Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle took top spot for the holiday frame with an estimated $27.1 million. Not far behind with $18.6 million was The Post that went wide after three weeks in exclusives. (All figures reflect 3-day figures; chart will be updated tomorrow).

Three national debuts opened respectably. Ticking-clock The Commuter landed third with $13.2 million while family-targeted Paddington 2 cuddled up to $10.5 million. Proud Mary, advertised as kin of John Cassavetes’ 1980 thriller Gloria, bowed to $9.8 million.

Two Telugu films led the charge with Thaanaa Serndha Kootem grossing $303,000 and Agnyaathavaasi – Prince in Exile posting $278,000. The latter film had a potent pre-weekend box office of $2.2 million that rapidly evaporated. The elaborate Filipino fantasy adventure Ang Panday had an OK start of $111,000 while animated Mexican import Condorito was more cel than buy with $230,000 from 153 screens.

Most promising among exclusive newcomers was Lebanon’s Academy short-listed The Insult, which arrived with $24,100 from three engagements.

Revenues  hovered around $155 million and slipped 7% from last weekend. It was a slight 2% improvement from 2017 when Hidden Figures led with $27.5 million and the top new entry. The Bye Bye Man, ranked fifth with $15.2 million.

Observers were nervous about whether The Post would have wide appeal, and unusual fluctuation in tracking put a cloud over expectation of a $20 million four-day result. But Spielberg hit the mark with an audience that was 55% female and 66% 35 and older. It remains in the Oscar chase and could bring in a younger audience as its run continues. Liam Neeson continued his reign as successor to Charles Bronson with The Commuter, which exceeded tracking expectations of $9 million to $10 million. Its crowd was 54% male with 70% of the audience over 30.

Originally set for release by the Weinstein Co., Paddington 2 was acquired by Warner Bros. as the indie began its a tailspin. The beloved Peruvian bear adrift in the UK opened two months ago overseas and has grossed $150 million. Expectations were more modest Stateside but it still came up short of expectations of a $15 million debut despite the appeal of the initial movie. Studio exit demos reflected a 57% female audience with 55% over 25.

Proud Mary got the wrong kind of publicity when the media harrumphed that its studio wasn’t screening for press. Tracking suggested nonetheless a decent debut of roughly $15 million that movie-goers failed to support and its ad campaign really failed to give a clear sense of its story. Those who showed were 58% female and 77% over 25.

Unlike Blade Runner 2049 movie goers were undeterred that they hadn’t seen 1995’s Jumanji (both were box office disappointments at the time of their respective releases) and put its sequel Welcome to the Jungle on top of the weekend chart with an estimated $36.1 million. The session’s sole new wide release – from a more vigorous franchise – Insidious: The Last Key was close behind with a $29.2 million debut.

With the Golden Globes hours away a number of titles did strategic expansions including such contenders as Darkest Hour, I, Tonya and Molly’s Game. The trio maintained commercial momentum.

Imports from China included Goldbuster with a $78,600 opening and Hanson and the Beast grossing $43,300. While both were modest debuts continuing titles such as Ex-File 3 indicate that the Chinese market is evolving much in the way the Indian has evolved in the past two decades. In 2017 more than 150 Indian movies played in the U.S. and grossed in excess of $100 million for the first time.

Revenues for the frame exceeded $165 million and dipped 16% from last weekend. It was 19% improved from 2017 when the third weekend of Hidden Figures pushed ahead of Rogue One by $800,000 with a $22.8 million tally.

Final crunching for 2017 rendered a domestic box office of $11.135 billion (see charts) that translated into a 3.5% decline from 2016. It was a 5% downturn in terms of admissions. International revenues are still being sorted but initial figures indicate a slight improvement of 7%.

On the domestic front it was a good year for the majors (apart from Paramount) but the news of Fox’s acquisition by Disney has put the industry in a quandary. Obviously consolidation will change the landscape and that’s going to put a squeeze on independents. There’s a big question mark hanging over Weinstein Co. (obviously) as well as STX, Open Road and Bleecker Street that are all in desperate need of a very big picture with franchise potential. The latter aspect is exactly the kind of thing that elevated Lionsgate into the status of a major player.

The final weekend of 2017 was a horse race between Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle with the former grossing an estimated $52.7 million and the latter close behind with $50.9 million. There were no new national releases but All the Money in the World and Molly’s Game had their first full weekends, with the poker opus surprisingly strong in its limited wide exposure.

Exclusive newcomers included Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool with OK returns of $35,400 at four venues, and Germany’s Oscar short-listed In the Fade grossing a disappointing $11,200 from three sites. Phantom Thread was on fire with a $217,000 box office from four houses. Indian import Okka Kshanam opened to a disappointing $138,000. Ex-File 3 from China and the Filipino The Revenger Squad bowed to good response of $114,000 and $111,000.

