Specialty Box Office: ‘Bling Ring’ Sparkles With A Haute Debut
Brian Brooks is a Deadline contributor.
Some said that opening opposite a juggernaut like Man Of Steel would be box office suicide, but not everyone went for the obligatory tentpole. After a splash earlier this year with Harmony Korine’s Spring Breakers ($263K opening, 3 theaters in March) A24 once again found box office gold with youth gone awry formula, this time via Sofia Coppola‘s The Bling Ring. The Cannes Un Certain Regard debut opened in just five theaters, grossing $210K. The distributor was clearly pleased, noting that Bling is Coppola’s highest opening since Oscar-winning Lost In Translation. Said A24 Sunday: “Sofia Coppola’s latest and greatest has certainly entered the zeitgeist and we look forward to capitalizing on this great success as we expand nationwide next weekend. It is the highest opening for a Sofia Coppola film since Lost in Translation and played to sold-out crowds in NY and LA on Friday and Saturday with the highest per screen average of the weekend.”
RADiUS also had a solid weekend with its Sundance & True/False Film Festival crowd pleaser 20 Feet From Stardom. The doc opened 3 runs, grossing over $52K. The TWC label said Sunday: “The opening night film from this year’s Sundance Film Festival and winner of several coveted audience awards at high profile film festivals (Seattle, San Francisco and New Orleans) has received outstanding reviews (97% on Rotten Tomatoes with a 100% ‘liked it’ rating), played to sold out theaters and standing ovations at many screenings. The film, which shines a spotlight on the untold true stories of backup singers behind some of the greatest music over the last 50 years, opened with a significantly higher per screen average than comparable titles like Searching For Sugarman. Exceptional word of mouth in tandem with a robust publicity campaign positions the movie well as it rolls out into the top 50 markets over the next several weeks.” 20 Feet sold out four screenings last night at the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center on Saturday, the venue’s 2nd anniversary.
Also among openers this weekend was Call Me Kuchu from Cinedigm. The film opened in one theater, grossing $3,200. Next, the feature will head to L.A. before heading to a total of 5-10 markets. Nuke doc Pandora’s Promise bowed in 16 theaters with a slim $1,276 average, likely owing to the subject matter and a lovely Saturday in New York. The film opened exclusively Wednesday at the Sunshine in the Lower East Side before rolling out in additional theaters over the Father’s Day weekend. It will move into another half dozen markets next week. China’s box office star So Young took on a North American debut in three theaters, though with less gusto than at home. It grossed $5K. In China, the college coming-of-age story opened with $53M in its first weekend, rivaling Iron Man 3.
Joss Whedon‘s Much Ado About Nothing headed into 18 additional runs, grossing a decent $162,580 for a $7K-plus PSA. The black and white Shakespeare update opened with a $36,680 average in 5 locations last weekend. Sundance Selects added 10 runs for doc Dirty Wars in its second weekend, grossing over $50K for a $3,600 average. The acclaimed non-fiction opened with a $16,500 average in 4 theaters a week ago.
In its third round, Fox Searchlight’s The East added 74 theaters in 17 new markets, grossing $285K. The film will head to another 50-55 additional cities in North America June 21st. “We are satisfied with this weekend’s per screen average for this very well reviewed film, and hope to gain good word of mouth as we slowly roll out the film,” said Searchlight SVP Frank Rodriguez. “The East is an articulate and thought-provoking film which can be viewed as an alternative in the marketplace at this point.”
NEW
20 Feet From Stardom (RADiUS-TWC) NEW [3 Theaters] Weekend $52,211, Average $17,403
The Bling Ring (A24) NEW [3 Theaters] Weekend $210,001, Average $42K
Call Me Kuchu (Cinedigm) NEW [1 Theater] Weekend $3,200
Pandora’s Promise (Abramorama) [16 Theaters] Weekend $20,421, Average $1,276, Cume $21,342 (Wed. open)
So Young (China Lion) NEW [3 Theaters] Weekend $5K, Average $1,666
Returning / 2nd Weekend
Dirty Wars (Sundance Selects) Week 2 [14 Theaters] Weekend $50,400, Average $3,600, Cume $149,220
Much Ado About Nothing (Roadside Attractions/Lionsgate) Week 2 [23 Theaters], Weekend $162,580, Average $7,068, Cume $389,612
Wish You Were Here (Entertainment One) Week 2 [6 Theaters] Weekend $5,444, Average $907, Cume $41,189
Holdovers / 3RD+ Weekends
The East (Fox Searchlight) Week 3 [115 Theaters] Weekend $285K, Average $2,478, Cume $706K
Hannah Arendt (Zeitgeist Films) Week 3 [6 Theaters] Weekend $26,509, Average $4,419 Cume $153,014
The Kings Of Summer (CBS Films) Week 3 [63 Theaters] Weekend $142K, Average $2,254, Cume $533,944
Before Midnight (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 4 [897 Theaters] Weekend $1,525,912, Average $1,701, Cume $3,198,161
Fill The Void (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 4 [18 Theaters] Weekend $87,232, Average $4,846, Cume $389,630
We Steal Secrets (FocusWorld) Week 4 [11 Theaters] Weekend $10,884, Average $989, Cume $158,484
Frances Ha (IFC Films) Week 5 [214 Theaters] Weekend $321K, Average $1,500, Cume $2,921,000
Stories We Tell (Roadside Attractions) Week 6 [63 Theaters] Weekend $79,500, Average $63, Cume $1,140,303
The Iceman (Millennium Entertainment) Week 7 [30 Theaters] Weekend $16,089, Average $536, Cume $1,901,015
Love Is All You Need (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 7 [72 Theaters] Weekend $104,578, Average $1,452, Cume $1,173,387
Scatter My Ashes At Bergdorf’s (Entertainment One) Week 7 [14 Theaters] Weekend $11,624, Average $830, Cume $454,632
What Maisie Knew (Millennium Entertainment) Week 7 [51 Theaters] Weekend $52,942, Average $1,038, Cume $899,952
Kon-Tiki (The Weinstein Company) Week 8 [70 Theaters] Weekend $69K, Average $986, Cume $1,204,487
Mud (Roadside Attractions/Lionsgate) Week 8 [405 Theaters] Weekend $494,500, Average $1,210, Cume $19,516,525
The Place Beyond The Pines (Focus Features) Week 12 [78 Theaters] Weekend $30,922, Average $396, Cume $21,306,587
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