The Disney blockbuster became just the fourth film to open above $200m in the US. Aside from The Force Awakens ($248.8m), the others are The Avengers ($207.4m) and Jurassic World ($208.8m).

The Last Jedi is off to a similar start overseas, too, with $230m in international ticket sales, said Disney. That brings its three-day global haul to $450m. The film topped the box-office charts in a number of territories, including the UK, Germany and Japan.

The opening also gave the Walt Disney Company the opportunity to flex its muscles on the heels of the deal announced last week for it to purchase 21st Century Fox for $52.4bn. As part of the deal, Disney will take control of 20th Century Fox, one of Hollywood’s six major studios.

“The weekend that we’re in is a byproduct of the foresight and vision from our CEO Bob Iger to bring Lucasfilm into the fold,” said Disney distribution chief Dave Hollis, alluding to Disney’s 2012 purchase of Lucasfilm. “So as we think about the possibility of other things being added, you can’t help but be excited about the possibilities.”

Fox, as it happens, was the only studio to open another new wide-release film against The Last Jedi in the US. Its animated comedy, Ferdinand, grossed $13.3m. Another family film, Pixar’s Coco, took third place, bringing its four-week total to over $150m.

While JJ Abrams’ reboot capitalised on a decade’s hiatus for Star Wars, Johnson’s sequel didn’t have the same benefit of freshness. It follows not only The Force Awakens (which ultimately grossed $2.1bn) but last year’s spinoff, Rogue One. That release opened with $155.1m, and grossed in total just more than $1bn globally. Critics gave Johnson’s film a 93% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences endorsed it, too, with an A CinemaScore.

Signalling its faith in Johnson’s course for Star Wars, Lucasfilm earlier announced that Johnson will develop the next trilogy for the franchise, the first of which he’ll write and direct. Abrams is set to return to direct Episode IX after he was brought in to replace Colin Trevorrow. A separate spinoff, centred on a young Han Solo, is due out next summer.

The massive debut for The Last Jedi singlehandedly brightens what has been a disappointing year for Hollywood. The weekend was far and away the highest grossing of the year. According to comScore, the industry was down about 3.9% from last year, before this weekend. Now it’s 2.9% off the 2016 pace. Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for comScore, estimates the year will end about 2% down with a little over $11bn in ticket sales.

–

Source: Guardian UK

The post Star Wars: The Last Jedi scores second-biggest film opening ever appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

“The Magnificent Seven,” the Oscar-winner’s first western, topped the box office, picking up a solid $35 million.

Hollywood’s star system has shriveled in the past decade, with few new talents emerging to reanimate the ranks and stand alongside Leo and Julia and Johnny and George and Brad. Some of their stars have dimmed, but Washington’s still shines brightly. He hasn’t had a film open to less than $20 million since 2007’s “The Great Debaters.”

He’ll be back on screens at the end of the year in “Fences,” an adaptation of August Wilson’s play, that he directs and stars in alongside Viola Davis. It is expected to be an Oscar contender.

“The Magnificent Seven” easily snagged the crown from “Sully,” the retelling of the “Miracle on the Hudson” landing that topped the box office for two weeks. The drama slid to third place with $13.8 million, bringing its stateside total to a healthy $92.4 million.

“Storks,” an animated comedy from Warner Bros., came in second with $21.8 million. It’s a disappointing result given that the picture had been tracking to open to $30 million or higher. The film centers on a group of storks who have transitioned from baby delivering to hauling packed for an e-commerce behemoth. Andy Samberg, Kelsey Grammer, Jennifer Aniston, Keegan-Michael Key, and Jordan Peele are among the recognizable voices providing some of the film’s aural texture. The film cost $70 million to produce and is part of Warner Bros. effort to reinvigorate its animation division after the studio scored a hit with 2014’s “The Lego Movie.” It had more or less abandoned the genre to the likes of Disney and DreamWorks Animation, before undergoing a course correction.

“The Magnificent Seven’s” success is welcome news for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, which was body checked this summer after “Ben-Hur,” its $100 million-plus Biblical epic, collapsed at the box office, resulting in at least $70 million in losses for the studio and its production co-financiers. Earlier this month, MGM reduced its annual profit projections by roughly $50 million because of “Ben-Hur’s” failure.

But “The Magnificent Seven” counts as a win for the company. It also proves the viability of remaking older films, provided their is some novel spin to provide. In this case, Washington and director Antoine Fuqua, were able to stage balletic shootouts that rivaled those in John Sturges’ original 1960 film. They also played up the diversity of their cast, rounding out the cast of mercenaries with South Korean actor Byung-hun Lee, Mexican actor Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, and Native American actor Martin Sensmeier. That multi-cultural aspect seemed to resonate in a post-#OscarsSoWhite era. Sony Pictures distributed “The Magnificent Seven” and teamed with MGM, LStar Capital, and Village Roadshow to finance the $90 million production.

“Bridget Jones’s Baby” took fourth place with $4.5 million, pushing the romantic comedy’s domestic total to a lackluster $16.5 million after two weeks of release. “Blair Witch” rounded out the top five, earning just under $4 million and bringing its total to roughly $16 million.

In limited release, “The Dressmaker,” an Australian comedy with Kate Winslet, opened to $180,522 in 38 locations. Broad Green is distributing the film on behalf of Amazon Studios. Disney’s “Queen of Katwe,” an inspirational drama about a chess prodigy from Uganda, debuted in 55 theaters to $305,000. It will expand next weekend to roughly 1,500 locations.

–

Source: Reuters

The post ‘Magnificent Seven’ hits bullseye with $35 million debut appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.