‘Star Wars: Rise Of Skywalker’ Counts $362M Through 10 Days, -2% Behind ‘Last Jedi’; ‘Little Women’ All Grown Up With $29M 5-Day

Anthony D'Alessandro

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Sunday AM writethru after Saturday AM post. Final with chart: Throughout Friday, most industry estimates showed Disney’s Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker beating Last Jedi in its 10th day of release (on Sunday) by $12.8M. But they retreated significantly on their forecasts with the ninth-quel showing a reported running total of $361.8M through 10 days, $6.3M behind Last Jedi at the same point in time. Still, that’s a pretty powerful piece of business and one that exhibition shouldn’t be complaining about. Skywalker‘s weekend per Disney is $72M, -59% (a much better hold than Last Jedi‘s second weekend -68% drop), after a Saturday that was $25.3M, -3%. Five-day came in at $134.75M. The industry confidence is that Skywalker will end its domestic run around where Last Jedi was with $620.1M).

Anecdotally, the 6PM show of Skywalker at the Naples, Florida Paragon Pavilion was sold out Friday night; fans locally celebrating the ninth-quel with balloon constructions in the lobby. Imax screens drove $13M amount of business over the 5-day stretch, $6.8M over FSS for a new domestic total of $35.8M.

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Between Jumanji: The Next Level‘s third weekend boom of $35.3M (+33%; 5-day of $59M) and Little Women‘s 3-day of $16.5M and 5-day opening of $29M, Sony is having a fantastic post-Christmas weekend at the box office, able to counter-program Disney monoliths Skywalker and Frozen 2 (5-day $26.1M) with family-driven product. Note the 5-day opening of Little Women completely outstrips the entire domestic reboot of Sony’s Charlie’s Angels ($17.7M). While a completely different comp demo and genre wise, just similar numbers, Little Women‘s 5-day is also very close to $29.6M that Baby Driver racked up over the same period during the July 4th 2017 stretch. Wow.

For a tired piece of IP like Little Women (sorry, but the Sony 1994 version was a snooze), Greta Gerwig has truly re-energized the property with a modern day spin and young stars who appeal to a variety of females, i.e. Saoirse Ronan and Laura Dern (sophisticated adult female moviegoers), Emma Watson (all females and Harry Potter fans), Florence Pugh, and Call Me By Your Name Oscar nominee Timothee Chalamet (both are very much on the rise, with Pugh set to further explode next year in Marvel’s Black Widow, and Chalamet starring in Legendary/Warner Bros.’ big pic next Christmas, Dune).

Overall, RelishMix screams that Watson is the social media star for this Regency co-production pic, with over 116M followers across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram sharing Little Women materials. Watson reps close to 70% of the film’s total 168.3M social media universe across all social portals. Even talk show clips, such as this one from Late Night with Seth Meyers last month, where Watson was discussed (in this case, by Chalamet) racked up views, this segment with 1M+ on YouTube:

Back in late October, the awards campaign kicked off for Little Women, with overflow screenings at the DGA theater in LA (and notable media reporters getting initially boxed out — that’s not a ding, rather speaks to the heavy want-to-see for the film).

“Positive conversation indicates that the target audience has been made aware and are making plans to see Little Women. The campaign has done a fine job of reaching them on a lot of different points, all of which are sellable,” reports RelishMix. Chalamet, Meryl Streep, the pic’s music are getting shout-outs from “feminists and fans” of the novel, “which support that this dramatic interpretation of the beloved book has a lot working in its favor,” says RelishMix. After largely being overlooked by the Screen Actors Guild, with Gerwig being snubbed by the Golden Globes, the hope here is that the glow from Little Women‘s box office impacts its awards season conversation for the better.

Fox/Blue Sky/Disney’s Spies in Disguise continued to perform solid for an animated pic that’s bringing in 51% 10-12 year olds, and 43% 7-9 year olds per PostTrak, looking at $13.2M over 3-days, $22.1M over 5-days.

Spies in Disguise‘s 5-day number beats the first five days of Blue Sky’s Ferdinand (which opened in the pre-Christmas period in 2017 with $16.4M) and it bests the Wednesday-Monday 6-day Christmas stretch which earned $13.1M. The social media universe for the animated pic was huge across FB, Twitter, IG, Facebook and YouTube views at 342M (across 22 clips) with a further boost by Will Smith’s followers (117.8M) and Tom Holland’s (37.4M) who are actively engaged. Pic’s SMU is just 1% above the average for an animated family feature prior to a pic’s opening.

“Discussion on social for Spies is very similar to the Angry Birds films and Addams Family from the Halloween season. Despite critical reaction or anti-animation sentiment, most parents and kids are gravitating toward the materials from Spies. The target audience likes the throwaway lines, the catchy trailer music and Smith’s voiced-antics,” says RelishMix.

