Weekend Box Office: The women of 'Sex' and 'The Zohan' shown the ways of 'Kung Fu' [Archive]

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The Clown Prince

06-08-2008, 03:28 PM

Dreamworks new animated movie Kung Fu Panda was expected to take first place this weekend and it did taking in $60 million in it's debut weekend. It's doing pretty good with critics too with an 84% rating at Rotten Tomatoes (http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/kung_fu_panda/).

The new Adam Sandler movie You Don't Mess with the Zohan debuted in second place with $40 million. Sharing screen writing credits for this were Judd Apatow, Adam Sandler, and Robert Smigel. 'Zohan' also earned some of the worst reviews of the year so far with a 37% at Rotten Tomatoes (http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10008759-you_don't_mess_with_the_zohan/).

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull dropped one spot to third with $22.8 million and a $253 million total.

Last weeks number one movie Sex and the City came in fourth place and dropped 62.6% with $21.3 million and a $99.2 million total.

And rounding out the top 5 is The Strangers which dropped 55.8% and taking in $9.2 million and a $37.6 million total.

Mongol which opened in limited release in 5 theaters took in $133,000 and placed 17th.

Out of the top 12 this weekend is Speed Racer (13th) which only took in $370,000 in it's 5th week and leaves with a total of $42 million.

Opening next weekend are two new movies. First up is Marvel's do over movie, The Incredible Hulk (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=15533) (rated PG-13) starring Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth, Tim Blake Nelson, Ty Burrell, and William Hurt.

And the other new movie of the weekend is The Happening (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=19636) (rated R). Written and directed by one M. Night Shyamalan it stars Mark Wahlberg, Zooey Deschanel, John Leguizamo, Betty Buckley, Spencer Breslin, and Ashlyn Sanchez.

Here are your numbers...

1) Kung Fu Panda- $60,000,000 ($60,000,000) NEW!
2) You Don't Mess with the Zohan- $40,000,000 ($40,000,000) NEW!
3) Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull- $22,805,000 ($253,026,000)
4) Sex and the City- $21,310,000 ($99,269,000)
5) The Strangers- $9,289,000 ($37,646,000)
6) Iron Man- $7,522,000 ($288,893,000)
7) The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian- $5,527,000 ($125,846,000)
8) What Happens in Vegas- $3,400,000 ($72,230,000)
9) Baby Mama- $779,000 ($57,904,000)
10) Made of Honor- $775,000 ($44,660,000)
11) The Visitor- $503,000 ($6,028,000)
12) Forgetting Sarah Marshall- $475,000 ($61,545,000)
17) Mongol- $133,000 ($133,000) NEW!

Classic Speedy

06-08-2008, 03:38 PM

I'm not sure what people are seeing in Zohan. I thought the commercials looked stupid. But then, I'm not a big Adam Sandler fan.

Way to hold in there, Indy. $250 million+ (plus $266 million in overseas sales) means that the film is now the 57th highest grossing film of all time, according to worldwideboxoffice.com , and I'm sure it will only climb higher.

Darklordavaitor

06-08-2008, 03:51 PM

I'm not sure what people are seeing in Zohan. I thought the commercials looked stupid. But then, I'm not a big Adam Sandler fan.

Judd Apatow, that's what. His brand of humor would be the only reason I'd see the movie.

Well, I'm 95% sure that Hulk will take it next week, with the rest of the top 5 remaining the same as this week's knocked down by one.

HG Revolution

06-08-2008, 04:14 PM

So Speed Racer leaves the top 12 the week that I happen to see it.

Just to say, I thought it was really, really good. Almost great, but not quite. If they cut out one of the races and some of the talky faux-emotional bits, it'd be a masterpiece. Liked it better than Crystal Skull (which I also liked, but lacked the amazement which Speed gave me).

Movie06

06-08-2008, 04:18 PM

Theory: No. 1 will be The Hulk and No. 2 will be The Happening.

HG Revolution

06-08-2008, 04:22 PM

Tay the Cat

06-08-2008, 04:25 PM

I'm not sure what people are seeing in Zohan. I thought the commercials looked stupid. But then, I'm not a big Adam Sandler fan.

I know for a fact that some are only seeing it because Dave Matthews is in it.

No, I'm not kidding.

Draft

06-08-2008, 04:36 PM

Heh, I thought It would've been a lot closer, but I guess not

The Zohan opening was average for Adam Sandler, and Really high for Dreamworks Animation (The largest non-sequal Opening Weekend). So I guess we'll be seeing Kung Fu Panda 2 sometime in 2011/12..

Indy passing SatC wasn't that much of a suprise, but it looks like SatC might pass 150 (Prolly not though). Indy is still freefalling (compared to Iron Man), and probably won't pass Iron Man at this point

However, the worst performing movie this week was Speed Racer, plumnting 82.5% (That's expected though, as 1,000+ theateres dumped it on it's ass)

Anyway, The Hulk should come in with about the same gross as the previous Hulk. The Happening should come in at around 20 million, and probably will be in a close 2nd with Kung Fu Panda

Temple Fugate

06-08-2008, 04:53 PM

I know for a fact that some are only seeing it because Dave Matthews is in it.Well, that was the only reason Winn Dixie made any money at all. :p

I didn't even know he was in Zohan. I guess my younger brother is gonna go see it twice now; One time as a Sandler fan and one time as a Dave fan.

