Golden Globe Best Picture Winner for Drama, 1917, got off to a bang on Thursday with $3.25M in previews that began at 7PM in 2,900 theaters.
The Sam Mendes-directed WWI pic, which debuted in 11 theaters in cities like NY, LA and DC, on Christmas Day, goes wide today in 3,434 theaters. The movie is expected to win the weekend with $20M-$25M, potentially more, unseating Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker which has held on to the No. 1 spot for the last three weekends. Since Christmas, 1917 has made $2.7M. Following the pic’s surprise win at the Globes last Sunday where many were expecting Netflix’s The Irishman to win, 1917 promptly began seeing a spike in advance ticket sales on Fandango. 1917‘s Thursday night is under Dunkirk‘s $5.5M previews, and American Sniper‘s $5.3M wide previews, but while all these war pics are after the same older male audience, Dunkirk had the benefit of summer play, and Clint Eastwood’s Bradley Cooper movie as we all know was an anomaly playing in the flyover states like a superhero movie for the right wing. In limited polling over Christmas, 1917 earned an A CinemaScore. Amblin and Republic Pictures financed 1917 which is being distributed by Universal.
Disney’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker led all movies in regular release yesterday with an estimated $2.1M, -10% from Wednesday, and a $46M third week. Current running domestic cume of $463.1M, is running 16% behind Last Jedi through three weeks which was at $549M at this point in time. Skywalker looks to have a fourth weekend between $17M-$19M.
.Warner Bros. is also going wide with their Michael B. Jordan-Jamie Foxx social justice drama Just Mercy about civil rights defense attorney Bryan Stevenson’s case to free a wrongly condemned death row prisoner. The pic made $800K last night off 7PM shows, a take that’s above the $600K that Focus Features’ Harriet made and 2014’s Selma ($400K). Selma, which like Just Mercy had a limited run before going wide in early January, posted a first wide weekend of $11.3M at 2,179 theaters. Harriet posted a similar opening during the first weekend of November last year with $11.6M. Warners has been very high on Just Mercy since its TIFF premiere. In limited exits over Christmas, Just Mercy earned an A+ CinemaScore throughout all its demos. Heading into the weekend from four NY and LA runs, the Destin Daniel Cretton-directed movie, which is also produced by Jordan’s Outlier Society, and Participant Pictures, counts $436K since Christmas. Estimates for Just Mercy were between high single digits and $10M at 2,375 theaters.
TSG Entertainment/Chernin’s Underwater which is being distributed by 20th Century Fox (meaning Disney) was low as expected in previews making $500K. The action drama starring Kristen Stewart from Sundance wunderkind William Eubank, is not expected to do well with a 3-day in the single digits at 2,791 locations. The pic, which cost $50M before P&A (not $80M as some others have it) was completely financed by TSG with Disney/Fox getting a distribution fee. The pic, I hear, has been ready for a while, but remained in limbo due to the merger and when Disney got it, they dated the pic. Critics are split over the movie at 49% on Rotten Tomatoes.
We’re waiting on preview figures from Paramount’s Like a Boss.
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