MGM and Lionsgate/Pantelion Films Analyze Their Weekend Success

[pr] Overboard, from MGM and Lionsgate’s Pantelion Films, successfully set sail this weekend over performing pre-release expectations and taking in an estimated $14.750 million on 1,623 screens, making it the highest grossing opening in Pantelion’s history.

Receiving an A- CinemaScore and driven by exceptionally strong word of mouth and audience recommendations, Overboard is well positioned to continue its momentum and capitalize on Mother’s Day weekend and beyond. Overboard played solidly thru the weekend to an audience that was 61% Female and 83% 25+. The film took in an estimated $4,835,000 on Friday, $5,104,000 on Saturday and we are projecting another $4,811,000 today. The per screen average is $9,088.

MGM and Pantelion were expecting an opening in the $10-12m range for Overboard, in line with star Eugenio Derbez’s How To Be A Latin Lover, which was Pantelion’s previous highest grossing opening in April of 2017.In this successful twist on the classic comedy, Eugenio Derbez cleverly reimagined the roles in the original film, which includes a diverse, world renowned cast that showcases Latino superstars and uses comedy to also address some timely, topical and relevant class and cultural issues of the day.

Among the campaign highlights, Pantelion positioned the film as a strong counter programmingcomedy for the Cinco de Mayo weekend with strategic and dually targeted outreach directed at both the Hispanic and General Market while also aiming to lure audience members from all four quadrants. Two unique and very different trailers were created, one that highlighted the romantic comedy elements of the film while the other was a Spanish language trailer emphasizing the family comedic elements of Overboard featuring all of the well-known actors Eugenio Derbez brought into the project from Mexico to further tap into his market and supercharge and excite his hyper-engaged fan base.

Additionally, general market advertising targeted fans of Eugenio and Anna Faris: fans of rom-coms and comedy, as well as Hispanics who consume primarily English language content. The studio also relied on smart digital marketing, which included leveraging the online power, popularity and social footprint of the film’s stars, as well as deploying modestly targeted Spanish language advertising to efficiently reach US-based Hispanic cultures where they live, work and play.

The cast, including Eugenio, Anna and Eva Longoria were tireless advocates for the film and each worked feverishly to help create awareness in the days and weeks leading up to this week’s opening. Among their many major appearances on talk shows, etc, key hits were scored at the Oscars and Latin Billboards, where Eugenio was a presenter. Eugenio also  participated in a multi-city tour which included Hispanic and general market press.

Next week, Eugenio, the cast and filmmakers will travel to Mexico City where the film will premiere in Mexico just in time for Mexican Mother’s Day on May 10. As Derbez becomes a cross-over star known throughout the world, Mexico remains a major driving feeding ground for his growing fan base and is a primary market for the film. How To Be A Latin Lover was the 7th highest grossing film in Mexico last year – ahead of Wonder Woman, Thor: Ragnarok, Transformers: The Last Knight, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and other worldwide blockbuster titles.

Overboard follows in the footsteps of major Pantelion releases like How To Be A Latin Lover and Instructions Not Included.  Lionsgate’s diverse slate includes a strong focus on Latinx and African-American audiences, a philosophy that extends well beyond film to the studio’s television, digital and Starz platforms.

Overboard focuses on “Leonardo” (EUGENIO DERBEZ), a selfish, spoiled, rich playboy from Mexico’s richest family and “Kate” (ANNA FARIS), a working class single mom of three hired to clean Leonardo’s luxury yacht. After unjustly firing Kate and refusing to pay her, Leonardo falls overboard when partying too hard and wakes up on the Oregon coast with amnesia. Kate shows up at the hospital and, to get payback, convinces Leonardo he is her husband and puts him to work – for the first time in his life. At first miserable and inept, Leonardo slowly settles in. Eventually he earns the respect of his new “family” and co-workers. But, with Leonardo’s billionaire family hot on their trail and the possibility of his memory returning at any moment, will their new family last or will Leonardo finally put the clues together and leave them for good?

Derbez is a mega star. Among his many credits, he produced, directed and starred in Pantelion’s 2013 comedy Instructions Not Included, the highest-grossing Spanish-language film ever released in the U.S.

A Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and Pantelion Films presentation of a 3Pas Studios production directed by Rob Greenberg from a story by Leslie Dixon and a screenplay by Bob Fisher, Overboard stars Eugenio Derbez, Anna Faris, Eva Longoria, John Hannah, Mel Rodriguez, Omar Chaparro, Adrian Uribe and Cecilia Suarez.