Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Oscar-winning Japanese animation film “The Boy and the Heron” earned a chart-topping $34.9 million between Friday and Sunday at the mainland China box office. Over its full five-day opening run, it took an even more spectacular $73 million. China was the last major territory to play the Studio Ghibli-produced fantasy in cinemas – it released in its native Japan in July and is imminently headed to streaming in many other territories – but that did not stop Chinese audiences from lapping it up. While most films release in China on a Friday, “The Boy and the Heron” was given a Wednesday outing in order to capture momentum from the Thursday-to-Saturday Qingming public holiday. Consultancy firm Artisan reports that it earned RMB248 million ($34.9 million) over the conventional Friday-to-Sunday weekend.
Box Office: ‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ Thaws Out $16 Million Opening Day
23.03.2024 - 17:23 / variety.com
J. Kim Murphy “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” kicked off with $16 millionin North American ticket sales across Friday and preview screenings in 4,345 theaters. That nearly matchesthe $16.6 million that its predecessor “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” earned on its opening day in November 2021.
Sony’s sci-fi comedy sequel will easily top domestic charts, though its work isn’t done yet considering its $100 million production budget. That’s an uptick in the price tag from “Afterlife,” which cost $75 million before marketing and distribution. That franchise revival nearly tripled its $44 million domestic opening weekend, playing well through the Thanksgiving holiday to finish with $129 million and $204 million worldwide.
Similarly, “Frozen Empire” could boost its fortunes with Easter at the end of the month. Reviews have been leaning more lukewarm compared to the so-so received “Afterlife.” Early moviegoers are also a little cooler on the franchise now, with audience survey firm Cinema Score turning in a B+ grade. (“Afterlife” scored an A-.) “Frozen Empire” will face some competition next week with the arrival of another “Empire,” in this case a “new” one: Warner Bros.
and Legendary’s “Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire.” Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard and McKenna Grace all return for “Frozen Empire,” with the group heading to a mysteriously frostbit Big Apple, where the profession of busting ghosts was famously invented. Original ’80s stars Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts and William Atherton also reprise their “Ghostbusters” roles. Gil Kenan directs.
Korea Box Office: ‘Exhuma’ Hits $80 Million, Scores Seventh Weekend Win
Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Without significant new challengers, spooky Korean drama “Exhuma” held on at the top of the South Korea box office chart for the seventh consecutive weekend. Its cumulative passed the symbolic $80 million mark. The lack of strong new release titles also meant that aggregate weekend box office in Korea slipped to a lowly $5.59 million. The Choi Min-sik-starring “Exhuma” dropped roughly 50% week-on-week to record $1.59 million between Friday and Sunday, and a 28% market share, according to data from Kobis, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council (Kofic).
As The Box Office Battles Back, Is No. 1 Circuit AMC About To Buckle? Don’t Bet Against Adam Aron…At Least Not Yet – CinemaCon Curtain Raiser
Thank God — with hits like Dune: Part Two, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire and Kung Fu Panda 4, the domestic box office may finally be shaking off the ashes from the double strikes, now counting close to $1.8 billion, with moviegoing gaining momentum.
China Box Office: ‘The Boy and the Heron’ Flies Past ‘Godzilla x Kong’ in $35 Million Midweek Holiday Debut
Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Oscar-winning Japanese animation “The Boy and the Heron” opened its wings in mainland Chinese theaters in midweek and soared to the top of the box office. Data from multiple local tracking sources show the Miyazaki Hayao-directed fantasy-adventure accounting for more than half of all cinema revenues on both Wednesday and Thursday. On Wednesday it garnered $13.8 million, according to estimates from Ent Group. By 6.30pm on Thursday, ticket sales firm Maoyan was showing the title as having grown its two-day running total to RMB254 million or $35.2 million. While films mostly open on Fridays in China, “The Boy and the Heron” was given a Wednesday outing in order to play into the three-day Qingming public holiday.
China Box Office: ‘Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire’ Has Hollywood’s Best Opening This Year
Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Legendary Entertainment’s “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” had the best opening in China of any Hollywood film this year. It scored $44.6 million (RMB317 million) in mainland Chinese cinemas between Friday and Sunday, according to data from consultancy firm Artisan Gateway. That was a nearly 70% share of the country’s weekend box office. Nationwide, cinemas enjoyed $64.1 million of business, a significant leap from the $39.5 million they earned in the previous weekend.
Box Office: ‘Oppenheimer’ Opens in Japan With $2.5 Million
Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter More than eight months (and one Oscar best picture win) after “Oppenheimer” landed in theaters, Christopher Nolan’s historical epic is still finding new audiences. The film opened over the weekend in its final market, Japan, with $2.5 million from 343 theaters. It placed third on the country’s box office charts after two local offerings, the horror movie “Strange House” and the animated “Haikyu!!” According to Universal Pictures, “Oppenheimer” is the biggest opening weekend of 2024 for a Hollywood release in Japan, surpassing “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” ($1.6 million) and “Dune: Part Two” ($1.3 million).
Box Office: ‘Godzilla x Kong’ Stomps to $194 Million Worldwide, ‘Dune 2’ Glides Past $600 Million Milestone
Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter After three days of release, “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” stands as the third-highest-grossing movie of the year. It has collected a mighty $194 million globally in its opening weekend, ranking behind only “Dune: Part Two” ($626 million after five weeks of release) and “Kung Fu Panda 4” ($347 million after four weeks of release) in terms of overall ticket sales. The monster mashup, from Warner Bros.
