Box Office Breakdown: That Was It for Paranormal Activity
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Fox Searchlight, Lionsgate, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Biopics, Documentary, Drama, Family, Horror, Music, Period, Remakes, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists,
Based on the numbers from the past week, it looks like This Is It should remain in theaters longer than two weeks. Oh wait - it will.
Since opening late Tuesday night, the concert film has generated a total of $34.4 million domestically - $23.2 million just over the weekend - and approximately $101 worldwide. Although Michael Jackson technically didn’t beat the opener for Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour (that entry earned more over 5 days), This Is It had the best international debut ever for any concert film.
Sony’s win meant a short victory for Paranormal Activity. After a steady climb, and only 1 week at the top, the horror film slipped down to second place. Of course, the word-of-mouth hit has nothing to complain about. Not only has the movie grossed $84.6 million to date, it also had the best per screen average of any Top 10 charter.
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Read More 
| Variety
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Footloose Looking for New Director
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Paramount, Musicals, Remakes, Rumors, Upcoming Releases,
The Footloose remake has temporarily been grounded.
Although Paramount’s had already lined up a new Ren McCormick (Chace Crawford) and Ariel Moore (Julianne Hough) for its planned update, the studio is now without a director.
Up until last week, Kenny Ortega (High School Musical, This Is It) was the man helming the project. Unfortunately, creative and budget differences lead to his exit. According to reports, Ortega wanted $30 million for a musical extravaganza while Paramount was looking at $25 million for something a bit edgier.
A statement from Ortega’s reps, though, claims his recent project was to blame for his departure. “Coming off the extraordinary project, Michael Jackson’s This is It, director Kenny Ortega has decided it is premature for him to commit to his next film and will not be moving forward with Footloose as previously reported.”
It’s believed Paramount will still try to keep to its March production start date.
Read More | Variety
Paranormal Activity May Get Sequel
Posted by Robin Paulson Categories: Paramount, Horror, Independent, Mystery, Thrillers, Box Office, Filmmaking, New Releases, Rumors,
Its first week in national release, Paranormal Activity raked in an astounding $22 million, coming to a total of $64 million. For a movie that was made for $15,000 and did those numbers at the box office, you know that those higher-ups will want more out of such a successful franchise.
“We have the rights on a worldwide basis to do ‘Paranormal 2,’ and we’re looking to see if that makes some sense,” Paramount chairman Brad Grey said.
Many fans fear (myself included) that we’ll get another Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 on our hands if a sequel does get made.
Director Orsen Peli seems to be a bit more cautious about the idea: “Even if we had some ideas for sequels, we wouldn’t be talking about them in advance.” When asked if a prequel was a possibility, he slyly replied, “Maybe.”
Check out a short video after the jump of Peli talking about the overwhelming success of the film.
Click to continue reading Paranormal Activity May Get Sequel
Read More | MTV
Box Office Breakdown: Saw Outdone by Paranormal Activity
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: DreamWorks, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Horror, Remakes, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists,
Have audiences seen enough Saw?
Although Jigsaw is known for slaying his competition, the serial killer was no match for Katie Featherstone and Micah Sloat. This weekend, those two unknowns saw their small project, Paranormal Activity, finally top the box office charts. The movie, which was produced for approximately $15,000, reached that position after a steady climb up the ranks. (Aren’t films supposed to go down?) The horror flick also had a higher per screen average than any entry in the Top 10 despite fewer engagements.
Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Saw Outdone by Paranormal Activity
Read More | Variety
Box Office Breakdown: The Wild Things Are #1
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Disney, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Horror, Science Fiction, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, Technology,
Who knew a 10-sentence long story could do so well?
It may have taken over three years for Where the Wild Things Are to officially debut, but the long journey was apparently worth the wait. The Spike Jonze project, which was once rumored to be too scary for children, finally unfolded over the weekend and soared to first place. The Maurice Sendak adaptation, which earned approximately $32.7 million, also gave Warner Bros. its best October open ever.
Even though Gerard Butler didn’t bother to promote Law Abiding Citizen during his recent Saturday Night Live stint, the film managed to survive on its own. The actioner, which also starred Jamie Foxx, raked in just over $21 million and won a close race for 2nd place. Meanwhile, word-of-mouth hit Paranormal Activity grossed another $19.6 million and moved up one rung to the third spot.
