2021 At The Box Office (1 Viewer)

[Tino]

Kong vs Godzilla will apparently be the first bonafide “blockbuster” since the pandemic began.

 

[Jake Lipson]

It will be interesting to see what that means gross-wise in this environment where many people still aren't comfortable returning to theaters.

 

[Tino]

I know it’s anecdotal and useless data but many of the upcoming IMAX and Dolby Cinema showings at my local AMC are selling out.

 

[TravisR]

I know it’s anecdotal and useless data but many of the upcoming IMAX and Dolby Cinema showings at my local AMC are selling out.

Same meaningless anecdotal evidence but at my local AMC, all but one Kong show is sold out until Saturday (and undoubtedly both Saturday and Sunday will all sell out too).

Hell, Nobody had a ton of sold-out shows last weekend.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

I think "GvK" is helped by the fact so many school systems are on spring break right now.

Plus as noted, it's the first A-list movie to hit since restrictions have started to really loosen, vaccines get into arms, and theaters reopen in places they've been closed for a loooong time!

 

[Jake Lipson]

Charts with Dan for this week:

 

[Malcolm R]

Godzilla vs. Kong at $16.3 million for Wed/Thurs. Expands to over 3,000 theaters this weekend.

Drive-ins are starting to open in northern states and some theaters are still on limited hours/weekends only, so the film should have a pretty good weekend.

 

[Tino]

‘Godzilla Vs. Kong’ Propels Domestic Box Office Out Of Pandemic Depression With $48.5M 5-Day Opening

Sunday AM FINAL: Whoever said moviegoing was bound to stay dead, or that streaming has won, needs to go back to business school. Because a big event movie plus a holiday weekend, along with LA &amp…

deadline.com

 

[Jake Lipson]

A $42 million five-day will make Godzilla v. Kong the highest domestic grosser of the year, outpacing Tom and Jerry.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

And look at that, it had the highest opening of the year and was on HBO Max for free simultaneously. The new business model might actually work!

 

[TravisR]

And look at that, it had the highest opening of the year and was on HBO Max for free simultaneously. The new business model might actually work!

To be fair, this is not a normal example. Larger numbers of people are finally starting to be able to safely go out for the first time in over a year and this is the first big movie since widespread vaccinations started so I think the movie's theatrical success is more about people finally going out and doing normal things again than anything else. If they keep the simultaneous release going in a year or two or five, I think it's inevitable that it will completely gut the theaters because it will be normal to stay home and watch a movie over going out.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I agree that we don’t know exactly what this means yet other than that people want to go out.

But I do think that the divide between people who regularly go to the movies and people who rarely or never go has only grown in recent years, and that the two groups are nearly mutually exclusive. I think there are some people who will go to the movies and it won’t matter if the movie is streaming at the same time, and I think there are some people who won’t go to the movies and it wouldn’t matter if the tickets were free. I’m no longer convinced that it makes sense to treat the entirety of the audience as if it’s one monolithic group when it may not be.

Put it this way: you can watch any football game at home for free, and the (hugely expensive) tickets for in-person attendance still sell out. They’re two different audiences.

 

[Jeff Adkins]

I agree that we don’t know exactly what this means yet other than that people want to go out.

But I do think that the divide between people who regularly go to the movies and people who rarely or never go has only grown in recent years, and that the two groups are nearly mutually exclusive. I think there are some people who will go to the movies and it won’t matter if the movie is streaming at the same time, and I think there are some people who won’t go to the movies and it wouldn’t matter if the tickets were free. I’m no longer convinced that it makes sense to treat the entirety of the audience as if it’s one monolithic group when it may not be.

That's true, but at the same time I don't believe the people in the "stay-at-home" group will only watch a new movie if it streams at the same time as the theatrical release. I think these people would still be watching on a 45 day window.

 

[Malcolm R]

Weekend Top 5 from The Numbers:

G vs. K takes in about 75% of this weekend's total domestic box office, and in its first five days becomes the third-highest grossing film released during the pandemic (behind Tenet [$57 million] and The Croods: A New Age [$56 million]). G vs. K will become the top pandemic release within the next few days. A combination of pent up demand for a big event film and more theaters opening likely also boosted early numbers.

G vs. K also has a worldwide first week total of $190 million.

Warner Bros is dominating the box office for 2021 so far, as the only major studio regularly releasing new titles:

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Studios and exhibitors both have to be really happy with that opening weekend. I think Black Widow will do even better in July; more people will have been vaccinated, theater capacities will likely increase, and there's no free option on Disney+. It will still hurt a little bit with families willing to pay one price at home, but $17 at the theater versus $30 at home is a no brainer for most others.

