CinemaCon: Worldwide Box Office Headed for Marginal Decline in 2024, Says Report

EXCLUSIVE: Rotterdam competition title Small Hours of the Night from Daniel Hui (Demons, Snakeskin) and SXSW premiere Adrianne & The Castle by Shannon Walsh (The Gig is Up, Illusions of Control) have landed international reputation via non-fiction agency Indox. 

The Tribeca Festival on Tuesday announced its lineup of short narrative, documentary, and animated films, as well as music videos for 2024.

Refresh for latest…: For the fourth weekend in a row, Warner Bros/Legendary Entertainment’s Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire was the top studio movie at the global and international box office. While it’s true there have not been a whole lot of wide releases on a worldwide level since the start of the year, it’s heartening to see continued play for the big titles. 

Fifth in a series on broadcast network series renewals. As the CW transformation’s under new owners Nexstar continues with the addition of sports as well as acquired scripted series and international co-productions, questions are persisting about the fate of the last remaining dramas from the “old” CW.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Fantasy action movie “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” retook the top spot at the mainland China box office from Studio Ghibli animation title “The Boy and the Heron” during the latest weekend. “Godzilla x Kong” recorded earnings of $7.3 million (RMB51.5 million) between Friday and Sunday, a 32% week-on-week drop, according to data from consultancy firm Artisan Gateway. But it returned to the top spot on the box office charts in its fourth weekend of release and overtook “The Boy and the Heron” in the process.

Refresh for latest…: As it crossed the $1B international box office milestone this past weekend, Warner Bros again owned the frame with Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire and its third session haul of $33.7M from 71 markets. That was good for a 47% drop from the previous weekend and lifts the overseas cume to $278.6M and global to $436.6M. Meanwhile, WB and Legendary’s other major title in the marketplace, Dune: Part Two, now has a shot at getting to $700M worldwide.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Oscar-winning Japanese animated fantasy “The Boy and the Heron” held on to top spot at the mainland China box office to record a second weekend win. The film, which opened triumphantly on April 3, in time for a family-oriented long weekend, fell steeply in its second, non-holiday, frame. It earned $12.8 million (RMB90.6 million), according to data from consultancy firm Artisan Gateway.

Led by Dune: Part Two and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, Warner Bros has crossed the $1B mark at the international box office, becoming the first studio to reach the milestone this year. Getting there in just 15 weeks, this also sets a new speed record for WB, besting the 17 weeks it took in 2018. The full international estimate through today is $1.04B.

EXCLUSIVE: Isabel J Kim’s debut novel Sublimation, which has been causing quite a stir in publishing and television circles, has landed at Universal International Studios.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent In what looks to be another robust year in the making, the 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival will bring together several iconic filmmakers, including Francis Ford Coppola with “Megalopolis” starring Adam Driver, George Miller with “Furiosa” starring Anya Taylor-Joy, as well as George Lucas who will be feted with an honorary Palme d’Or. Kevin Costner will also be on hand with the first installment of his Western epic “Horizon, an American Saga.” Hollywood may have a lighter presence due to a combination of factors – including last year’s actors and writers strikes, which created production delays, as well as a tough economy — but this year’s festival will see no shortage of glamor and stars on the red carpet.

Katcy Stephan Two-time Oscar winner Renée Zellweger is set to return to one of her most beloved roles in Universal Pictures’ and Working Title’s “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy,” an adaptation of Helen Fielding’s best-selling novel. Hugh Grant and Emma Thompson are confirmed to return alongside franchise newcomers Chiwetel Ejiofor and Leo Woodall. The film will be directed by Michael Morris (“To Leslie,” “Better Call Saul”).

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.

Refresh for latest…: A busy holdover weekend for wide studio releases was led by the trio of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, Kung Fu Panda 4 and Dune: Part Two. And, in a soaring performance, Hayao Miyazaki’s Oscar winner The Boy and the Heron swooped into China helping the market set a new Qingming holiday record. 

Following a slightly stronger than projected first quarter at the international box office, and with some titles added to the release calendar later in the year, Gower Street Analytics has increased its global box office projection for 2024 to $32.3B.

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.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Italy’s Cinecittà Studios, which have been undergoing a radical overhaul since 2021, recently released their fiscal 2023 results, which saw the Rome-based facilities turn a profit for the second year in a row after bleeding red ink for years. The iconic studios are being managed by Nicola Maccanico, a former Warner Bros.

Naman Ramachandran Amazon has struck a deal that will see premium Lionsgate and Starz programming made available to to MGM+ customers in the U.K. Lionsgate+ subscribers who joined via Prime Video Channels in the U.K.

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.

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.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” stomped to the top of box office charts, collecting a better-than-expected $80 million from 3,861 North American theaters in its debut. Heading into the weekend, the monster mashup was projected to earn $50 million to $55 million to start. But “Godzilla x Kong,” which sees the two otherworldly beasts team up to save the planet, trounced those projections after benefitting from several factors, including audience enthusiasm (it landed an “A-” CinemaScore”) and premium large formats (accounting for 48% of ticket sales).