By Leonard Klady Klady@moviecitynews.com
The Weekend Report
About 56% of weekend moviegoers turned out for the debut of Oz the Great and Powerful and that translated into an estimated $80.2 million opening. The frame’s only other new wide release, Dead Man Down, did little for the notion of counterprogramming, with a $5.3 million tally.
In the niches. history drama Emperor generated an okay $1.1 million at 260 venues and a couple of exclusives demonstrated initial strength. Quirky romantic fable Somebody Up There Likes Me generated $43,200 from a single screen in Chicago and Korean blockbuster Miracle in Cell No. 7 grossed $40,600 at a single daycare center.
Overall session revenues rang up roughly $142 million for a sizable 30% boost from last week. It was also the first uptick in almost two months from 2012 with a 4% bump. A year ago the second weekend of Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax trumped the now infamous John Carter’s $30.2 million bow, with a $38.8 million sophomore return.
The potential for a colossal letdown was almost as forceful as predictions that Oz the Great and Powerful would open to at least $80 million according to industry pundits. The film’s $2 million in previews provide scant information about its eventual potency and Friday’s $23 million-plus Friday b.o. suggested it would fall well short of the predicted figure.
However, while the assumption that Oz would replicate the revenue curve of Alice in Wonderland, it veered instead toward a more family-friendly trajectory that helped reach the industry projection. Studio exit polls identified opening weekend attendance as 41% family with an audience that was 54% aged 25-years and older. It also skewed slightly female at 52%.
The new, re-imagined Oz also debuted in 46 international territories with an estimated $70 million salvo. The top opening was in Russia with $15 million with the UK and Australia providing respective box office of $5.7 million and 5 million.
Noirish Dead Man Down wasn’t up to programmer biz. Its opening crowd was 60% male and 75% aged 25-years and senior.
Oz the Great and Powerful lived up to its moniker by putting a serious dent into the stamina of holdover titles. In general, ongoing fare was sapped between 40% and 60% that put the kibosh on Oscar theatrical benefit and all hope for last weekend’s Jack the Giant Slayer.
| Weekend (estimates) March 8 – 10, 2013 | |||||
| Title | Distributor | Gross (average) | % change * | Theaters | Cume |
| Oz The Great and Powerful | BV | 80.2 (20,510) | NEW | 3912 | 80.2 |
| Jack the Giant Slayer | WB | 10.0 (2,840) | -63% | 3525 | 43.8 |
| Identity Thief | Uni | 6.3 (2,090) | -35% | 3002 | 116.5 |
| Dead Man Down | FilmDistrict | 5.3 (2,440) | NEW | 2188 | 5.3 |
| Snitch | Lionsgate | 5.1 (2,190) | -34% | 2340 | 31.9 |
| 21 and Over | Relativity | 5.0 (1,820) | -42% | 2771 | 16.8 |
| Safe Haven | Relativity | 3.8 (1,490) | -40% | 2541 | 62.9 |
| Silver Linings Playbook | Weinstein Co. | 3.7 (2,150) | -35% | 1727 | 120.7 |
| Escape from Planet Earth | Weinstein Co. | 3.2 (1,250) | -52% | 2549 | 47.8 |
| The Last Exorcism II | CBS | 3.1 (1,160) | -59% | 2700 | 12.1 |