Just to say, I thought it was really, really good. Almost great, but not quite. If they cut out one of the races and some of the talky faux-emotional bits, it'd be a masterpiece.Cut one of the races?! Blasphemy.

I wanted to go see Speed again this weekend, but I went with a friend to see Iron Man because he hadn't seen it yet. I definitely need to make it up to Speed since I want to support the movie.

Tay the Cat

06-08-2008, 04:59 PM

I didn't even know he was in Zohan.

His part isn't big or anything, but he does have a few lines, from what I was told.

kewlmyc

06-08-2008, 05:15 PM

M. Night Shyamalan is more or less dead to the general public now. It'll have a strong Friday, but it'll need very good reviews if it'll have any chance of legs. I wouldn't be shocked if it comes in 4th.
He might catch a break in 2010 with the Avatar: The Last Airbender movies.

Anyway, I didn't want to see Kung Fu Panda, but the good reviews and comparisons to the Incredibles might make me change my mind.

Next week:
1. Incredible Hulk
2. Kung Fu Panda
3. The Happening
4. Don't Mess with the Zohan
5. Indiana Jones

HG Revolution

06-08-2008, 05:20 PM

He might catch a break in 2010 with the Avatar: The Last Airbender movies. Yeah, but people aren't going to go there to see the next MNS movie. They'll be going there to the see the Avatar movie.

DarthGonzo

06-08-2008, 05:22 PM

I'm not sure what people are seeing in Zohan.

Pot smokers whose entire DVD collection consists of brain-dead comedies with white DVD covers and red lettering?

These movies are only good until you sober up. That's why they usually aren't very long. :D

And I don't think these Avatar movies are going to bring in the crowds that everyone thinks they will. They'll bring in the kids, and whatever die-hard adult fans there are of the franchise. But I don't think that will be enough to make it a hit. Isn't the series ending this year? Is anyone still going to care enough in 2010 to make the first movie big enough to warrant two sequels. I mean, Speed Racer had eye candy, fast cars and nostalgia on it's side and it still bombed.

Draft

06-08-2008, 06:06 PM

Meh, the only reason I want to see Zohan is because Adam Sandler is in it. And I think that's the main reason for some of his more recent movies. I have no clue what the movie is about based on the trailers, and i'm prolly not alone in that boat, but the hordes came out because it was Adam freaken Sandler starring (And for my intrest, Judd Apatow + Robert Smigel writing)

Pomegranate

06-08-2008, 08:48 PM

After its opening weekend, KFP is definitely gonna be burnt out by the extremely heavy competition it has to face from IJ4, Iron Man, Prince Caspian, Zohan, The Incredible Hulk and Wall-E, thus it'll be yet another animated non-Pixar/Shrek flick that never managed to cross $200 mil. domestically and that's saddening as it looked like an excellent animated feature film to me:shrug: !

Draft

06-08-2008, 09:04 PM

After its opening weekend, KFP is definitely gonna be burnt out by the extremely heavy competition it has to face from IJ4, Iron Man, Zohan, The Incredible Hulk and Wall-E, thus it'll be yet another animated non-Pixar/Shrek flick that never managed to cross $200 mil. domestically and that's saddening as it looked like an excellent animated feature film to me:shrug: !
Wait, i'm kinda lost. How will it face competition from movies that came out 4 weeks before it did (Well, signifigantly). The key ones you have to look at are Hulk(Next big blockbuster), Wall*E(It's next real signifigant competition), and to a lesser extent Love Guru (what kid doesn't love Myers?) and Get Smart(Meh, Get Smart seems to be marketed towards kids despite being 13). If it follows a similar path to Madagascar and Shrek 2/3, it should be fine (Animated movies tend to hold over well too anyway).

DarthGonzo

06-08-2008, 09:16 PM

Iron Mad and Indy are well past the point where they're going to threaten another film's box office. And I don't think Zohan is much of a threat either. Hulk will be number 1 next weekend of course. No doubt about that.

Pomegranate

06-08-2008, 09:45 PM

Wait, i'm kinda lost. How will it face competition from movies that came out 4 weeks before it did (Well, signifigantly). The key ones you have to look at are Hulk(Next big blockbuster), Wall*E(It's next real signifigant competition), and to a lesser extent Love Guru (what kid doesn't love Myers?) and Get Smart(Meh, Get Smart seems to be marketed towards kids despite being 13). If it follows a similar path to Madagascar and Shrek 2/3, it should be fine (Animated movies tend to hold over well too anyway).

