728_90_wallflower


Grosses

'Man of Steel' Sets New June Opening Weekend Record with $116.6 MillionJune 17, 2013 11:45 AM

by Daniel Garris

Warner's Man of Steel took in a strong $116.62 million this weekend. That figure doesn't include the $12.06 million the film grossed from Thursday night 7 p.m. shows from the corporate group sale screening program with Walmart, as Warner Bros. is officially reporting those grosses separate from the film's opening weekend performance. When including those grosses, Man of Steel was off to a $128.68 million start. With or without the $12.06 million, Man of Steel established a new unadjusted opening weekend record for the month of June, as it topped the $110.31 million opening weekend take of previous record holder Toy Story 3.

The opening weekend take of Man of Steel was the second largest of 2013 thus far (behind only the $174.14 million start of Iron Man 3). Of great importance for Warner Bros. is that the start of Man of Steel represents a vast improvement over the start of 2006's Superman Returns, which had a far more modest opening weekend take of $52.54 million and a five-day start of $84.59 million (that film opened on a Wednesday).

Without the $12.06 million from corporate screenings, Man of Steel grossed $44.01 million on Friday. The film fell a very reasonable 17.5 percent on Saturday to gross $36.32 million (which was up an impressive 4 percent from Friday when factoring out midnight grosses). With aid from the Father's Day holiday, Man of Steel then exceeded expectations on Sunday with a $36.29 million take, which was essentially unchanged from Saturday's performance. The opening weekend to Friday ratio for Man of Steel was 2.65 to 1.

In addition to a strong marketing campaign, there is no doubt that the involvement of Christopher Nolan with the film as a writer and producer helped build up excitement for Man of Steel. The film was also helped out by grosses from IMAX and 3D engagements; IMAX grosses were an estimated $13.3 million this weekend, while 41 percent of the film's overall grosses came from 3D shows. Man of Steel received an A- rating on CinemaScore, which is an encouraging early sign as the film goes forward in its run.

Sony's This Is The End claimed second place this weekend with $20.72 million. The ensemble R-rated comedy has now grossed $33.03 million in its first five days of release. This Is The End opened in line with the lower end of expectations and was off to a very solid start when taking into account its modest price tag for a high profile summer release. In comparison, 2008's Pineapple Express grossed $23.25 million during its opening weekend and $41.32 million in its first five days of release.

While This Is The End is currently running 20 percent behind the five-day start of Pineapple Express, it is displaying stronger holding power in its initial days of release, as its five-day to opening weekend ratio of 1.59 to 1 came in notably below the 1.78 to 1 ratio of This Is The End. That is an encouraging sign for the film going forward, as is the film's B+ rating on CinemaScore. With that said, generating truly exceptional holding power may be easier said than done given the amount of high profile releases that will continue to enter the marketplace over the next few weeks now that the summer season is into full gear.

This Is The End grossed $6.95 million on Friday, increased 9 percent on Saturday to gross $7.58 million and fell 18 percent on Sunday to take in $6.19 million. The audience breakdown for the film skewed towards male moviegoers (60 percent) and slightly towards moviegoers over 25 (52 percent).

With Man of Steel dominating the marketplace this weekend, it came as no surprise that holdovers in general took significant hits (and that is with Father's Day boosting grosses in general on Sunday). The weekend's most impressive holdover among wide releases, both in ranking and percentage hold was Lionsgate's Now You See Me. The crowd pleasing ensemble thriller placed in third with $11.02 million. That was down 42 percent from last weekend and brings the 17-day total for Now You See Me to $80.71 million. The surprise hit of early summer is now $19.29 million away from reaching the $100 million domestic milestone.

Not holding up anywhere near as well this weekend was Universal's The Purge. After an exceptionally strong first place debut last weekend, the ultra-low budget sci-fi thriller was down four spots and a massive 76 percent this weekend to place in fifth with $8.32 million. That placed The Purge behind fellow Universal release Fast & Furious 6 in this weekend's rankings. Fast & Furious 6 fell 51 percent to gross $9.58 million. To date, Fast & Furious 6 has grossed $219.72 million in 24 days. Despite displaying very poor holding power so far, The Purge has still grossed a strong $51.96 million in ten days thanks largely to its opening weekend performance.

Fox's The Internship didn't hold up very well this weekend either. On the heels of last weekend's so-so start, the PG-13 rated comedy starring Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn fell 59 percent and two spots this weekend to claim sixth with $7.15 million. In addition to having to deal with the rush out of moviegoers to Man of Steel, there is no doubt that The Internship has taken a direct hit from This Is The End since Wednesday. The ten-day start for The Internship stands at an underwhelming $31.09 million.

On the limited front, films had a tough time expanding in the shadow of Man of Steel. Sony Pictures Classics' Before Midnight took in $1.38 million this weekend from 897 locations. While that was up 163 percent over last weekend, the Richard Linklater directed film only managed a per-location average of $1,541 this weekend. Meanwhile, Roadside's Much Ado About Nothing grossed $161,625 from 23 locations. That gave the Joss Whedon directed film a per-location average of $7,027 for the frame, but was down 6 percent from last weekend's start in 5 locations.

