The box office results for the weekend of June 24th – 26th has Pixar parking in its usual reserved spot once again. But after reading the reviews, it could be towed away very soon. Meanwhile, the continuous pattern of being Bad – a.k.a. R-rated comedy – earns more dirty money. Here are the studio estimates:
1. Cars 2 ($68 million)
2. Bad Teacher ($31 million)
3. Green Lantern ($18.3 million)
4. Super 8 ($12.1 million)
5. Mr. Popper’s Penguins ($10.3 million)
6. X-Men: First Class ($6.6 million)
7. The Hangover Part II ($5.8 million)
8. Bridesmaids ($5.3 million)
9. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides ($4.7 million)
10. Midnight in Paris ($4.4 million)
Analysis
Before we possibly babble on (which we won’t) on Pixar’s first ever critical dud, let’s start off on a good note with talking about a Bad Teacher. The rated R comedy is looking to ride the wave of success that comes with being raunchy these last few weeks (Bridesmaids, Hangover II). With an attractive slim box office draw in Cameron Diaz – and an equally slim budget of just $19 million – this flick is already a financial gem for Sony/Columbia. The reviews and word-of-mouth are mild, but the genre is on fire right now and people will be stepping into this frequently during the week.
And now let us try not to over-analyze how the might Pixar has fallen. Cause truth be told (always) one dud out of twelve – in terms of critcal acclaim – should not shutdown the Oscar animation category. So what, Cars 2 wasn’t all that stellar. Consider this the studio’s mulligan; and of course it’s going to cost them. Budgeted at $200 million (not counting marketing & promo), the 3D animation is going to needed a healthy assist from overseas markets and possibly DVD & On-Demand runs. That’s all there is to it. Seriously.
Getting back to the briefly referenced Bridesmaids, the feature currently has the longest streak in the top ten with 7 weeks. Universal’s much needed property is now up to $147 million domestically.
Flop Alert: Green Lantern. Dropping 65% in its second week is not ironically turning this piece red. As in red ink on the balance sheet. Sure it will cross $100 million on the domestic front by next weekend but the international totals may not be as kind to this hero as they have been to others recently. Warner Bros.’ fears are now a reality unfortunately.
Sleeper Hit: Kung Fu Panda 2. As the major theme for high-profile releases this year, the international totals are saving so many studios from lackluster domestic totals. DreamWorks Animation has made their budget back with the stateside total of just over $153 million. When factoring in the international tally, this sequel now sits at $458 million.
Well this coming Wednesday, it’s no secret who will win the box office battle. Transformers: Dark of the Moon will dominate by opening a few days early. That said, it will also win the weekend from other newbies in Larry Crowne and Monte Carlo. Let’s face it, these rom-coms will provide a nice alternate for moviegoers, but will get buried by the third & final installment in the uber-popular Transformers’ franchise; which should make a solid run at the title for box office king of 2011. Reviews will be right here my fellow Shockers.
Report by Joe Belcastro