IJ4 and Iron Man are both still playing in a considerable amount of theatres and kids also like to grow up a bit too fast, thus why Hannah Montana, live-action Alvin & The Chipmunks and their ilk are so popular with all demos these days, and it doesn't help if our fellow Americans think of animation as a children's entertainment medium.

When Americans have rising gas and food prices to worry about, they probably wouldn't be so rash as to spend their own life's earnings on tickets for animated flicks! The only types of animated flicks the American moviegoing public would heavily gamble away their hard-earned cash on in this very day and age would be Shrek sequels and those slapped with the Pixar brandname as well! I think this is probably the reason why the Simpsons movie have failed to cross $200 mil. domestically, despite having a $70mil.+ opening weekend and being based upon a very popular animated TV series with over 400 eps., and it's also the reason why I think the upcoming Star Wars flick will probably megaton bomb, despite being based upon a very popular media franchise with legions of fans and that also has a very significant impact upon modern global pop culture.

HG Revolution

06-08-2008, 09:48 PM

Pomegranate

06-08-2008, 10:19 PM

That doesn't make sense. Alvin and Hanna Montana's success if anything would be proof of kids being extra immature these days.

Those kids you're talking about would vehemently disagree with you:sweat: ! Unfortunately, most people, esp. the American public, would usually prefer live-action fare over any type of animation, because they tend to think of live-action as "more mature and realistic", even if it's something as stupid and cheesy as those MTV reality shows!

tucsoncoyote

06-08-2008, 10:26 PM

Wow, Kung Fu Panda made 60 million, and it's not even a Shrek franchise movie..(Though it is Dreamworks, the real question isn't going to be if the Movie is viewable, but rather, does anyone want to go plunk down anywhere from 5 (for matinees) to 12 bucks (for Prime evening shows) of an animated Flick?

Add to that the comments of where high food and gas prices are actually cutting into the ability to see movies on the big screen this summer, and I have this odd feeling that besides, Iron Man, Indy 4, Kung Fu Panda, Wall*E , The Incredible Hulk, and a few others, the entire Box office take this year will be actually less than in previous years. and the reasons are quite valid.

I mean think about it. We're right now in the middle of a recession. Gas Prices are at if not over 4 bucks a gallon, and I wouldn't be surprised that before the end of the year, ticket prices for the movies take a bit of a leap themselves from 5 or 6 dollars for matinees to something along the lines of 8 or even 9 bucks for a matinee.. And Prime showing times will take even a bigger bite, and I wouldn't be surprised if Movies in the evening will cost the average film goer a good 15 bucks, and that's without the soft drinks and the Popcorn. In short get ready to pay anywhere from 20 to 45 or even 50 bucks to take in a movie.

But I digress..

Frankly if folks think that Kung Fu Panda is going to be the best Animated film this summer, then they've not yet seen Wall*E which is coming out in just under 3 weeks. And the way that it's being promoted, Disney and Pixar is taking a conservative, yet cautious approach to promoting this film.

Meanwhile this next week, I'm going to agree with the consensus and say that The Incredible Hulk (Hulk: Hulk loves reboot*), will do a lot better than the last outing it had. Meanwhile if the steady movie goer comes back it might be to take in one of the earlier season hits (Indy, Iron Man, or even Sex in the City), before moving on to the later movies.

But as for Kung Fu panda? Well Po I will say is a bit of a fluke when it comes to animation.. He's the cute cuddly Panda that is supposed to be cute. Yet here we're going to see him get Mauled next week when Hulk comes out.. The only way Po will get any money will be if the parents drop the kids off to watch him, while they go down the hall in the Cineaplex and watch Hulk Smash things.

In short, I figure Po and his "Panda Attack" will go the way of Speed Racer... off the boards in 2 weeks and be obscure by the time the end of July Rolls around.

Yep.. Pandas can attack, but for Po the Panda? The Hulk will smash his movie like a rampaging rhino, and leave hulk tracks all over Po's backside..

So next week, we got the Panda Vs the Hulk.. I'll put 15 down on the "Green Guy.." Nuff Said.

:coyote:

Michael24

06-08-2008, 10:27 PM

Glad to see Indy's still hanging in there pretty high. I saw it again this morning, and was shocked at the turn out. It was almost a packed house and looked more like an 8PM Saturday showing than an 11AM Sunday morning showing. Those ones are usually pretty empty around here because a lot of people are at church.

DarthGonzo

06-08-2008, 10:29 PM

Frankly if folks think that Kung Fu Panda is going to be the best Animated film this summer, then they've not yet seen Wall*E which is coming out in just under 3 weeks.

How can you say that? Have you actually seen WALL-E? I personally think it will be fantastic, but how can you make a statement like that without actually seeing the movie?

Pomegranate

06-08-2008, 10:47 PM

How can you say that? Have you actually seen WALL-E? I personally think it will be fantastic, but how can you make a statement like that without actually seeing the movie?

