The Weekend Report, July 17, 2011

Wild About Harry

Harry Cashna Harry Cashna Harry Harry Cashna Cashna

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows, Part 2 debuted to a record breaking estimate of $168.6 million domestically and corralled roughly 65% of the marketplace in its debut and the series finale.

Marked on the curve the rest of the newcomers had to settle for chump change. A new Winnie the Pooh targeted at viewers not quite ready for Potter ranked sixth with $7.8 million. And in the niches there was an excellent bow for Bollywood’s latest Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara of $820,000 and a sturdy initial salvo of $104,000 for Tamil language Deiva Thirumagan at 22 venues.

Limited newcomers featured several encouraging starts including the non-fiction Tabloid with $90,300 at 14 sites and the Chinese import Snow Flower and the Secret Fan that’s already scored at home and in Italy and added $132,600 in its North American debut at 24 salons. Undefeated, a portrait of Sarah Palin, grossed $65,700 at 10 screens with a fast start and diminishing returns.

Overall box office receipts surpassed $260 million for a sizable 66% boost from last weekend and a not too shabby 47% increase from last year. In 2010 ticket buyers put the opening on Inception at the top of the list with $62.8 million, followed by Despicable Me’s second weekend $32.8 million and a blah $17.6 million bow for The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.

The anticipation for the conclusion of the Harry Potter saga was palpable demonstrated by a record breaking $43.5 million gross for the film’s midnight previews. In addition to chalking up the best weekend launch of any of the series’ eight installments, it set new benchmarks for any film for its opening day and weekend. It also set a large format record of $15.5 million from 274 playdates.

Still the HP magic couldn’t break the spell of diminished 3D enchantment. The roughly 71% stereoscopic dates accounted for 43% of the overall box office. The 8.8% that Imax engagements represented translated into 21.4% of that part of the gross. While not quite conclusive there’s strong evidence that the younger the ticket buyer, the greater the resistance to donning Polaroid glasses.

Internationally, the film grossed an estimated $82 million in the countries that opened pre-weekend and added $225 million Friday-Sunday. Attendant with the box office were a raft of record breaking box office stats including a new opening weekend standard that raised the bar by $47 million.

Whether the film usurps Avatar’s peak will play out in the coming weeks but it’s likely the Harry Potter finale will emerge as the top grossing sequel of all time. There’s no question that the film has been pleasing to critics and fans and that’s the best sort of ammunition for ascension to the box office pantheon.

The opening salvo for the film was a much needed shot in the arm for industry and audience ennui. The lag from 2010 business has now shrunk to 8% and hopes are high that late season releases – especially Cowboys & Aliens – can further reduce that figure.

Be Sociable, Share!

• 
•