June
9Summer Box Office Scorecard
Summer 2008 is turning out to be anything but franchise-lite at the box office, even without the likes of “Spider-Man,” “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Shrek.” Without these three titans on the summer release sked, or some combination thereof, naysayers said Hollywood was in deep, deep trouble.
So much for all the predictions of gloom-and-doom. June is only now getting underway, and the summer box office has already birthed three new film franchises—“Iron Man,” “Sex and the City” and “Kung Fu Panda.” That’s got to be a record, for such a short amount of time.
The biggest hit of the summer so far is Paramount’s “Iron Man,” financed and produced by Marvel Entertainment. “Iron Man” was a big gamble. Robert Downey Jr. isn’t exactly the obvious choice to play a superhero in a Hollywood tentpole. As it turns out, audiences loved him. (Who says getting older isn’t any fun?) Over the June 6-8 weekend, the pic neared the $300 million mark at the domestic box office.
Winning the weekend was DreamWorks Animation/Paramount’s “Kung Fu Panda,” which far exceeded expectations in grossing $60 million, the best opener ever for a DreamWorks toon that wasn’t a sequel. Film’s star is Jack Black, who voices the role of Po the panda. Po is surrounded by a cast of characters—one of them voiced by Angelina Jolie—that are ready-made for a sequel.
After “Iron Man,” the top-grossing film of early summer is Paramount’s “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” which jumped the $250 million mark during the July 6-8 frame. Sure, Steven Spielberg's “Crystal Skull,” is technically a sequel, but it’s been 19 years since the last installment played, so no one was quite sure how broad “Crystal Skull’s” appeal would be, particularly with Harrison Ford now being in his mid-60s.
The strength of New Line and Warner Bros.’ “Sex and the City” was another surprise, particularly since chick flicks aren't known for their big opening weekends. “Sex and the City” may have been a hit TV series on HBO, but there’s never any guarantee that a television show can successfully transition to the bigscreen. In fact, odds are that it won’t. “Sex and the City” is an unqualified hit, grossing nearly $100 million in its first 10 days.
Will the takeaway of Summer 2008 be that original works? How refreshing. Then again, it also means a whole new crop of sequels.
Variety film reporter and blogger 
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Great idea for a blog! Love the writing- very fresh. I look forward to reading more posts.
Posted by: Dan | 6/10/2008 11:30:23 AM