Box Office: ‘Godzilla x Kong’ Stomps Up $37 Million Opening Day
J. Kim Murphy Some movie stars don’t lose their luster. A 90-year-old ape and a 69-year-old reptile are taking over domestic charts this weekend, as Warner Bros.
Box Office: ‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire’ Roars With $10 Million in Thursday Previews
Brent Lang Executive Editor “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” is looking mighty as it heads into its opening weekend, earning an impressive $10 million in Thursday previews. The muscular results come despite the fact that the film suffered meh reviews — critics faulted the latest clash of the primordial beasts for hectic pacing and overstuffed plotting. Variety‘s Owen Gleiberman, for instance, dismissed the film as “overly busy boilerplate” (though he liked the finale).
Box Office: ‘Godzilla x Kong’ to Track Down $50 Million-Plus in Opening Weekend
Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter What happens when two otherworldly beasts team up to take on the box office? Theater owners will find out this weekend as “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” touches down in North America. The monster mashup, from Warner Bros. and Legendary Entertainment, is targeting $50 million to $55 million from 3,850 theaters in its first weekend of release.
Paul Rudd reveals he loves Channel 4's Gogglebox and admits UK does TV better than US
Hollywood star Paul Rudd has revealed he's a huge fan of Gogglebox and reckons TV is better in the UK than it is in the USA. The 54-year-old stars in the latest Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire film which released on Friday (March 22).
‘Kung Fu Panda 4’ Nears $300M Global; ‘Dune 2’ Closing In On $600M; ‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ Traps $16M+ In Phase 1 Overseas Bow – International Box Office
Universal/DreamWorks Animation’s Kung Fu Panda 4 had a rock ‘em sock ‘em weekend at the international box office, adding $55.3M from 69 markets for a $135M overseas running cume, and $268.2M global (there are several key markets still to release, including France, Australia, the UK and Korea).
Korea Box Office: ‘Exhuma’ on Top for Fifth Weekend, Passes Blockbuster Milestone
Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Locally-produced horror-drama “Exhuma” held on to top spot at the South Korea cinema box office for a fifth consecutive weekend. Its complete dominance of the market kept “Exhuma” comfortably ahead of the holdover “Dune 2” and a couple of lower-powered new releases and allowed its running total to surpass 10 million ticket sales. That is the conventional measure of a blockbuster in Korea, a country with a population of roughly 50 million. Over the latest weekend “Exhuma” sold 618,000 tickets for a gross revenue of $4.56 million and a market share of 56%, according to data from Kobis, the database operated by the Korean Film Council (Kofic). The latest increment gives the film a total of $73.4 million earned from 10.2 million admissions.
‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ soars to top of box office with big opening weekend
“Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” collected $45.2 million in ticket sales over the weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday, handing Sony Pictures the studio’s first No. 1 film since last summer.The opening weekend for “Frozen Empire,” in 4,345 theaters, was nearly exactly the same as the $44 million launch for “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” in 2021.“Afterlife” rebooted the franchise with a sequel built around the descendants (Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace) of Harold Ramis’ Egon Spengler, along with Paul Rudd’s seismologist Gary Grooberson.Neither film has been a hit with critics, but audiences have been more receptive.
'Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire' Opening Weekend Box Office Numbers Revealed
Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is on top!
‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ Leads Box Office With $45 Million Debut
Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” ruled over the domestic box office and arrived on the higher end of expectations. The latest installment in Sony’s supernatural comedy series has collected $45.2 million in its debut in 4,345 North American theaters. Earlier in the weekend, “Frozen Empire” looked like it would top out with $42 million but estimates were revised up after a bigger-than-expected Sunday.
‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ Busting $42M+ Opening – Friday PM Box Office
FRIDAY PM: As of right now, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empireis looking alright with a $16M Friday and $42M-$43M opening at 4,345 theaters. That Friday is on par with Ghostbusters: Afterlife‘s first day (plus previews) of $16.6M, and should that 3-day keep up, it will only be a $1M shy of the 2021 Jason Reitman directed title.
Box Office: ‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ Makes $4.7 Million in Previews
Jordan Moreau Ghostbusting is back at the box office! “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire,” the fifth and latest movie in the frightening franchise, has made $4.7 million at the box office in Thursday previews. Sony and Columbia Pictures’ new movie, which reunites the original stars of the ’80s classic and the cast from the 2021 “Afterlife” sequel, is expected to top the box office this weekend with an opening between $43 million and $45 million. That launch is in line with the previous film that revived the franchise, “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” which had a $45 million opening amid the pandemic.
‘Ghostbusters’ Franchise Heading To $1 Billion With ‘Frozen Empire’; Sydney Sweeney Nun Movie ‘Immaculate’ Also Going Wide – Box Office Preview
Sony’s $100M sequel to Ghostbusters: Afterlife— Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire— is looking at an opening at $45M, give or take. The previous installment, released during the pandemic in 2021, which was directed by Jason Reitman and produced by the late Ghostbusters filmmaker Ivan Reitman, opened to $44M and legged out to $129M domestic. Currently through four movies the Ghostbusters franchise stands at $945.2M; the fifth title will easily put the brand past the $1 billion mark if not this weekend, shortly thereafter.
Korea Box Office: ‘Exhuma’ Dominates for Fourth Weekend, Hits $67 Million
Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The South Korean box office had a familiar look. Dark drama, “Exhuma” dominated the chart with a more than 50% market share for the fourth weekend in a row. And, for the third successive weekend, “Dune 2” placed second. “Exhuma,” about two shaman, a feng shui master and a mortician who attempt to reverse the mysterious events happening to a U.S.-based Korean family, earned $5.80 million between Friday and Sunday.