News
Sizzling BO Validates 'Product' As King
By Robert Marich
Dec. 28, 2009 – The weekend set a modern-day record for box office, which should be interpreted as evidence that demand for movies is foremost “product” driven, and less influenced by the state of the economy, alternative entertainment available and other factors. Hollywood rolled out movies that consumers wanted to see, despite tight pursue strings from the recession.
Box office totaled an estimated $278 million Friday through Sunday in the U.S. and Canada, surpassing the $260.8 million weekend record from July 2008 when The Dark Knight premiered. Movie-goers wanted to see Fox-holdover Avatar, and new releases Sherlock Holmes from Warner Bros. Pictures and Universal Pictures’ Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel.
According to a Los Angeles Times article by Ben Fritz, the weekend also set for “the highest number of tickets ever sold in a three-day period, 37.3 million tickets, since precise data started to be collected around 1985,” according to Hollywood.com.
Avatar experienced just a 2.5% decline in box office to $75 million from the prior weekend, indicating it is getting good word-of-mouth from moviegoers. Each of the top three films grossed over $50 million, which is a first for a single weekend (third-place Alvin weighed in at $50.2 million).
The only outright flop this weekend was Weinstein Co.’s musical Nine, which grossed just $5.5 million and that will emphasis playdates on the East and West coasts where it played well.
Box office revenue measured in total dollars is on track to finish the year ahead 9-10%, which is tremendous given that other business sectors are experiencing declines. Premium-priced 3D cinema tickets (usually $2 higher than normal) are helping fatten the BO take.
Adds the New York Times: “Total sales are expected to be about 1.4 billion tickets for the full year, up about 5 percent from 1.3 billion last year, though still well short of the 1.6 billion mark set in 2002, Hollywood.com said.”
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