Well, what do you expect? People are more likely to make assumptions like that, because the Pixar brandname can strengthen any animated flick's box office performance, regardless of the movie's actual quality:sweat: .

tucsoncoyote

06-08-2008, 11:38 PM

How can you say that? Have you actually seen WALL-E? I personally think it will be fantastic, but how can you make a statement like that without actually seeing the movie?

It's what is called "Track Record", Darth. I mean take a look at Dreamworks. How many of their animated CGI Movies have they made that have been really successful? Well if you count maybe the Shrek Franchise and possibly Madagasscar (which some would argue was a Marginal success), they have only had two.. Compare that to the Disney/Pixar Track record of seven franchises.. and of those only 1 has been a real franchise (Toy Story 1 and 2). But when you look at the list of Disney/Pixar Flicks, how many of these have been bombs?

Let's take a look at the list of Pixar/Disney films shall we (and the figures I'm going to quote come from boxofficemojo.com and are total world wide grosses followed by Domestic grosses).

Toy Story: $361,958,736 / $191,796,233
Monsters Inc.: $525,366,597 / $255,873,250
A Bug's Life: $363,398,565 / $162,798,565
Toy Story 2: $485,015,179 / $ 245,842,179
Finding Nemo: $864,625,978 / $339,714,978
The Incredibles: $631,442,092 / $261,441,092
Cars: $461,982,881 / $244,082,982
Ratatouille: $621,416,583 / $206,445,654

Now then if you put all these totals together you get this rather large Worldwide/Domestic Numbers.

All Pixar and Disney Movies to date: $4,315,206,611 (Worldwide) / $1,907,994,933 (Domestically)

Now these are 7 different franchises by Pixar and Disney, and yet how many Dreamworks franchises can claim this much cash? And this isn't including the DVD sales.

So then, let's see an arguement against this. Numbers don't lie... so if Wall*E is anything this will be the real take of the Movie season. How much will it gross? Unknown at this point, but still take a look at those numbers, and ask yourself. How much could Wall*E be worth?

I'll leave that up to the folks here.

:coyote:

CaptainHero

06-09-2008, 01:44 AM

I'm pretty irritated seeing Zohan getting slammed as "another Sandler flick". It is probably the best movie he's done in a decade.

Ajax

06-09-2008, 04:23 AM

Baltofan

06-09-2008, 05:29 AM

I think The Happening will be number 1 next week.

Pomegranate

06-09-2008, 06:48 AM

Uh yeah.....no? How is KFP gonna be burnt out by IJ4, Iron Man or Zohan? Iron Man is out of the picture at this point, only divine intervention would allow it to even sniff the top three again this summer. I mean the movie placed number 6. How is a movie thats been out since may, already made most of its money and was five spots behind the number one movie considered a competitor? This I have to hear lol.
KFP also outgrossed Zohan by 20 mil and I doubt it will pull an Indy and acutally end up making more money next weekend so thats not even considered competition at this point. Indy will proally end up doing what Iron Man did and just begin to fall one spot each weekend. You cant seriously believe that any three of these movies will leap frog Kung Fu? The Incredible Hulk and Wall-E Ill give you because well thats just common sense. And speaking of sense, Im trying to figure out excatly what kind of sense your making:

I doubt that many people would pay $7+ tickets for any animated flick that isn't Pixar or Shrek, when they already purchased $7 tickets for IJ4, Prince Caspian and Iron Man before. Also, they've rising gas and food prices to worry about, so they'd rather spend their life's earnings on basic necessities than $7 tickets for animated flicks, esp. if they aren't a part of the Pixar or Shrek franchises.

I know what your saying but how does it pertain to the B.O results? I mean you are looking at the same B.O report that lists KFP as number one by a considerable margin?I dont get what your trying to say especially seeing as how the only other "animated movie" Wall.E will proally be number one and garner a lot of success (actually scratch that we got Space Chimps as the third animated movie). So like uh yeah.............

Animated flicks usually don't fare so well domestically at the box office as their live-action counterparts do, because again, Americans usually look down upon animation as "some goofy and immature children's entertainment medium", ticket prices are getting too costly nowadays and live-action is also usually taken more seriously because Americans see it as "more mature and realistic", regardless of the actual maturity level it really has.

Wall-E is a very special case, because it has the Pixar brandname to assist its box office performance and Pixar has a very excellent track record with their animated flicks, as moviegoers of all demos enjoy 'em, so they'd probably spend money on $7+ tickets for these animated flicks and Wall-E will also have great legs after its theatrical debut for those reasons alone. KFP probably won't have that much luck after its opening weekend, as it isn't a part of the Pixar or Shrek franchises, and the only animated non-Pixar/Shrek feature films to ever have domestically crossed the $200mil. mark in media history were both Aladdin and Lion King, which were both crafted by Disney.

