FRIDAY MIDDAY UPDATE: Paramount has everything to be happy about heading into the weekend as their horror movie Smile is coming on strong with $3.85M today for what is now looking at a $13.1M second frame at 3,659 theaters, -42% – spectacular for a horror movie considering they typically drop 60% or more in weekend 2. The genre film directed and written by Parker Finn will now have a 10-day gross of $45.4M.
Sony’s Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile is currently in second place with $3.3M today and an anticipated $11M launch at 4,350 screens. The outcome of the conflict between Lyle, Lyle, and Smile depends on Saturday (doesn’t it always?) and how many mothers with children attend this feature-length adaptation of the 1965 Bernard Waber novel. Again, this type of family film has a cap age-wise — likely below 9 years of age in regards to those who want to see it, plus, while a classic title, it’s not as marquee as say Sony’s Peter Rabbit which opened to $25M back in 2018, or Weinstein Co’s Paddington which saw a near $19M start in 2015. Paddington and Peter Rabbit both had lower audience approval ratings on Rotten Tomatoes (80% and 56%), respectively.
Amsterdam is also burning to the ground. With last night’s previews factored in, Friday’s estimated $2.5M places the David O. Russell-directed historical comedy between $6.6M and $7.3M at 3,005 sites. Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Chris Rock, Anya Taylor Joy, Rami Malek, Taylor Swift, and other big-name actors all appeared in this movie, but none of them could salvage it. Later, more analysis of this 2-hour, 15-minute arthouse comedy will be provided. This is a massive flop for New Regency/20th Century Studios; even by pre-pandemic norms, a $80M production expense on a movie of this type is uncalled for. Adult-skewing films typically don’t break even while spectators recover from the pandemic. For absurdist comedy, too much. Even while the audience score on Rotten Tomatoes is currently better than the reviewers’ score of 34%, it still isn’t excellent.
TriStar’s The Woman King is bringing in $1.3M today, down 27%, and $5M over the next three days, down 26%, for a weekend 4 total of $53.8M at 3,342 screens.
Don’t Worry Darling’s third session with New Line is expected to gross $1 million on Friday, down 57% from the previous week, and $3.35 million over the course of three days, down 51%, for a running total of $38.3 million.
Friday morning update Not exactly the flashiest of Thursday nights for previews as Sony’s feature take of the classic children’s book Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile saw $575K off showtimes that began at 3 p.m. in 3,453 locations, while New Regency/20th Century Studios/Disney’s Amsterdam baked $550K off previews that began at 6 p.m. in 3,005 locations.
Here’s the thing: Family movie studios occasionally forgo holding previews during the non-summer months. Only 15% of K–12 schools were open on Thursday. The original Peter Rabbit, which launched in February 2018, didn’t have previews, but Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway, which opened on June 10 of last year and made $900K at 2,572 screens, did. Lyle, Lyle’s earnings surpass those of Paddington 2, a different live-action/CGI hybrid based on a beloved children’s book, which earned $325K back in January 2018. Lyle, Lyle is also more expensive than the $175K earned from the first Paddington’s 8 p.m. showtimes in January 2015.
Javier Bardem and Shawn Mendes prepare for the year’s best singing reptile movie in “Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile”
When it comes to Saturday matinee business, Sony is placing a low bet on Lyle, Lyle at $11–$12 million, while industry projections range from $15–$18 million. Given that 42% of all K–12 schools are closed on Monday due to the Indigenous Peoples’ Day holiday weekend, Sony chose this time to release the film. On Rotten Tomatoes, Lyle has a fresh rating of 67%.
David O. Russell’s absurdist historical comedy was expected to gross roughly $10 million at Disney. If sales doesn’t take up, it might be in the upper single digits, and the film is playing on every Imax screen. The film’s previews outperformed Michael Bay’s Ambulance, which earned $700K on preview night before a $8.6M release in April, and the R-rated action film Nobody, starring Bob Odenkirk, which did $410K on its Thursday in March 2021 before filing for a $6.8M opening. At 35% on Rotten Tomatoes, Amsterdam is rated poorly. Ouch, this is an $80M movie, twice as much as Russell’s American Hustle, which boasted the star power of Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper, Christian Bale, Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner.
RELATED: David O. Russell’s Timely Blend Of Fact And Fiction In “Amsterdam” Is Lit Up By Christian Bale And The All-Star Cast
The Swifties are being encouraged to see Amsterdam by Taylor Swift, who also appears in it.
The week for Paramount’s Smile was successful, with weekday grosses at 3,645 locations averaging $2M+. The horror film’s first week total fell to $32.29M on Thursday, down 13% from Wednesday and 21% from Bullet Train’s first week, which made $41M in its first seven days. Yes, it’s an unusual comparison, but it only serves to highlight Smile’s influence given that it underperformed a Brad Pitt action film by $8.7 million. Around $11 million is anticipated for Smile in weekend 2.
Review of the procedural horror film “Smile”: How Trauma Becomes the Opponent
Don’t Worry Darling, from New Line, came in second place on Thursday with $555K at 4,121 theatres, down 13% from the previous day, for a second week total of $9.5M and a running total of $34.97M.
The Woman King by TriStar earned $506K, -17%, in 3,504 theatres for a third-week total of $9.1M and a running total of $48.8M.
Damien Leone’s Terrifier 2, which earned $403,9K with a full-throttle launch Thursday at 886 locations, jumped into fourth position. Script for the Leone-written film: Art the Clown comes to the fearful hamlet of Miles County after being resurrected by a nefarious force, and on Halloween he picks on a teenage girl and her younger brother. Iconic Events Releasing is in charge of the sequel release.
The comedy Bros starring Billy Eichner from Universal earned $380K on Fifth Thursday at 3,350 cinemas and $6.74M its first week.