Revenues for the sessions nudged right up to $200 million and saw an 11% upswing from last weekend. It was a 5% improvement from 2016 when Rogue One led with $65.5 million and Sing took the bridesmaid slot with $57.3 million.

Entering the weekend 2017 box office was off the prior year’s pace by 4% and the current year will likely finish in the area of $11.15 billion.

If last year’s existential question was: how do you ensure the next generation has the moviegoing habit, then the past twelve months provided an even more disturbing query.  What happens when there’s nothing in the multiplex that viewers want to see? Happy New Year and a prosperous 2018.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi dominated with an estimated $68.8 million box office for the three-day portion of the weekend (all figures reflect three-day grosses). Five new movies leapt into the holiday melee to mixed results.

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle ranked second with $34 million (plus $16.6 million from pre-weekend box office) and Pitch Perfect 3 with $20.4 million. More problematic was musical The Greatest Showman, which opened with $8.4 million following a Wednesday bow that generated $4.6 million. Casualties were the diminutive Downsizing with $4.6 million, and the seasonal raunch comedy Father Figures, which struggled to $3.1 million.

Exclusive debuts were dominated by The Post with stop-the-presses revenues of $490,000 from nine newsstands. Further back were the Austrian drama Happy End, which grossed $23,200 from three screens, and revisionist western Hostiles with a $19,100 return on three. The session also saw significant expansions for The Shape of Water and Darkest Hour, maintaining awards season prospects.

Bollywood made a comeback with Tiger Zinda Hai posting $1.6 million while Telugu titles Hello! and Middle Class Abbayi bowed on the soft side with respective weekends of $461,000 and $362,000. In Quebec, local comedy Le Trip a trois also had tepid response of $190,000. And China import Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds bowed with an excellent $160,000 from 17 screens.

Revenues for the frame exceeded $175 million and ebbed back 38% from last weekend largely as a result of a calendar that conflated holiday viewing and saw even behemoths including The Last Jedi experience sharper than anticipated declines. The current session also declined 5% from 2016 when the second weekend of Rogue One led with $96.1 million and newcomers Sing and Passengers followed with openings of $54.9 million and $22.7 million.

It’s taken 22 years to follow up on Jumanji, but initial returns for Welcome to the Jungle look encouraging for a more efficacious follow up. Studio exit demos identified the audience as 56% male with 55% aged 25-years and younger. The film opened in 53 foreign markets to an estimated $49 million plus including 28 territories in top spot. Top grossing nations included the UK with $10 million, a record-breaking $7.1 million in Malaysia and Russia opening to $4.8 million.

The unexpected success of Pitch Perfect in 2012 spawned an equally surprising franchise with ample clout to take on the unforgiving holiday brawl. It played to its base with an audience that was 69% female with 57% aged 25-years and younger. It had a more modest international launch in 14 territories that generated a $10 million tally dominated by the UK’s $5.9 million debut.

The anticipation for The Greatest Showman was buoyed by the musical revival of La La Land (with that film’s lyricists in tow for the Barnum tuner). However, critical response has been tepid. On the domestic side it drew an older crowd that was 67% aged 25-years and older with females accounting for 63% of viewers. The film bowed day-and-date in just three overseas markets in Asia with South Korea accounting for $2.8 million of its $4 million box office.

Also suffering mixed response was Downsizing with audiences puzzled by its open-ended conclusion. It also skewed older with plus 30-year olds comprising 60% of the audience and a slight male tilt of 51%.

Father Figures proved not to be the alternative movie its studio had hoped. Its crowd was 53% male with 75% 25 and older.

Four decades have not tarnished the Star Wars universe as The Last Jedi debuts domestically with an estimated $219.6 million. More than three of every four tickets sold this past weekend were spent on the eighth installment of the series. Efforts to counterprogram put Ferdinand, the animated bull, in the ring, where he landed a distant second with $13.3 million.

There were no significant exclusive debuts but previously limited titles had significant expansions. Wonder Wheel added 489 playdates and fizzled with a $460,000 box office. Slow rollouts of awards contenders The Shape of Water, Darkest Hour and Call Me by Your Name maintained strong five-figure averages.

The only Indian import to register a pulse was the Telugu Aruvi that bowed to $52,400 at 27 venues. China’s Youth opened with a potent $267,000 from 30 sites while The Thousand Faces of Dunija had a disappointing $56,100 launch.

Revenues approached $280 million and saw an enormous 245% expansion from the prior weekend. It was also a significant 32% boost from 2016 when Rogue One launched with $155.1 and alternative Collateral Beauty slotted fourth with $7.1 million. Domestic box office cleared $10 billion on Wednesday but through the weekend it was still 3.5% behind the 2016 pace.