A24's The Bling Ring fared significantly better this weekend with a debut of $212,537 from 5 locations in New York and Los Angeles. The Sofia Coppola directed film earned an impressive per-location average of $42,507. The Bling Ring will receive a major expansion on Friday.

Also off to a noteworthy platform start in New York and Los Angeles was RADiUS-TWC's 20 Feet from Stardom. The music documentary grossed $54,596 from 3 locations, giving it a healthy per-location average of $18,199.

Weekend Actuals (Domestic) Fri, Jun. 15 - Sun, Jun. 17

Wide (1000+)

#TitleweekendLocationsAvg.TotalWks.Dist.
1Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted$34,055,474-44%4,2635$7,989$119,006,0062Paramount / DreamWorks
2Prometheus$20,712,174-59%3,44246$6,017$89,370,3012Fox
3Rock of Ages$14,437,269--3,470--$4,161$14,437,2691Warner Bros. / New Line
4That's My Boy$13,453,714--3,030--$4,440$13,453,7141Sony / Columbia
5Snow White and the Huntsman$13,265,635-42%3,701-76$3,584$122,062,6703Universal
6Men in Black 3$10,047,575-28%3,135-657$3,205$152,726,5584Sony / Columbia
7Marvel's The Avengers$8,905,467-21%2,582-547$3,449$586,794,3717Disney
8The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel$2,283,218-30%1,184-114$1,928$35,216,7137Fox Searchlight
9What to Expect When You're Expecting$1,203,381-57%1,216-871$990$38,639,3825Lionsgate
10The Dictator$1,109,454-51%1,119-532$991$57,677,7175Paramount

Limited (100 — 999)

#TitleweekendLocationsAvg.TotalWks.Dist.
1Moonrise Kingdom$2,237,72643%17882$12,571$6,839,4624Focus
2Battleship$1,248,150-45%942-1012$1,325$62,151,8205Universal
3The Hunger Games$852,832-20%593-158$1,438$401,766,45213Lionsgate
4Dark Shadows$623,388-56%680-870$917$75,156,0166Warner Bros.
5Bernie$618,746-25%300-32$2,062$5,870,6168Millennium Entertainment
6For Greater Glory$545,121-41%380-262$1,435$4,542,5583ARC Entertainment
7Hysteria$284,37792%218134$1,304$1,059,4885Sony Pictures Classics
8Dr. Seuss' The Lorax$260,380-23%277-13$940$212,490,25016Universal
9Mirror Mirror$235,632-31%278-25$848$63,915,26412Relativity Media
10The Lucky One (2012)$213,346-40%350-52$610$59,890,5749Warner Bros.
11The Three Stooges$204,303-20%201-44$1,016$43,442,67710Fox
12Think Like a Man$201,818-40%208-79$970$90,677,9649Sony / Screen Gems
1321 Jump Street$191,780-24%220-38$872$137,982,55014Sony / Columbia
14Chernobyl Diaries$177,498-79%255-925$696$17,637,7064Warner Bros.
15The Cabin in the Woods$173,134177%224111$773$41,507,32710Lionsgate
16Something From Nothing: The Art of Rap$150,337--157--$958$150,3371Indomina Media
17The Five-Year Engagement$92,440-24%168-7$550$28,644,7708Universal
18The Pirates! Band of Misfits$91,998-34%149-168$617$29,140,9538Sony / Columbia
19Wrath of the Titans$77,466-26%105-45$738$83,550,28412Warner Bros.
20Journey 2: The Mysterious Island$75,213-20%108-18$696$103,692,73519Warner Bros. / New Line

Platform (1 — 99)