 

[Jake Lipson]

It will still hurt a little bit with families willing to pay one price at home, but $17 at the theater versus $30 at home is a no brainer for most others.

You are likely right that the movie will do better in July, but there are some people who still aren't ready to return yet. I am currently in between vaccine doses, so I know that I will be fully vaccinated by the time Black Widow rolls around. But I am also high risk. I really wish I could justify going to the theater for it because I miss doing that. However, due to the recent rise in cases, removal of mask mandates where I live, and new COVID variants swirling around, I will not be ready yet to go back.

So Disney isn't losing any box office dollars from me by putting it on Disney+. If it was a theatrical exclusive, I would wait until the Blu-ray came out and do a blind buy of it. By putting it on Disney+ in July, they are going to be getting money from me then so I can watch it immediately, and then they will also get Blu-ray money in due course when that comes out. So the Disney+ offer is an additive for Disney. The theaters would not have gotten any money from me on it regardless, which is why I think it makes sense to do what they're doing.

I also think the $30 is reasonable because unlike what other studios are doing, it is not a limited time rental. My access will be unlimited after I pay for it. Back pre-COVID, I paid more than $30 to see Endgame and Far From Home for times each while they were in theaters, so $30 flat with the potential to rewatch it seems like a good deal for me in my situation.

Last year, I could not have comprehended a situation in which I did not go to a movie in a theater for this long. It was my most frequent hobby. So at that time I was all for delaying films into 2021 because I thought it would mean I felt safe going to them in a theatrical setting. Since we're now deep into 2021 and I still don't feel safe doing that, I have gotten to the point where I have begrudgingly accepted that I will see them on my television. Now, I am just glad things are going to be available for me to watch at the same time so that we can both participate in the opening weekend discussion and I don't have to wait.

 

[Malcolm R]

Updated G vs. K worldwide numbers from Deadline:

After logging the best pandemic-era start for a Hollywood movie at the international box office last weekend, Warner Bros/Legendary’s Godzilla Vs Kong has punched up $285.4M worldwide through Sunday.


The overseas running total, which added $76.1M (a great -39% hold) this weekend, is $236.9M, giving GVK bragging rights as the quickest studio movie released during Covid to hit the $200M international milestone, doing so in 12 days versus Tenet’s 24. The global cume similarly makes GVK the fastest studio title released during Covid to get to the two-century mark.


All in all, it’s good news for the monsters — but also for the industry as markets become more stable and audiences reiterate their desire to see films on the big screen. In short order, GVK will top $300M worldwide.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

After all the "theaters are toast!" doom 'n' gloom of the last 12 months, it's nice to finally see some good news!

 

[Jake Lipson]

Charts with Dan for this week:

 

[Tino]

(1)Godzilla vs. KongWarner Bros.$13,380,000-58%3,084+20$4,339$69,500,00022(3)NobodyUniversal$2,650,000-12%2,400-167$1,104$15,627,13533(2)The UnholySony Pict…$2,400,000-24%1,850n/c$1,297$6,731,87824(4)Raya and the Last DragonWalt Disney$2,140,000+5%1,941-90$1,103$35,240,41165NVoyagersLionsgate$1,350,000 1,972 $685$1,350,00016(5)Tom and JerryWarner Bros.$1,110,000-22%1,826-447$608$41,122,0007-(8)Chaos WalkingLionsgate$265,000-28%1,300-305$204$12,674,6556-(11)The MarksmanOpen Road$120,000-22%281-180$427$15,214,80413-(-)MinariA24$118,000+8%555-7$213$2,260,00018-(12)Wonder Woman 1984Warner Bros.$92,000-32%972-39$95$46,257,00016-(14)The Little ThingsWarner Bros.$90,000-18%205-121$439$15,160,00011-(-)Wrong TurnSaban Films$34,764-6%48-36$724$1,064,09711-(-)The War with Grandpa101 Studios$25,155+16%255-33$99$21,109,44027-(-)Judas and the Black M…Warner Bros.$22,000-8%655-10$34$5,281,0009-NMoffieIFC Films$15,000 51 $294$15,0001-(-)Lamb of God: The Conc…Purdie Di…$12,826-77%46-36$279$706,9215-(-)City of LiesSaban Films$11,143+34%19-5$586$565,6614 17$23,835,888