DarthGonzo

06-09-2008, 09:25 AM

Ajax

06-09-2008, 01:35 PM

I doubt that many people would pay $7+ tickets for any animated flick that isn't Pixar or Shrek, when they already purchased $7 tickets for IJ4, Prince Caspian and Iron Man before. Also, they've rising gas and food prices to worry about, so they'd rather spend their life's earnings on basic necessities than $7 tickets for animated flicks, esp. if they aren't a part of the Pixar or Shrek franchises.Uh.........huh. If people arent gonna spend money to watch animated features that are non Pixar, it isnt because they already payed to see other movies. Who actually has that state of mind? "hey guys lets watch KFP, I heard its better than Zohan"? "Hell nah, we already spent money the last month watching IJ4, Iron Man, Speed Racer and Prince Caspian"! "Uh so Zohan then"?
I mean how do rising gas prices or food prices only affect animated movies? "hey lets not spend are Lifes earning for a good animated flick, lets spend it all on a medicore horror flick instead? Like I said, who has that state of mind? I sure dont and a lot of people here sure dont. If movie goers are strapped for cash they arent gonna spend money on any movie period.

Animated flicks usually don't fare so well domestically at the box office as their live-action counterparts do, because again, Americans usually look down upon animation as "some goofy and immature children's entertainment medium", ticket prices are getting too costly nowadays and live-action is also usually taken more seriously because Americans see it as "more mature and realistic", regardless of the actual maturity level it really has.Uh maybe I live in some other alternate reailty but Pixar owns the B.O last time I checked. And if your gonna say only pixar/sherk do good then your really not making much sense. EIther animated flicks are "some goofy and immature children's entertainment medium", or there not.

Wall-E is a very special case, because it has the Pixar brandname to assist its box office performance and Pixar has a very excellent track record with their animated flicks, as moviegoers of all demos enjoy 'em, so they'd probably spend money on $7+ tickets for these animated flicks and Wall-E will also have great legs after its theatrical debut for those reasons alone. KFP probably won't have that much luck after its opening weekend, as it isn't a part of the Pixar or Shrek franchises, and the only animated non-Pixar/Shrek feature films to ever have domestically crossed the $200mil. mark in media history were both Aladdin and Lion King, which were both crafted by Disney. Lol there you go so in the end animated films do fare well in the box office, they just happen to come from Pixar. Thats proally because they make good films. Id just like to note that films like Shark Tale and Madagascar did extremely well for themselves and if your basing animated films success on wether they crossed the 200 mil mark or not, then thats pretty crazy. I agree that KFP wont have the legs Wall.E will, but its gonna make its 100+ million.

DarthGonzo

06-09-2008, 01:37 PM

Id just like to note that films like Shark Tale and Madagascar did extremely well for themselves...

As did the Ice Age movies and Horton Hears a Who. So that kinda throws the whole "Pixar/Shrek" argument out the window.

Azrael24

06-09-2008, 01:41 PM

not really, neither of those movies did as good as the pixar ones

Tay the Cat

06-09-2008, 01:52 PM

not really, neither of those movies did as good as the pixar ones

That's a given, but they were still successful movies.

Ajax

06-09-2008, 01:57 PM

not really, neither of those movies did as good as the pixar onesUh the only other Pixar film that has a bigger world wide box office gross then Ice Age 2 was the Incredbiles ( just barely too) and Finding Nemo. Lol my point is Lord Galactus isnt making much sense since many non Pixar films have done incredible well. So everything hes saying is based off ...well actually I dont know what hes basing any of what hes saying off from.

dmxx116

06-09-2008, 03:08 PM

I think The Happening will be number 1 next week.
I don't think so, The Hulk is going to kill The Happening.

Movie06

06-09-2008, 03:23 PM

I don't think so, The Hulk is going to kill The Happening.

Well, if possible The Happening might land on either No. 2 or 3 I mean The Strangers managed to climb to No. 3 two weeks ago and that movie was Rated R.

HG Revolution

06-09-2008, 03:45 PM

I think The Happening will be number 1 next week.

Um, I dunno what people are talking about in Denmark, but did you ever stop to consider that not all the movies you find interesting translate to interest from the mainstream American market?

Animated flicks usually don't fare so well domestically at the box office as their live-action counterparts do, because again, Americans usually look down upon animation as "some goofy and immature children's entertainment medium", ticket prices are getting too costly nowadays and live-action is also usually taken more seriously because Americans see it as "more mature and realistic", regardless of the actual maturity level it really has.

If Americans are into stuff that's "mature and realistic", why did, say, There Will Be Blood, a very mature and realistic movie, not make anywhere near as much money in its whole lifespan as Kung Fu Panda did in one weekend?

Draft

06-09-2008, 04:13 PM

IJ4 and Iron Man are both still playing in a considerable amount of theatres and kids also like to grow up a bit too fast, thus why Hannah Montana, live-action Alvin & The Chipmunks and their ilk are so popular with all demos these days, and it doesn't help if our fellow Americans think of animation as a children's entertainment medium.