#TitleweekendLocationsAvg.TotalWks.Dist.
1The Intouchables$357,028-7%770$4,637$1,552,6454Weinstein Company
2Safety Not Guaranteed$296,494203%4738$6,308$439,9992FilmDistrict
3Ferrari Ki Sawaari$240,792--99--$2,432$240,7921Eros International
4To the Arctic 3D$194,06813%510$3,805$3,611,2779Warner Bros. / IMAX
5Peace, Love & Misunderstanding$133,81626%7645$1,761$284,2832IFC Films
6Your Sister's Sister$109,221--13--$8,402$109,2211IFC Films
7Lola Versus$61,77994%5248$1,188$107,9912Fox Searchlight
8Crooked Arrows$56,754-74%97-181$585$1,731,0145Branded/Peck Films
9Born to Be Wild 3D$56,21214%330$1,703$19,480,18363Warner Bros. / IMAX
10John Carter$56,079-38%79-23$710$72,996,04315Disney
11Hubble 3D$49,09536%171$2,888$33,109,130118Warner Bros. / IMAX
12Headhunters$45,524-34%40-20$1,138$937,1238Magnolia Pictures
13Chimpanzee$43,819-33%96-59$456$28,431,5959Disneynature
14Rowdy Rathore$36,980-74%32-68$1,156$744,1643UTV Communications
15Safe (2012)$35,501-35%76-35$467$17,120,0198Lionsgate
16Monsieur Lazhar$33,604-34%35-13$960$1,747,06434Music Box Films
17The Woman in the Fifth$33,011--9--$3,668$33,0111IDP/ATO Pictures
18Piranha 3DD$31,116-16%11-67$2,829$370,9043Weinstein Company
19First Position$26,667-45%36-16$741$848,3717IFC Films
20Sea Rex: Journey To A Prehistoric World$22,69919%100$2,270$5,667,3551103D Entertainment
21Deadly Renovations$22,386-47%130$1,722$92,6382Nocturnal Features
22Marley$22,366-14%19-8$1,177$1,333,6289Magnolia Pictures
23Darling Companion$20,090-55%20-31$1,005$733,8649Sony Pictures Classics
24Where Do We Go Now?$19,432-51%14-17$1,388$369,8946Sony Pictures Classics
25Girl in Progress$19,374-36%41-16$473$2,594,8786Lionsgate / Pantelion
26Jiro Dreams of Sushi$18,788-28%19-6$989$2,426,08415Magnolia Pictures
27Under the Sea 3D$17,41031%12-4$1,451$31,672,130175Warner Bros. / IMAX
28Bel Ami$16,619-56%12-4$1,385$72,8532Magnolia Pictures
29Damsels in Distress$15,85917%224$721$890,14911Sony Pictures Classics
30Footnote$15,366-31%21-4$732$1,971,11115Sony Pictures Classics
31Gerhard Richter Painting$13,6892969%65$2,282$203,52314Kino Lorber
32A Cat In Paris$13,097--8--$1,637$89,8213GKIDS
33The Raven$12,050-15%29-5$416$15,839,9928Relativity Media
34Marina Abramovic: The Artist is Present$11,041--2--$5,521$16,2871Music Box Films
35Dark Horse$10,209-25%21$5,105$30,5132Vitagraph
36The Girl From the Naked Eye$10,185--20--$509$10,1851Archstone Distribution
37Elena$9,884-31%7-6$1,412$87,5935Zeitgeist
38Grand Illusion: 75th Anniversary Restoration$9,39136%42$2,348$113,0186Rialto Pictures
39Polisse$8,253-33%91$917$171,3205IFC Films
40The Artist$6,969-51%21-15$332$44,667,09530Weinstein Company
41Sound of My Voice$6,819-20%13-11$525$398,7298Fox Searchlight
42I Wish$5,633-44%9-1$626$73,9986Magnolia Pictures
43The Deep Blue Sea (2011)$5,222-21%81$653$1,087,17713Music Box Films
44OC87$4,991-36%61$832$28,7504Fisher Klingenstein Films
45Turn Me On, Dammit!$3,766144%54$753$87,97612New Yorker Films
46The Raid: Redemption$3,7253%80$466$4,101,36113Sony Pictures Classics
47The Perfect Family$2,9515%40$738$107,7217Variance Films
48Bonsai$2,869--2--$1,435$13,3976Strand Releasing
49Paul Williams Still Alive$2,855-53%21$1,428$10,4492Abramorama
50Bully (2012)$2,824-83%14-17$202$3,483,79512Weinstein Company
51The Highest Pass$2,733--1--$2,733$20,3868Cinema Libre
52The Graduate: 45th Anniversary Reunion$2,577--1--$2,577$29,79810Rialto
53Chely Wright: Wish Me Away$2,484279%30$828$10,6463First Run Features
546 Month Rule$2,435-52%1-2$2,435$11,1583Secret Identity Productions
55Payback (2012)$2,3451038%10$2,345$15,6548Zeitgeist
565 Broken Cameras$2,336-70%10$2,336$30,3483Kino Lorber
57God Bless America$2,255-54%7-2$322$107,6616Magnolia / Magnet
58Oslo, August 31st$2,188-61%2-3$1,094$49,2594Strand Releasing
59A Separation$1,968-39%3-1$656$7,098,49225Sony Pictures Classics
60Hide Away$1,92096%20$960$22,5794Joule Films
61Whores' Glory$1,882--1--$1,882$22,2088Kino Lorber
62Beyond the Black Rainbow$1,383-61%2-3$692$28,1275Magnolia / Magnet
63FOLLOW ME: The Yoni Netanyahu Story$1,264-69%3-3$421$86,9797International Film Circuit
64The Fairy$1,085-45%1-1$1,085$34,14917Kino Lorber
65Elles$1,054-72%2-4$527$138,3908Kino Lorber
66The Turin Horse$96118%1-1$961$50,22319Cinema Guild
67Steve Jobs: The Lost Interview$924-44%6-2$154$102,6286Magnolia Pictures
68Henning Mankell’s Wallander: The Revenge$774-59%1-1$774$10,3594Music Box Films
69The Women on the 6th Floor$666-45%1-1$666$718,90937Strand Releasing
70Nobody Else But You$620-86%20$310$14,9396First Run Features
71The Salt of Life$532-30%10$532$309,81616Zeitgeist
72How To Grow A Band$346-42%20$173$11,48610International Film Circuit
73Patagonia Rising$282-71%10$282$1,6742First Run Features
74Keyhole$262524%10$262$22,09911Monterey Media
75The Beat Hotel$141--1--$141$5,57112First Run Features