One notable promo clip comes from Will Smith’s YT handle, with 7M views, in which Smith takes Holland to an Escape Room. “The 11-minute-long adventure entails Smith meeting his Spies co-star Holland for the first time. Despite co-starring in this family/animated adventure, Smith and Holland were interacting from afar – and, per the Kimmel interview, it was only recently that the two stars were in a physical room together despite ‘acting’ together in Spies for over two years. It’s a fun spot. It’s another phenomenal demonstration of how dedicated Smith is to the promotion of his films, and it has fans attention on opening weekend,” says RelishMix.

A24’s Uncut Gems has had great daily streak with $3.32M on Friday, $3.37 on Saturday, and solid Sunday near $2.9M for a $9.55M, 3-day and 5-day of its wide release at $18.86M. Uncut Gems in its first 5 days of wide release has surpassed the entire domestic total of Sandler’s other notable dramatic turn, Paul Thomas Anderson’s Punch Drunk Love ($17.8M) even though that movie was release 17 years ago. Like Sony’s Little Women, hopefully the good vibes at the B.O. for this dark action fueled pic spills over into the awards conversation for the film and Adam Sandler which was ignored by the Golden Globes and SAGs. The pic is a great 180 for him, sans any hints of Billy Madison, Waterboy or Happy Gilmore in his performance as a diamond salesman living on the edge. “The consensus seems to be that Uncut Gems is worth a watch to see if the performance by Sandler teased in the film’s official materials really is that good. And there seems to be other elements, from the co-stars to the authentic- feeling story, that are worth the viewing outside of Sandler’s starring turn. And, for those who have seen early screenings, they say the film is definitely as advertised,” reports RelishMix about the Safdie Brothers-directed pic. Social media star wattage is potent, with Sandler, Idina Menzel and NBA player Kevin Garnett reaching over 66M followers on their handles.

“The very core of the film is Adam Sandler as you’ve never seen him – and so the campaign is keeping it close to the vest, with just one official trailer supported by Sandler doing an immense amount of PR and interviews over the past month. While the campaign may have a straightforward approach, social convo and engagement suggest the job’s been done effectively,” says RelishMix. Pic’s official trailer has a viral video rate of 56:1, but that’s because only one trailer was dropped. Social media universe of 128M is solid enough and in sync for that of a drama thriller.

Other shoutouts this weekend go to Universal/DreamWorks WWI Sam Mendes movie 1917 which made $570K at 11 locations (a $51,8K per screen) for $1M 5-day launch. LA’s Arclight and NY’s Lincoln Square were leading the charge with other locations like LA’s Landmark, Century City, NY’s Union Square and locales in Chicago, San Francisco, Toronto and DC putting up solid numbers. The pic earned an A CinemaScore and is 90% Certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. Pic goes wide on Jan. 10 and is poised to make $20M at that point in time.

Warner Bros. Just Mercy posted $110K over 3-days, $228K over 5 for with mostly respectable numbers at NY’s Lincoln Square, Union Square and LA’s Arclight, however, the latter city’s AMC Century City was leading the bunch. Pic has an A+ CinemaScore in limited polling.

Also, as we said earlier: Knives Out flew past the $100M over the holiday stretch seeing a great 50% lift in its fifth weekend. Worldwide the Rian Johnson-directed movie is at $214.8M; again just great for original middle-budget fare at the box office.

Chart per Sunday AM studio-reported estimates ranked by 5-day:

1.) Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker (Dis) 4,406 theaters Fri $26.2M/Sat $25.3M/Sun $20.47M/3-day: $72M (-59%)/5-day: $134.75M/Cume: $362.6M/Wk 2

2.) Jumanji: Next Level (Sony) 4,227 theaters Fri $11.7M/Sat $12.4M/Sun $11.1M/3-day $35.3M (+33%)/5-day $59M/Cume: $175.4M/Wk 3

3.) Little Women (Sony) 3,308 theaters Fri $5.8M/Sat $5.74M/Sun $5M/3-day $16.5M/5-day $29M/Wk 1

4) Frozen 2 (Dis) 3265 theaters (-600), Fri $6M/Sat $5.8M/ Sun $4.6M/3 day: $16.5M (+27%)/5-day: $26.1M/Cume: $421.2M/Wk 6

5.) Spies in Disguise (Fox/Dis) 3,502 theaters Fri $4.6M/Sat $4.77M/Sun $3.79M/3-day $13.2M/5-day $22.1M/Wk 1

6.) Uncut Gems (A24) 2,341 theaters (+2336) Fri $3.3M/Sat $3.3M/Sun $2.9M/3-day $9.55M (+3863%)/5-day $18.86M/Cume $20M/Wk 3

7.) Knives Out (LG/MRC) 2022 theaters (-513), Fri $3.3M/Sat $3.5M/Sun $2.86M/3-day $9.7M (+50%)/5-day $16.6M/Cume: $110.2M/Wk 5

8.) Cats (Uni) 3,380 theaters/Fri $1.7M /Sat $1.69M/ Sun $1.4M /3-day $4.8M (-27%)/5-day $8.76M/Cume $17.8M/Wk 2

9.) Bombshell (LG) 1480 theaters (+1476), Fri $1.6M /Sat $1.75M/ Sun $1.33M/3-day $4.7M (-8%)/5-day $8.3M/Cume $15.6M/Wk 3

