The Weekend Report

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 held top spot over the extending Thanksgiving holiday with an estimated $56.9 million. Turkey days featured two new national releases that came up short of expectations. Animated Penguins of Madagascar bowed in second spot with $25.7 million and the sequel of revenge Horrible Bosses 2 ran fifth at $15.5 million. Exclusive newcomers included Oz horror yarn The Babadook with $18,800 from two engagements. The biggest clues were left by Oscar hopeful The Imitation Game, that bowed to $484,000 on just four secret estates.

In the niches new Indian imports were largely moribund including a big push for the Bollyw00d-Canada mashup Dr. Cabbie about the perils of a new immigrant in Toronto that grossed $119,000 in its U.S. launch. The film has grossed $1.7 million above the 49th parallel since its September release.

Weekend revenues generated close to $170 million at multiplexes and the like that translated into a 17% decline from seven days back. It also experienced a 22% erosion from 2013 when competition was fierce between The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and the launch of Frozen that wound the weekend respectively with $109.9 million and $93.6 million.

Exclusive newcomers saw good results for the day-and-date theatrical/VOD release of rave-reviewed horror yarn The Babadook of $18,800 from two engagements. Greater noise came from Oscar hopeful The Imitation Game about the breaking of the Enigma Code and the tortured life of Alan Turing that bowed to $484,000 on just four screens.

The calendar wasn’t particularly kind, with a later-than-usual Thanksgiving timing and the ferocity of Black Friday shopping among other factors. A significant slice of moviegoers clearly put that leisuretime activity on a lower priority and exhibition is clearly on edge about next weekend (traditionally one of the most poorly attended of the year) when the only major new release is the Reese Witherspoon-starring survival saga Wild.

Predictions held that The Penguins of Madagascar would have at least a $30 million weekend and a $45 million tally. It didn’t help the film that it had strong competition from the fourth weekend of Big Hero 6. The film nonetheless played to its target family audience with a slight 51% female tilt and per exit polls 58% of viewers aged 25-years and younger.

Internationally, Penguins had opened two weeks earlier in China where it flocked to $25 million. The current weekend generated an estimated $36 million in 44 territories including Russia with $8.2 million, Italy at $4.6 million and Germany grossing $4.2 million.

Horrible Bosses 2 had prognosticators touting a $20 million weekend and 5-day gross close to $30 million. Generally withering reviewers and twitter chatter weren’t helpful to the sequel that also had a fairly even gender split according to studio demos with men ahead at 51%. It audience was 59% aged 25-years and older.

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