Predictions saw The Last Jedi opening to more than $200 million with high end estimates of $220 million. Despite the enormity of the film it failed to equal the opening strength of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The picture tilted fanboy with 57% of viewers and was 62% aged 25-years and older.

Last Jedi opened in the rest of the world with the exception of China (where it debuts early in 2018) to an estimated $230 million. Despite (or because) of the absence of the Asian behemoth it ranked as the fifth largest global box office opening of all time. Britain was the top opener with $36 million plus and it emerged unsurprisingly as the biggest debut of the year in many territories including France, Japan and Australia.

The industry consensus was bullish for Ferdinand with expectations of a $15 million to $17 million that didn’t happen. Still, it brought in a crowd that was 54% female with 63% aged 25 and younger and 75% identifying as families.

Ferdinand also had a modest international debut of $6.2 million in 18 foreign markets. Australia led the charge with $1.9 million and Germany grossed $950,000.

It was a Coco three-peat as the animation led weekend biz with an estimated $18.5 million in a not-terribly festive frame. In one of the lowest-attended weekends of 2017, the sole new national opener was Just Getting Started, at tenth with $3.2 million.

The national expansion of The Disaster Artist laughed up $6.4 million. Also continuing slow roll-outs were Lady Bird and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.  Among exclusives, I, Tonya pulled off the box office equivalent of a triple axel with a $248,000 debut from four rinks.

Indian imports were again fallow, with Hindi titles Fukrey Returns and Sat Shri Akaal England opening to respective soft box office of $178,000 and $162,000. But it’s proven to be a strong season for Filipino films with Unexpectedly Yours bowing with $288,000.

Revenues for the three days crawled to about $85 million and took a 20% dip from last weekend. It was less than a percentage downturn change from 2016 when Moana maintained top position with $18.5 million with the opening weekend of Office Christmas Party right behind with $16.9 million.

Expectations weren’t exactly buoyant for Just Getting Started but estimates in the $5-$6 million range proved to be overly confident. Industryites saw the film as the last blow-out of its three-year old distributor. Broad Green stepped out promisingly in 2015 with A Walk in the Woods but has steadily lost momentum since last year’s Bad Santa 2. A fire sale looks imminent.

Coco led the session with an estimated $26.2 million. The first weekend of December has traditionally been one of the lowest grossing of the calendar, so a lack of new national releases wasn’t unexpected.

Exclusive newcomers were ablaze, with Wonder Wheel, the latest from Woody Allen, circling $142,000 from five locales. The Disaster Artist laughed out a $1.2 million box office from 19 rooms. And Venice best-picture winner The Shape of Water flowed to $163,000 from just two movie palaces. Significant expansions of Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri and Lady Bird bolstered award campaigns for both.

It was another dull frame for Indian imports with Hindi Firangi grossing $127,000 and Telugu Jawaan right behind with $116,000. The reissue of Titanic in 3-D was afloat with $424,000 at 87 venues and The Swindlers from China had OK response of $76,500 on 27 screens.

Revenues for the frame hovered around $105 million and sank 46% from last weekend. It was still an 8% improvement from 2016 when the second weekend of Moana led the field with $28.3 million. With four weeks left in the year box office is running 5% behind last year’s pace and industry mavens don’t expect the gap to shrink significantly even with The Last Jedi in the mix.

Coco prevailed at the Thanksgiving movie feast with an estimated $49.3 million for the weekend and a 5-day gross of $71.5 million. The session’s other national newcomer was the legal eagle Roman J. Israel, Esq. with $4.5 million that ranked ninth. All figures reflect 3-day portion of the holiday.

In limited wide, the tale of Dickens writing “A Christmas Carol,” The Man Who Invented Christmas bowed to a modest $1.3 million. Indian imports were again tepid with Telugu Mental Madhilo providing a faint pulse of $127,000 at 79 venues. Conversely there’s nothing like a hockey movie to stir up audiences north of the border and Junior majeur was a winning slapshot in Quebec with $767,000 at 94 rinks.

Exclusive activity included doc Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story grossing $17,100 on a single Manhattan screen. Fest faves with awards buzz provided Gary Oldman-Winston Churchill Darkest Hour with $174,000 at four sites and a very potent $389,000 for the romance Call Me By Your Name also at four locations.

The session also saw significant expansions for both Lady Bird and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri with both maintaining commercial propulsion in the awards season.

Revenues for the frame approached $190 million and ebbed back 6% from last weekend. It was a slight 1% improvement from 2016 when the debut of Moana topped the charts with $56.6 million and the incoming Allied ranked fourth with $12.7 million.