When Americans have rising gas and food prices to worry about, they probably wouldn't be so rash as to spend their own life's earnings on tickets for animated flicks! The only types of animated flicks the American moviegoing public would heavily gamble away their hard-earned cash on in this very day and age would be Shrek sequels and those slapped with the Pixar brandname as well! I think this is probably the reason why the Simpsons movie have failed to cross $200 mil. domestically, despite having a $70mil.+ opening weekend and being based upon a very popular animated TV series with over 400 eps., and it's also the reason why I think the upcoming Star Wars flick will probably megaton bomb, despite being based upon a very popular media franchise with legions of fans and that also has a very significant impact upon modern global pop culture.

Well, amount of theateres factoring in gross is BS, especially during 4th/5th weeks. For example, Mission Impossible 3 opened up in a little more than 4,000 theateres, but still only managed to make $150 million. And bringing up Hannah Montanna, it opened at #1 despite 683 theateres to it's name.
The rest of that really makes no sense, since the kids could've just seen Iron Man/Indy 4 weeks ago (Though it's true that kid releases are more likely to have longer legs and not fizzle away after the 1st weekend)

Umm, then explain why Kung Fu Panda made $60 million this weekend then..
As I said in the previous post, animated/kid movies have longer legs. For example, Ratatoullie made an underwhelming $50 Million in it's 1st weekend, but made $200 overall, which means only 25% of it's gross came from opening weekend, which is a very impressive # (Many movies such as Cloverfield and most Superhero movies make 40-50% of their gross in the opening weekend). Honestly, you're throwing softballs here

Meh, Simpsons Movie is one of the movies that doesn't fit this pattern. Personally, what I think happened is that all the older audience went on the first weekend (following the trend), and then the kids made up the rest of it. The simpsons doesn't have that much kid appeal, and is often criticized by adults for being too inapropiate for kids (I know many kids who weren't allowed to watch it until Junior High)

Well, the Star Wars flick is also an oddball. It wasn't scheduled for release until about 6 months ago, so there is/will be not as marketing as most animated films. The droves will show up since it's star wars, but I agree it won't do too well, but then again it wasn't meant to be. Odds are it was originally suppossed to be a Direct to Video/TV Movie, but WB decided to release it because it had a hole in their schedule from the Writer's Strike

Alright, now to Tuscon

I initially thought this was gonna be a bomb because it has virtually no dialogue, and robots aren't as kid friendly as anothramorphic animals (Ya, weak arguments). But I recently saw the trailer, and I think Wall*E could very well outgross everyone. But there is some worry, since Pixar grosses have been steadily decling since the release of Finding Nemo, and there are no popular movie stars (At least todays) unlike the other Pixar movies

Ooooh, another Lord Galactus Quote!

I doubt that many people would pay $7+ tickets for any animated flick that isn't Pixar or Shrek, when they already purchased $7 tickets for IJ4, Prince Caspian and Iron Man before. Also, they've rising gas and food prices to worry about, so they'd rather spend their life's earnings on basic necessities than $7 tickets for animated flicks, esp. if they aren't a part of the Pixar or Shrek franchises.

Animated flicks usually don't fare so well domestically at the box office as their live-action counterparts do, because again, Americans usually look down upon animation as "some goofy and immature children's entertainment medium", ticket prices are getting too costly nowadays and live-action is also usually taken more seriously because Americans see it as "more mature and realistic", regardless of the actual maturity level it really has.

Wall-E is a very special case, because it has the Pixar brandname to assist its box office performance and Pixar has a very excellent track record with their animated flicks, as moviegoers of all demos enjoy 'em, so they'd probably spend money on $7+ tickets for these animated flicks and Wall-E will also have great legs after its theatrical debut for those reasons alone. KFP probably won't have that much luck after its opening weekend, as it isn't a part of the Pixar or Shrek franchises, and the only animated non-Pixar/Shrek feature films to ever have domestically crossed the $200mil. mark in media history were both Aladdin and Lion King, which were both crafted by Disney.

Well, I think the fans of Fox's Ice Age disagree with you. Oh, and stop the damn gas recession crap, because it really hasn't affected the Box Office, since it's only 3% behind last year (Which I blame on a lacking Spring slate of Movies).

Well, it doesn't help that these movies are aimed at kids. But it helps that kids can't go to the movie theateres bythemselves, so usually a parent or two will be forced to go.

You actually got the Wall*E part right. But once again, Dreamworks is a serious competitor to Pixar, and the opening gross of Kung Fu Panda shows it, since it's the 3rd highest opening weekend. Odds are it will probably gross over 200 million because it has another 3 weeks before serious competition in it's target audience comes out (with the slight exception of The Love Guru and Get Smart, which will have a small effect since kids love Mike Myers and crappy TV Show knockoffs). And technicly, numerous movies have made over 200 million (http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/adjusted.htm)

CaptainHero

06-09-2008, 04:26 PM

Draft

06-09-2008, 05:12 PM

Pixar isn't some holy movie studio. Infact, Ratatouille only grossed slightly over $200 million domestic. So, they aren't getting bigger and bigger as they go along. Wall E will do well, it'll be a hit, but it'll be interesting to see if children can be entertained by a near dialogue free film
If you watch the trailer, the dialogue part is way exagerated. Sure they don't talk, but they make sounds that seem like they're talkin

Racattack!Force

06-09-2008, 05:47 PM

Well, the Star Wars flick is also an oddball. It wasn't scheduled for release until about 6 months ago, so there is/will be not as marketing as most animated films. The droves will show up since it's star wars, but I agree it won't do too well, but then again it wasn't meant to be. Odds are it was originally suppossed to be a Direct to Video/TV Movie, but WB decided to release it because it had a hole in their schedule from the Writer's Strike

Actually, the thing about the Star Wars movie is that the idea for it came months after they went into production on the series. :sweat: The movie was basically an afterthought.

