A slithery slope
'Snakes' bite doesn't match the hype
|
After months of buzz on the Internet and in the media, along with weeks of speculation over how that buzz would translate into B.O., "Snakes on a Plane" opened to $15.3 million. An estimated $1.4 million of that came from shows at 10 p.m. Thursday night.
Gross is well below predictions at New Line and among industry folk that the hype could translate into a bow somewhere in the 20 or perhaps even 30 millions.
Though "Snakes" was the big story going into the weekend, other pics mattered in their own right. "World Trade Center" and "Talladega Nights" held up nicely, while "Little Miss Sunshine" stayed strong as it started its move into wide release.
"Snakes" hype aside, it's a respectable enough opening given the pic's estimated budget in the mid-30s. New Line still has a good shot at coming out in the black, especially if the cult following translates into big homevideo sales. FX already bought the exclusive cable rights for about 12% of the domestic gross (Daily Variety, July 26).
Though the mini-major didn't release exit polling data, it seems the pic didn't expand far beyond the core Net-savvy young male aud that has been aware of the pic for months.
"Accepted" and "Material Girls" both had soft openings, leading to only the third down weekend of the summer. Overall B.O. for the frame was down 6% from a year ago. Year-to-date box office is still up 6% from 2005, but down 2% from 2004, according to Nielsen EDI.
"Snakes' " results cast some doubt on whether Internet buzz, and the offline coverage it creates, can give a small movie a boffo bow. Of course, it's impossible to know how the pic would have performed without the online enthusiasm and the reshoots it inspired. They may have transformed what would otherwise have been a bomb into a decent bow.
Hype helped New Line book "Snakes" onto a very wide, 3,555 playdates, where it averaged $4,290.
Samuel L. Jackson starrer was just a little ahead of the third frame of "Talladega Nights." Sony's Will Ferrell comedy declined just 36% on its third weekend, grossing $14.1 million and bringing its cume to $114.7 million.
U's college comedy "Accepted" was tracking on par with "Snakes" but ended up well behind, coming in fourth place with $10.1 million. Pic had a per-play average of $3,470 at 2,914 theaters, and 74% of moviegoers were under 25.
"Little Miss Sunshine" broke into the top 10 thanks to a very healthy expansion from 153 to 691 theaters. As it bowed in smaller cities like Nashville, Tenn.; Cleveland; Tucson, Ariz.; and Norfolk, Va., along with suburban markets around bigger cities, Fox Searchlight's Sundance buy had an average take of $8,213 and grossed $5.7 million, putting it in seventh place. Indie comedy's cume is $12.8 million.
On Friday, it goes wide to around 1,500 playdates.
Stone solid
Solid word of mouth seemed to help the Oliver Stone-directed "World Trade Center," which fell a relatively small 42% on its second weekend, giving credence to Par's hopes that the 9/11 drama will have a long run at the B.O. Pic grossed $10.8 million, making it No. 3, and has now cumed $45 million.
MGM-distribbed "Material Girls" didn't find much traction beyond its core tween girl demo, bowing to only $4.6 million. Hilary and Haylie Duff starrer averaged $3,062 at 1,509 theaters.
Par's "Barnyard" is showing very strong legs after a so-so opening. Nickelodeon toon fell only 23% on its third weekend, bringing its cume up to $46 million.
"Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" declined only 31% on its seventh weekend and crossed the $400 million domestic cume mark. It's the second-fastest pic to ever hit that benchmark, behind only "Shrek 2."
In limited release, Yari Film Group opened "The Illusionist" to a very strong $924,886 at 51 theaters, giving it a per-play average of $18,135. Edward Norton starrer, which was distribbed by Alliance Atlantis in Canada, will expand to around 100 theaters on Friday and go wide on the Labor Day frame.
Fox Searchlight bowed "Trust the Man" to a weak $176,007 at 38 theaters in eight cities, averaging only $4,632 per play. Pic expands to between 125 and 150 theaters next weekend.
IFC opened Matt Dillon starrer "Factotum" to a decent $60,768 at six playdates, averaging $10,128 per.
ThinkFilm added one more New York-area run for "Half Nelson" and continued to do very strong business, grossing $57,200 at three locations, giving it a $19,067 average. Cume is $148,180. Sundance acquisition expands to L.A., San Francisco and Washington on Friday.
Sony Pictures Classics expanded Brazilian import "House of Sand" from five to 15 and grossed a weak $43,863, giving it a per-play take of just $2,924. Cume is $92,645.
Indie also expanded Sundance pickup "Quinceanera" from 27 to 47. It grossed a soft $176,484, giving it a per-play average of $3,755 and bringing its cume to $522,732.
Roadside Attractions and Samuel Goldwyn expanded senior citizen romantic comedy "Boynton Beach Club" from 35 to 58 theaters, grossing a so-so $243,600 for a per-play take of $4,200. Cume is $1.4 million.