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Read More | Variety
Box Office Breakdown: Audiences Escape to Couples Retreat
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Disney, Fox Searchlight, MGM, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Animation, Documentary, Family, Independent, Music, Political, Remakes, Romance, Science Fiction, Comedy, Sports, Box Office, Lists,
Depending on how you look at the numbers, the winner this weekend was either Couples Retreat or Paranormal Activity.
In the comedy corner, we have a Peter Billingsley-directed film that earned $35.3 million and a first-place finish. The movie - which combined the efforts of Vince Vaughn, Jon Favreau and Jason Bateman - pulled in the best numbers for any Columbus Day weekend entry ever. It also gave Vaughn his 2nd best opening behind The Break-Up.
Meanwhile, on the horror front, Paranormal Activity made a huge splash despite being in limited release. The Blair Witch-esque movie scared up a shocking $49,000 per screen average. It also raked in nearly 500 times more than its budget. (It only cost less than $16,000 to produce.)
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Read More | Variety
Shutter Island Release Date Pushed to February
Posted by Robin Paulson Categories: Paramount, Adaptation, Drama, Mystery, Thrillers, Distribution, Rumors, Upcoming Releases,
Despite releasing the trailer last June for Martin Scorsese’s upcoming thriller Shutter Island, studio execs at Paramount have decided to push its October 2 date back to February 2010.
Garnering quite a bit of Oscar buzz isn’t enough, apparently—the decision was made due to a lack of money for the film’s promotion. A source also reveals that the move might also have been caused due to Leonardo DiCaprio‘s inability to promote the film overseas.
Paramount Chief Brad Grey is happy to have the film kicking off their 2010 slate:
“Leonardo DiCaprio is among the most talented actors working today and Martin Scorsese is not just one of the world’s most significant filmmakers, but also a personal friend. Following a highly successful 2009, we have every confidence that Shutter Island is a great anchor to lead off our 2010 slate and the shift in date is the best decision for the film, the studio and ultimately Viacom.”
Let’s hope the wait is worth it come February!
Read More | Deadline Hollywood Daily
Studio Won’t Preview G.I. Joe for Critics
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Paramount, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, New Releases,
When it comes to summer blockbusters, most people already have in mind what they plan on seeing…long before the movie even comes out. So when it comes to critical reviews, does anyone even care?
Despite mixed reviews for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, the sequel went on to make a killing in its first weekend. But Paramount isn’t willing to take that risk again.
Click to continue reading Studio Won’t Preview G.I. Joe for Critics
Read More | MSNBC
Box Office Breakdown: Transformers Rises Above the Competition
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, FOCUS, Disney, Paramount, Sony, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Period, Remakes, Romance, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists,
It’s not very often when “loud” and “mindless” are deemed good qualities. But in Paramount’s case, it was a recipe for success.
Over the past five days, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen did what most films have been attempting all year: It passed the $200 million mark. (Up just became the first 2009 film to hit $250 million.)
While the Michael Bay film is definitely on track to be one of the most successful entries this year (let’s not forget about Harry Potter), the sequel’s opening still takes second behind last year’s topper. During its opening run, The Dark Knight earned $203.8 million domestically.
Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Transformers Rises Above the Competition
Read More | Variety
Box Office Breakdown: Audiences Agree on The Proposal
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, Disney, Paramount, Sony, Touchstone, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Remakes, Romance, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists,
It seems a little skin might just go a long way.
After weeks of talking to the media about their joint nude scene, Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds saw their movie take the top spot. Was it a coincidence? Maybe. Whatever the reason, The Proposal became the actress’ biggest opener ever. Prior to this weekend, 2007’s Premonition - a horrible film, btw - had Bullock’s largest debut. (That movie grossed $17.6 million, almost 1/2 less than the romantic comedy.)
Meanwhile, Reynolds is this week’s Bradley Cooper. Sandra’s leading man, like The Hangover star, has just had his second #1 film of the year. (The first being Wolverine.)
Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Audiences Agree on The Proposal
Read More | Variety
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