The Weekend Report

Taking a breather prior to Independence Day weekend, North American box office took a sharp dip with the debut of urban comedy Think Like a Man Too pushing to the top with an estimated $29.6 million. The session’s other debutante, Jersey Boys, scatted into fourth with $13.3 million.

Weekend revenues inched toward $150 million for a 21% decline from seven day prior. It was a sharper 39% erosion from 2013 when newcomers Monsters University and World War Z topped the charts with respective bows of $82.4 million and $66.4 million.

Lower-budget buddy comedy Think Like a Man Too was tracking to do roughly $35 million or slightly better than its predecessor. Thursday sneaks of about $1.8 million were in step with the pundit’s prognostications but a dip in Friday to Saturday box office seized up on expectations. The film tilted decidedly female with 63% of its opening audience and it was also an older crowd with 66% of attendees aged 25-years and older.

In the niches the Bollywood newcomer Humshakals was also blah with a $271,000 tally from 181 venues. Additional exclusive freshmen generated tepid to frigid results including Paul Haggis’ screen original Third Person with $39,800 on five screens and Roman Polanski’s theatrical adaptation Venus in Furs grossing $36,100 at seven locations

Commercial heat for Jersey Boys despite the success of its stage incarnations and the perennial popularity of The Four Seasons catalogue was chilly. Advance polling pegged its potential at between $11 million and $13 million and its high end results were abetted by positive reviews from major critics.

Jersey Boys gender demos were not dissimilar to those of TLAMT with a crowd that was 61% female. However it ranks as one of the oldest skewing films of recent times with 92% of the audience aged 25-years and older. The good news is that it’s likely to hang in there a lot longer than the summer’s behemoths but it’s still no Mamma Mia!

On the alternative side Obvious Child continues to expand effectively and the Polish drama Ida has emerged as a stealth box office surprise. But in general the seasonal options that have secured a toehold have largely been modestly appealing to their base.

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