La Isla Bonita

'Knight' Snags #2 All-Time Blockbuster Spot

Print Articleposted August 17, 2008 8:45 AM
By Phil Contrino

After weeks of beating almost every record in its path, The Dark Knight is now the #2 highest grossing film of all time.

With an estimated total haul of around $470 million after this weekend, Knight has banked enough to top 1977's Star Wars which previously held the #2 spot with $461 million.

Knight's next milestone is $500 million, which is obtainable within the next two weeks or so. The end of August is never the most successful time of the year, and the Caped Crusader will face less-than-imposing opposition when the likes of The House Bunny, College and Babylon A.D. open in the weeks to come.

As for topping Titanic, which currently holds the #1 spot with $600.8 million, that's probably still a stretch unless Warner Bros. re-releases the film in theatres later this fall before it hits DVD. Another option would be to re-release it theatrically after the Oscar nominations are announced. At this point, Heath Ledger is all but a lock for a nomination in the Best Supporting Actor category and said nomination could provide a surge of interest in the film.

Even if Knight eventually falls shy of the #1 spot, it has already had a very successful run. The film has amassed such impressive records as the highest opening weekend gross and the fastest movie to hit the $400 million mark. Knight has also been a huge success for the IMAX format and it's causing more filmmakers to embrace the format.

'Tropic Thunder' Finishes First

Sunday, August 17
Phil Contrino

According to weekend estimates, Tropic Thunder finished in first place this weekend and ended The Dark Knight's reign at the top of the box office which lasted four weekends.

While Thunder did finish in first, it fell short of the higher expectations many in the industry had for it. Regardless, it should do solid business in the weeks to come as the competition thins out in the last weeks of August.

The Dark Knight was able to fend off two newcomers, Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Mirrors, in order to finish in second place and it also snagged the #2 spot on the list of all-time blockbusters in the process.

Clone Wars finished in a disappointing third place with an estimated $15.5 million. Considering the massive built-in audience that accompanies the Star Wars series, Clone Wars could have done much better.

Mirrors opened with a pretty solid estimated take of $11.1 million in fourth place and it should bring in a decent amount of horror junkies in the weeks to come.

Playing at only 692 locations, Vicky Cristina Barcelona was able to finish in 10th place and if word of mouth is good then it could see its location count increase.

Fly Me to the Moon, the animated 3D flick from Summit, was also able to perform well in limited release. Playing at 452 locations, the film brought in an estimated $2 million and since it represents a different kind of theatrical experience, it could hold steady over the next couple of weeks.

'Mummy,' 'Knight' stay hot overseas; Batman returns to top of foreign box office

By DAVE MCNARY

"The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor" is showing plenty of life outside the U.S.

Amid a healthy foreign frame that saw "The Dark Knight" return to first place, "Dragon Emperor" continued to impress internationally with $32.6 million at 6,853 playdates in 56 markets. Thanks at least in part to its international settings and stars, the third "Mummy" pic has been far more stellar overseas than domestically with a cume of $196.6 million, or 70% of its worldwide total.

"Dragon Emperor" unearthed its top gross from its $7.5 million launch in Japan (including previews), where it finished second to the fifth frame of Hayao Miyazaki's latest sensation, "Ponyo on a Cliff." British biz slid 56% in the second frame to $2.9 million.

With China, Australia and Italy yet to launch, "Dragon Emperor" still has plenty of gas in the tank and will likely finish its foreign run ahead of the $260 million total for 1999's "The Mummy" -- possibly becoming one of the rare pics (such as "The Golden Compass") with an international gross at three times the domestic total.

The Batman frenzy remained strong in international markets as "The Dark Knight" led the frame with $42.4 million at 7,700 playdates in 60 territories thanks to impressive launches in France and Spain. Foreign cume has hit $328.6 million -- nearly double the top international cume among the previous five Batpics, the $166 million for "Batman Begins."

"The Dark Knight" is now the 19th pic to cross the $800 million mark in combined domestic and foreign box office.

France led the way with a $9.6 million launch, followed by a $7.1 million Spanish debut -- both more than double the "Batman Begins" openings. And in a sign of "Knight's" staying power, South Korea's soph sesh declined only 29% to $5 million, while the fourth Brit frame saw a 47% decline to $4.3 million for a Blighty cume of $79.6 million.

The Batpic heads into Germany next frame for its final major-market launch.

U's "Mamma Mia!" also remained an overseas dazzler with $16.8 million at 2,750 in two dozen markets, lifting the foreign take to a surprisingly strong $204.6 million -- becoming the ninth 2008 pic to cross the $200 million milestone. The weekend pushed the studio past its 2007 total of $1.03 billion in international grosses.

"Mamma Mia!" also carries strong future prospects with socko holds and three dozen territories still to open. The feel-good musical came in a solid second in Spain against "The Dark Knight" with a $4.9 million launch including previews; in the U.K., its sixth frame declined only 25% to $4.1 million for a cume of $89.2 million -- the top Brit gross of any 2008 pic.

Frame saw distribs opt mostly for tried-and-true franchise fare, with domestic box office leader "Tropic Thunder" venturing into only two markets -- Russia with $2.2 million at 418, doubling "Knocked Up," and the U.A.E. with a first-place $311,000 at 19.

Par's taking a typical go-slow launch pattern for "Tropic," holding off Euro debuts for another month. Sony's taken a similar approach on "You Don't Mess With the Zohan," which expanded nicely during the frame with $11.2 million at 1,475 in two dozen markets -- led by a $5.4 million first-place launch in Germany in the best Adam Sandler opening for that territory.

Warner Bros. generated only moderate day-and-date biz for "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" with $7.6 million at 3,200 in 22 markets.

The summer's animated titans, Disney's "Wall-E" and Par's "Kung Fu Panda," continued chugging along nicely on the foreign front. "Wall-E," still early in its foreign run, scooped up $13.8 million at 3,824 in 29 territories, including No. 1 launches in Portugal and Thailand, to lift international take to $146.2 million; "Kung Fu Panda" put its paws on $6.3 million at 4,062 in 51 markets to push the foreign cume to $363.5 million.

Though "The Dark Knight" should surpass "Panda" by the end of the month in foreign grosses, the toon is 2008's second highest international grosser. It trails Par's other powerhouse, "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," now at $465 million.