Sat $1.45M Sun $1.09M 3-day $3.52M (-37%), 4-day $4.18M Total $40M, Wk 3

9.) The Book of Clarence (Leg/Tri-Star) Fri $1M Sat $890K Sun $685K Mon $425K 3-day $2.57M4-day $3M/Wk 1

9) Iron Claw (A24) 1,591 (-801) theaters, Fri $691K Sat $950K Sun $760K Mon $608K 3-day$2.4M (-47%) 4-day $3M Total $29.2M /Wk 4

11.) Guntur Kaaram (Parth) 800 theaters, Fri $2M, Sat $391K Sun $317K Mon $170K 3-day$2.7M, 4-day $2.87M/Wk 1

 

[Jake Lipson]

Most Warner Bros. films get about 45 days as an exclusive theatrical window now. The Color Purple is debuting for premium priced digital home viewing tomorrow, so it got a window of three weeks. Universal usually does 17 days, but I don't remember the last time WB did less than 45. This says to me that WB knows the film is on the way out theatrically and not expecting a significant uptick in business following possible awards.

That's a great start for Mean Girls. It will almost certainly end up being profitable by the time it ends its run because its budget was only $36 million. However, I'm very curious to see what the drop is next weekend. I feel like it might be significant. I've seen a lot of people online who aren't happy about it being a musical.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

I feel like it might be significant. I've seen a lot of people online who aren't happy about it being a musical.

Then those people are idiots for not knowing in advance it was a musical.

Yes, the trailers try to hide it, but it's still not exactly a secret.

 

[Jake Lipson]

Yes, the trailers try to hide it, but it's still not exactly a secret.

If you spend time on places like this board, it wasn't. I can absolutely understand why someone who maybe only saw the trailer and likes the original film but didn't do a lot of research before going to the movie would be surprised by this and I think they would be justified in being annoyed. I love musicals, but deceiving the audience is not a good strategy.