The tale of musical rebellion wrapped up in Mexico’s Dia das Mortes Coco bowed a month and set new box office records in Mexico with a cume that’s surpassed $53 million. Industry pundits were bullish on its domestic prospects with predictions of $70 million to $75 million for its opening five days. The film had a slight 53% female tilt with 56% of viewers aged 25-years and younger and 73% of the audience identifying as families.

Coco also spread its wings in 25 international markets to an estimated $30 million. China led with $18 million and Russia grossed $3 million. The brunt of the initial releases are in secondary markets with few Latin territories in the mix.

Anticipation for Roman J. Israel, Esq. was less buoyant as a counter-programmer than the prior weekend’s Wonder v. Justice League. Its audience was 52% male with 77% aged 25-years and older.

The righteous prevailed as Justice League dominated the marketplace with an estimated $95.6 million debut. Counterprogramming still proved effective with Wonder charting second with a potent $27.1 million and inspirational animated The Star grossing $9.8 million.

Exclusives were led by Roman J. Israel, Esq., which launched at four locations to $64,700 prior to a wide expansion Wednesday. Expansions of Lady Bird and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri sizzled as early favorites in an awards season that’s just starting. Indian imports had bland returns with Tamil Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru opening to $243,000, while Hindi Tumhari Sulu< entered with a $182,000 box office. Also soft was The Ghost Bride> from the Philippines with a $47,600 tally from 39 haunts.

Expectations were high for Justice League while critical response faulted its somber tone at the expense of simple fun. Nonetheless industry trackers predicted a debut of more than $100 million and the film came close to a bullseye on the domestic front. A studio spokesman admitted that both domestic and international results were below internal projections, but that holiday viewing could improve its vitality. Exit demos identified the audience as 58% male with 69% aged 25-years and older.

The costumed crusaders opened in 65 foreign markets to an estimated $185 million. China led with $51 million.Justice was strong in Latin territories, with Brazil leading with $14 million and Mexico posting $9.5 million. Other hefty grossers included the UK with $9.8 million and Australia opening with $6.3 million.

Revenues for the session touched $200 million and improved 35% from last weekend. It was a 28% uptick from 2016 when the debut of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them led with a $74.4 million debut and Doctor Strange took bridesmaid spot with $17.8 million.

Audience response to Wonder was  jaw-dropping. Few expected the uplifting tear-jerker to gross more than $18 million and industry mavens are doing a collective-head scratch to explain. Even factoring in potent word-of-mouth and social media buzz fails to explain its potent debut. Unsurprisingly it tilted 58% female with 66% of the audience aged 25 and older.

The Star also significantly topped high-end estimates of $8 million. The tale of Joseph and Mary’s donkey appeared to be the sort of hokum that draws family audiences, which comprised 61% of viewers. Nonetheless 55% of the audience was aged 25 and older. Females accounted for 62% of the audience.

Thor: Ragnarok rocked and yokked to the top once more with an estimated $57.3 million. A pair of new national releases started out well: Daddy’s Home 2 took with $29.7 million while the remake of Murder on the Orient Express came into the station with $28.3 million.

Exclusive openers were dominated by the potent $321,000 debut of Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri from four outskirts. There were good expansions for Last Flag Flying and My Friend Dahmer, and a still-sizzling response to Lady Bird of $1.2 million from a mere 37 locations.

Indian imports were soft, including the Hindi Quarib Quarib Single, which grossed $138,000 and dual-language C/o Surya with $93,600.

Revenues topped $150 million and took a 17% slide from last weekend. It was a more tempered 5% drop from 2016 when second weekends of Doctor Strange and Trolls were in the forefront with $42.9 million and $34.9 million weekends and newcomer Arrival grossed $24.1 million. Domestic box office passed $9 billion Friday, approximately nine days earlier than last year.

Tracking for Daddy’s Home gave a slight edge with the sequel expected to gross around $30 million. Wth generally lackluster response to 2017 movie comedies, the few bright spots included Girls Trip. The original Daddy’s Home was a box office surprise, so fingers were crossed.

Studio exit polling identified the crowd as 57% female with a significant percentage of viewers identifying as families. Half were aged 35 and older. The film doesn’t open in significant international territories until November 23 but began in Holland and Romania to an estimated $430,000.

Despite four decades since the last Murder on the Orient Express, the big screen revival of Agatha Christie’s Belgian detective Hercule Poirot seemed a questionable commercial prospect. Filmed in 70mm (but with only four American locales projecting in that format) the production exceeded high-end estimates with an older crowd embracing it. The film tilted female with 56% of attendees and overall 76% of viewers were 25 and older. Still, 44% of the audience fell into the demo of 18-to-35 years. Murder made its first stop last weekend in the U.K., with a potent $6.6 million. This weekend added 56 foreign markets and an estimated $46 million including a health $19 million opening in China. Other key markets included Russia with $5.7 million and a $3 million start in Australia.