10.) Richard Jewell (WB) 2502 theaters, Fri $1.06M /Sat $1.1M/ Sun $835K/3-day $3M (+17%)/5-day $5.4M/Cume $16.1M/Wk 3

Friday AM Update: Another big day for Disney’s Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker, with a Dec. 26 estimated gross of $30.7M, -4% from Christmas Day. Industry sources are forecasting that through the ninth-quel’s first ten days by Sunday, the J.J. Abrams-directed movie will hit $380.9M, pacing 3% ahead of Last Jedi at the same point in time. Pretty impressive for a pic we dinged for having a slow start. Skywalker‘s Dec. 26 bests that of Last Jedi‘s ($27.7M) and is just under Rogue One‘s $32M, which was on the Monday after a Christmas Sunday.

Sony’s Little Women is doing great, with a $6M Thursday, -6% from Christmas, on its way to a $27.8M 5-day. The Greta Gerwig-directed reboot of the Louisa May Alcott novel scored 5 stars on Comscore/Screen Engine’s PostTrak among general audiences and parents (but kids under 12 were sleepy at 2 1/2 stars). General audiences made up 83% of Little Women‘s audience, with 17% families. Females over 25 led the charge, making up close to 50%, with men over 25 at 30%, females under 25 at 13% (who gave the pic a perfect score of 100%) and men under 25 at 9%. Diversity breakdown was 73% Caucasian, 15% Asian/Other, 7% Hispanic, and 5% African American. Little Women played best on the coasts. As expected, Little Women is stealing females away from Cats, which is expected to end its 10-day run on Sunday with $18.1M, 53% behind The Greatest Showman at the same point in time.

Fox/Disney/Blue Sky’s Spies in Disguise earned an A- CinemaScore, and 3 1/2 stars from general audiences and parents and 4 stars from kids under 12. Industry estimates are $4.1M yesterday, -15%. Business is being driven by 62% males, with an audience that is 70% under 35 with 50% between 18-35 years old. Diversity demos were 42% Caucasian, 29% Asian/Other, 16% African American and 13% Hispanic. The Blue Sky movie performed the best in the South and the West.

A24’s Uncut Gems posted $3.3M at 2,341, -44% from Christmas Day, for a running total of $10.4M. The pic is racking up solid business, despite its C+ CinemaScore and 2 stars on PostTrak. Why those low scores? It depends on how you view the shocking ending. Males at 65% showed up with 67% under 35, with the largest quad being between 18-24 at 35%. Diversity demos were 65% Caucasian, 12% Asian/Other, 12% African American and 11% Hispanic. The Safdie Brothers movie played best on the coasts, however, much better in the East I hear.

Lionsgate/MRC’s Knives Out passed the century mark yesterday.

Universal/DreamWorks’ 1917 made an estimated $187K yesterday for a 2-day gross of $438K. Warner Bros.’ Just Mercy posted $37K last night, -54% for a 2 day take of $118K.

Updated industry estimates ranked by 5-day gross:

1.) Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker (Dis) 4,406 theaters Wed $32M (+60%)/Th $30.7M (-4%)/3-day: $89.6M (-49%)/5-day: $154M/Cume: $380.9M/Wk 2

2.) Jumanji: Next Level (Sony) 4,227 theaters Wed $12.55M (+84%)/$10.9 Th (-13%) /3-day $30.8M (+16%)/5-day $60M/Cume: $176.3M/Wk 3

3.) Frozen 2 (Dis) 3665 theaters (-413), Wed $4.1M (+21%)/$5.9M Th (+43%)/3 day: $18.5M (+42%)/5-day: $28.3M/Cume: $423.4M/Wk 6

4.) Little Women (Sony) 3,308 theaters Wed. $6.4M/$6M (-6%)/3-day $18M/5-day $27.8M/Wk 1

5.) Spies in Disguise (Fox/Dis) 3,502 theaters Wed. $4.8M/$4.1M Th (-15%)/3-day $13.1M/5-day 22.8M/Wk 1

6.) Uncut Gems (A24) 2,341 theaters (+2336) Wed $5.9M /$3.3M Th (-44%)/3-day $10.9M (+4431%)/5-day $20.1M/Cume $21.3M/Wk 3

7.) Knives Out (LG/MRC) 2535 theaters (-878), Wed $3.7M (+102%)/$3.2M Th (-13%)/3-day $12.7M (+95%)/5-day $20.1M/Cume: $113.8M/Wk 5

8.) Cats (Uni) 3,380 theaters/Wed $2.1M (+97%)/3$1.8M (-15%)/-day $5.1M (-22%)/5-day $9.1M/Cume $18.1M/Wk 2

9.) Bombshell (LG) 1480 theaters (+1476), Wed. $2M (+133%)/$1.6M Th (-22%)/3-day $4.7M (-8%)/5-day $8.3M/Cume $15.7M/Wk 3

10.) Richard Jewell (WB) 2502 theaters, Wed $1.4M (+157%)/$1M Th (-28%)3-day $2,9M (+12%)/5-day $5.3M/Cume $16M/Wk 3

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