The Clown Prince

06-09-2008, 08:45 PM

Actual numbers are out...

1) Kung Fu Panda- $60,239,130 ($60,239,130)
2) You Don't Mess with the Zohan- $38,531,374 ($38,531,374)
3) Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull- $22,793,630 ($253,014,750)

Kung Fu Panda's $60.23 million opening puts it ahead of Cars $60.11 million opening for those comparing Pixar and Dreamworks films opening weekends.

'Zohan' was about $1.5 million behind it's estimation.

And Indiana Jones' worldwide box office is now up to $579.8 which leads all films so far worldwide in 2008. Right behind it in second place is Iron Man with $537.7 million.

Anarky

06-09-2008, 09:02 PM

to borrow a phrase, "I pity the fools" that paid to see Zohan.

Steve Carras

06-09-2008, 10:58 PM

Judd Apatow, that's what. His brand of humor would be the only reason I'd see the movie.

Well, I'm 95% sure that Hulk will take it next week, with the rest of the top 5 remaining the same as this week's knocked down by one.

With "Horton the Elephant" pulling the voices rform most of his stock company (major exception": Leslie Mann, who was with "Panda'"s Jack Black as supporitng stars in "The Cable Guy", which, in fact in another coincidental connection, shared Jim Carrey with "Horton" as the star!), those of us in the know about Apatow might assume there was some secret involvement (Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill, Steve Carrell as Horton's friend,. and a few other Judd Apatow players are supports in Horton, plus marrieds Amy Poheler & Will Arnett, who were togther in last year's "Blades of Glory" as the villianous but charismatic "darlings" of skating. BTW With Miss Poehler contributing a voice to "Horton', and face acting in "Blades of GBlory", it's interesting that Tina Fey isn't present, but they worked together in April's "Baby Mama").

Brieft (hopefully) notes on two of the flicks mentioned here:
KUNG FU PANDA:
"Panda" itself has some moments of cel animation but it's mostly, largely, 3-D, and an excellent one (only a couple star voices, the giddy goose who's the panda's dad, was an excellent character who reminds me a bit of 1960's "Tooter Turtle"'s "Mr.Wzard" from Leonardo-TTV's old favorite "King Leonardo", likewise the character voiced by Dustin Hoffman - last seen as "Mr.Magorium" alongside Natlaie Portman;I forget who did the panda's dad's voice, someone with an Asian name that didn't strike a bell, but the maker of "Secret ingredient soup"'s one of the best supporting characters".

INDIANA JONES 4:
As I've mentioned in Retro Folrums, "Indiana" (and some on some other unassociated animation discusison forums mentioned it), borrowed from a few Bugs shorts.

DarthGonzo

06-10-2008, 09:59 AM

My friend, you need to stop having a field day with parenthesis, colons, slashes and the like. You have some great information here but your writing style makes it very hard to process what your trying to say. Without the parenthesis your first paragraph only amounts to one sentence. You use an open parenthesis on your second paragraph but you forget to close it. You need to choose one way to separate your thoughts and then stick with with it.

Just trying to help, so no offense taken I hope.

Draft

06-10-2008, 05:58 PM

Kung Fu Panda's $60.23 million opening puts it ahead of Cars $60.11 million opening for those comparing Pixar and Dreamworks films opening weekends.

Ack, I missed that, ty for pointing out

I find it kind of ironic how the past 2 Dreamworks movies (Shrek 3, Kung Fu Panda) have made more in opening weekend than the past 2 Pixar films (Cars, Ratatoullie), since Pixar is highly regarded as the top dog in the animation biz

Ajax

06-10-2008, 08:07 PM

Ack, I missed that, ty for pointing out

I find it kind of ironic how the past 2 Dreamworks movies (Shrek 3, Kung Fu Panda) have made more in opening weekend than the past 2 Pixar films (Cars, Ratatoullie), since Pixar is highly regarded as the top dog in the animation bizTrue enough, a lot of people seem to believe only Pixar movies can succeed when in reality they've only ever had one major film that was able to compete money wise with Sherk 2 and that was Finding Nemo. I mean Blue Sky with their Ice Age films and Horton have done incredibly well for themselves and of course Dreamworks. I dont know where this whole belief of only Pixar movies being the only animated films that can succeed comes from tbh.

Infusions

06-10-2008, 08:22 PM

I read that Speed Racer had a $100 mil budget.