| A Good Day to Die Hard | Fox | 2.1 (1,220) | -54% | 1725 | 63.4 |
| Life of Pi | Fox | 1.6 (2,370) | -33% | 671 | 119.4 |
| Quartet | Weinstein Co. | 1.3 (1,790) | -28% | 715 | 13.3 |
| Dark Skies | Weinstein Co. | 1.3 (840) | -63% | 1505 | 15.6 |
| Emperor | Roadside Attractions | 1.1 (4,080) | NEW | 260 | 1.1 |
| Argo | WB | 1.0 (1,370) | -51% | 741 | 134.3 |
| Warm Bodies | Lionsgate | 1.0 (970) | -60% | 1052 | 63.6 |
| Side Effects | Open Road/eOne | .88 (1,460) | -50% | 602 | 29.6 |
| Zero Dark Thirty | Sony/Alliance | .67 (1,280) | -49% | 522 | 94.6 |
| Lincoln | BV | .44 (1,020) | -44% | 432 | 180.8 |
| Django Unchained | Weinstein Co. | .42 (1,260) | -57% | 336 | 161.1 |
| Wreck-It Ralph | BV | .40 (1,290) | -29% | 314 | 187.9 |
| The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey | WB | .37 (1,090) | 36% | 337 | 301.8 |
| Les Miserables | Uni | .32 (1,110) | -44% | 286 | 148.1 |
| Weekend Total ($500,000+ Films) | $136.65 | ||||
| % Change (Last Year) | 4% | ||||
| % Change (Last Week) | 30% | ||||
| Also debuting/expanding | |||||
| The Gatekeepers | Sony Classics | .25 (3,680) | -2% | 67 | 1 |
| Amour | Sony Classics | .19 (750) | -60% | 250 | 6.2 |
| Asterix & Obelix au service de sa majeste | Alliance | .18 (2,580) | 0% | 71 | 1.1 |
| No | Sony Classics | .16 (4,550) | 57% | 35 | 0.5 |
| Stoker | Searchlight | .11 (6,710) | -29% | 17 | 0.33 |
| Greedy Lying Bastards | One Earth | 43,500 (840) | 52 | 0.04 | |
| Somebody Up There Likes Me | Tribeca | 43,200 (43,200) | 1 | 0.04 | |
| Miracle in Cell No. 7 | CJ Entertainment | 40,600 (40,600) | 1 | 0.04 | |
| Don’t Stop Believin’ | Cinedigm | 23,700 (1,190) | 20 | 0.02 | |
| The Girl | Vitagraph | 12,200 (6,100) | 2 | 0.01 | |
| Gundello Godari | Blue Sky | 11,800 (620) | 19 | 0.01 | |
| The We and the I | Paladin | 11,500 (5,750) | 2 | 0.01 | |
| Beyond the Hills | IFC | 11,100 (3,700) | 3 | 0.01 | |
| Paris-Manhattan | A-Z | 8,800 (1,260) | 7 | 0.01 | |
| The Monk | IDP | 8,500 (770) | 11 | 0.01 | |
| Ferocious | Chaos | 8,400 (1,200) | 7 | 0.01 | |
| The Silence | Music Box | 8,200 (4,100) | 2 | 0.01 | |
| Language of a Broken Heart | House Lights | 6,600 (6,600) | 1 | 0.01 | |
| Girl Rising | GathrFilms | 6,500 (1,620) | 4 | 0.01 | |
| The ABCs of Death | Magnolia | 5,900 (350) | 17 | 0.01 | |
| Le Petit Soldat (Reissue) | Rialto | 2,980 | 1 | 0.01 | |
| Domestic Market Share (January 1 – March 7, 2013) | |||||
| Distributor (releases) | Gross | Percentage | |||
| Universal (5) | 281.5 | 17.60% | |||
| Weinstein Co. (7) | 252.1 | 15.70% | |||
| Warner Bros. (9) | 207.3 | 12.90% | |||
| Lions Gate (10) | 163.4 | 10.20% | |||
| 20th Century Fox (6) | 154.7 | 9.70% | |||
| Paramount (8) | 121.8 | 7.60% | |||
| Sony (4) | 104.3 | 6.50% | |||
| Relativity (3) | 79.7 | 5.00% | |||
| Buena Vista (6) | 73.8 | 4.60% | |||
| Open Road (3) | 66.7 | 4.20% | |||
| Film District (3) | 19.2 | 1.20% | |||
| Alliance/eOne (7) | 17.7 | 1.10% | |||
| Focus (3) | 13.9 | 0.90% | |||
| CBS (1) | 9 | 0.55% | |||
| Sony Classics (6) | 8.9 | 0.55% | |||
| Other * (49) | 27.3 | 1.70% | |||
| 1601.3 | 100% | ||||
| * none greater than 0.4% | |||||