So with their grossing being only that much, wouldn't that mean they lost $60+ mil?

Ouch.

Pomegranate

06-10-2008, 09:02 PM

I read that Speed Racer had a $100 mil budget.

So with their grossing being only that much, wouldn't that mean they lost $60+ mil?

Ouch.

Speed Racer has a $120mil. production budget, actually!

Anyways, KFP has made more than $6.3mil. yesterday. If it has a Cars-esque performance or even better than that during its entire theatrical run, then it should be well on its way to a $200mil.+ domestic total or if not, then I can only hope another animated non-Pixar/Shrek feature film can accomplish that feat sometime this very millennium:yawn: .

Racattack!Force

06-10-2008, 09:23 PM

Speed Racer has a $120mil. production budget, actually!

Anyways, KFP has made more than $6.3mil. yesterday. If it has a Cars-esque performance or even better than that during its entire theatrical run, then it should be well on its way to a $200mil.+ domestic total or if not, then I can only hope another animated non-Pixar/Shrek feature film can accomplish that feat sometime this very millennium:yawn: .

Don't you mean decade, since there are plenty of animated films likely to pass it by that time. :shrug: On a side note, I was surprised to find that a good chunk of the money KFP made came from the 17 and older crowd. :shrug: Then again, this is Dreamworks.

Pomegranate

06-10-2008, 09:36 PM

Don't you mean decade, since there are plenty of animated films likely to pass it by that time. :shrug: On a side note, I was surprised to find that a good chunk of the money KFP made came from the 17 and older crowd. :shrug: Then again, this is Dreamworks.

Aladdin and Lion King were both the only animated non-Pixar/Shrek flicks to ever have crossed the $200mil. mark domestically, so that's why I've said "millennium" instead. If KFP's box office earnings come from adults, then this could be very well the 3rd animated non-Pixar/Shrek film to ever cross $200mil. domestically, if a very good amount of moviegoers and their children continuously purchase tickets for this movie, of course;) .

Ioz

06-14-2008, 01:25 PM

Friday box office estimates from Boxofficemojo:

1. THE INCREDIBLE HULK: 21 mil
2. THE HAPPENING: 12.8 mil
3. KUNG FU PANDA: 10 mil
4. YOU DON'T MESS WITH THE ZOHAN: 5.4 mil
5. INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL: 3.7 mil

It looks like The Incredible Hulk may make around what the first movie made in 2003 for its opening weekend.

Movie06

06-14-2008, 01:26 PM

Ajax

06-14-2008, 01:53 PM

Everyone called it! Hulk at No. 1 and The Happening at No. 2.Fixed.

Pomegranate

06-14-2008, 03:43 PM

TIH opens at #1 with over $21mil. just as I've expected, but I'm surprised to see The Happening outrank KFP yesterday, as Shyamalan's movies always draw lots of negative criticism from moviegoers and critics alike.

DarthGonzo

06-14-2008, 04:22 PM

TIH

Must everything be an acronym? Just say "Hulk", it's a mere one letter longer.

Sorry, just had to say it.

Hanshotfirst113

06-14-2008, 06:10 PM

Must everything be an acronym? Just say "Hulk", it's a mere one letter longer.

Sorry, just had to say it.

I suppose that some people are trying to differentiate it from the first film.

Pomegranate

06-14-2008, 06:15 PM

I suppose that some people are trying to differentiate it from the first film.

And it's also a much quicker way of typing the 2nd film's name.

DarthGonzo

06-14-2008, 07:42 PM

And it's also a much quicker way of typing the 2nd film's name.

I guess, but it seems unnecessary. Are we that lazy a society that everything needs to be an acronym? I stared at "TIH" for several seconds before I realized what it was. And "The" usually doesn't end up as part of the acronym. But IH just seems awkward. I don't know why I'm making a big deal out of this but it just bugs me a little.

Racattack!Force

06-14-2008, 09:42 PM

I guess, but it seems unnecessary. Are we that lazy a society that everything needs to be an acronym? I stared at "TIH" for several seconds before I realized what it was. And "The" usually doesn't end up as part of the acronym. But IH just seems awkward. I don't know why I'm making a big deal out of this but it just bugs me a little.
How about "Incredi-Hulk", to shorten the name...but that sounds weird. :sweat:

Temple Fugate

06-15-2008, 12:14 AM

Since The Incredible Hulk basically overwrites the entire existence of Hulk, I think it's safe to just abbreviate the former film to simply Hulk. I didn't know what TIH was either, until I read DarthGonzo's post.

Ioz

06-15-2008, 12:22 PM

Weekend estimates for June 13-15, from Nielsen EDI:

1. The Incredible Hulk 54.5 mil
2. Kung Fu Panda 34.3 mil
3. The Happening 30.5 mil
4. Zohan 16.4 mil
5. Indiana Jones 13.6 mil

The original Hulk movie made $62.1 million opening weekend, but fell fast afterwards. Kung Fu Panda and The Happening switch spots from Friday.