M. Night Shyamalan's Glass smashes straight to number 1 with a strong $4.42 million while Mary Queen of Scots opens in second with a solid $2.69 million. The other releases held generally well this weekend with The Favourite's 43.7% decline being the steepest. Box office takings are up 1.3%.

Here are the top 10 films this week!
1. Glass - $4.42 million - Week 1 - NEW - Total: $4.42 million
2. Mary Queen of Scots - $2.69 million - Week 1 - NEW - Total: $2.69 million
3. Stan & Ollie - $2.31 million - Week 2 - Down 30.2% - Total: $7.86 million
4. Mary Poppins Returns - $2.15 million - Week 5 - Down 25.7% - Total: $52.49 million
5. The Favourite - $1.44 milliom - Week 3 - Down 43.7% - Total: $14.36 million
6. Aquaman - $930,621 - Week 6 - Down 41.4% - Total: $27.65 million
7. Bumblebee - $819,909 - Week 4 - Down 37.1% - Total: $14.97 million
8. Bohemian Rhapsody - $813,641 - Week 13 - Down 37.4% - Total: $65.93 million
9. Ralph Breaks the Internet - $674,767 - Week 8 - Down 18.7% - Total: $22.30 million
10. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse - $648,105 - Week 6 - Down 16.0% - Total: $11.98 million

The Winner
$4.42 million may seem like a lukewarm opening for a film that has been heavily hyped and marketed yet Glass' debut is bigger than the opening weekends of Split ($3.13m) and Unbreakable ($3.29m). Glass also marks the series' second #1 opening - Split was unable to beat La La Land. This is also M Night Shyamalan's fourth chart-topping film in the UK - Glass joins After Earth, Signs and Unbreakable. It had been almost six years since Shyamalan last hit #1 so Glass really does suggest that he is back on top. Unlike Split and Unbreakable, Glass will probably see steep declines in the coming weeks. Its scathing reviews could keep audiences away and a second-week drop above 60% would not be surprising. Glass should be able to crawl towards $10 million. Shyamalan's surprise sequel shouldn't be dismissed so quickly as Split managed to gross $14 million; it would be an unbelievable plot twist but Glass has the potential to hit $15 million. Glass' opening is the second biggest of 2019 so far, coming behind The Favourite's $5.06 million. However, it should be noted that The Favourite did have an inflated debut because of a clever release strategy, technically making Glass's $4.42 million the biggest Friday-Sunday opening gross of 2019 so far. Currently, Glass can be cautiously named a hit for Shyamalan, its cast, Universal and Buena Vista (yes, Disney distributed a 'horror' film). However, Glass' box office narrative could change as quickly as Shyamalan drops a plot twist.

The New Entries
Aside from Glass, the only film to debut in the top ten was Mary Queen of Scots. The Margot Robbie/Saoirse Ronan period drama grossed $2.69 million this weekend, placing it at #2. This is an impressive start for such a small-scale film that has no major awards buzz and has had a mixed response from critics (63% on Rotten Tomatoes). Queen of Scots did receive three BAFTA nominations (Supporting Actress, Makeup/Hair, Costume Design) and two Oscar nominations (Makeup/Hair, Costume Design) - wins in any of those categories would help the film's longevity. It probably helped that Mary Queen of Scots tells the story of a Scottish figure, Mary Stuart; if there was any territory that this film was guaranteed to perform solidly, it was the UK. Mary Queen of Scots almost outperformed the opening weekends of I, Tonya ($1.47m) and Lady Bird ($1.25m) combined! This shows increased audience interest in the film's leads, Margot Robbie and Saoirse Ronan. Another factor could be that Queen of Scots had a wider release than I, Tonya and Lady Bird (499 locations vs 318/183 locations). It is difficult to predict how Mary Queen of Scots will perform from here onwards. It might not have the same buzz as The Favourite but the film's underrepresented Scottish setting could boost its week-on-week numbers. It should finish with between $6.5-$10 million. Mary Queen of Scots could literally become the Queen of the Scots.

Since the trailer debuted, Margot Robbie's casting has been closely compared against Cate Blanchett's portrayal of the character in 1998's Elizabeth. That film went on to receive seven Oscar nominations (including a win for Best Makeup) and grossed $9 million in the UK. If Mary Queen of Scots does finish close to $10 million, it would appear that this historical period and figure is just as bankable 20 years later.

The Biggest Drop
For the past few weeks, films with relatively strong holds have been harshly labelled "The Biggest Drop" because every release is performing well. Last week it was Mary Poppins Returns, this week The Favourite's 43.7% decline is the steepest. In its third week, the period comedy dropped from #2 to #5 and earnt $1.44 million, bringing its UK total to $14.36 million. The Favourite remains the highest grossing film of 2019. The film received ten Oscar nominations on Tuesday including nods for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Leading Actress and Best Supporting Actress (x2). This should undoubtedly revitalize how The Favourite performs next weekend. Originally it seemed like the film was going to close with $13-15 million but seemingly optimistic predictions ($20 million +/-) are starting to appear realistic.

The Best Holdover
Stan & Ollie, Mary Poppins Returns, Bumblebee and Bohemian Rhapsody all dropped less than 40%. One of these films would have been named "The Best Holdover" any other weekend. However, both Ralph Breaks the Internet and Spider-Man: Into the Spiver-Verse dropped less than 20%! Ralph fell 18.7% while Spider-Verse declined by just 16%. These are incredible holds for films that are so far into their release periods. Both animated flicks received Oscar nominations this week which should certify them as must-see films for families (if there positive reviews hadn't already). Ralph has grossed $22.3 million in the UK so far ($0.67m this weekend) while Spider-Verse has garnered $11.98 million ($0.65m this weekend). Despite strong holds, both films have underperformed - Wreck-it Ralph made $36.2 million in the UK and Spider-Verse's total is well below most mainstream animated features. Neither film can be labelled as a win for their respective studios but it is reassuring to see that they are continuing to make up ground this many weeks down the line. There isn't a major family release until How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World on February 1st so Ralph and Spider-Man have one more weekend to make as much money as possible.


Source: ComScore

Next week, The Mule, Vice, A Dog's Way Home and Second Act will compete for the UK's money. How will Glass and Mary Queen of Scots fair in their second weekends?

Audiences rushed to see Stan & Ollie this weekend as the biopic opened in first place to a solid $3.31 million. The Favourite continues its impressive run just 8% behind Laurel and Hardy. Further down this week's box office chart, Colette and The Upside finished in seventh and eighth respectively.

Here are the top 10 films this week!
1. Stan & Ollie - $3.31 million - Week 1 - NEW - Total: $3.31 million
2. The Favourite - $3.06 million - Week 2 - Down 39.4% - Total: $10.66 million
3. Mary Poppins Returns - $2.90 million - Week 4 - Down 48.8% - Total: $49.08 million
4. Aquaman - $1.59 million - Week 5 - Down 32.8% - Total: $25.92 million
5. Bumblebee - $1.30 million - Week 3 - Down 41.1% - Total: $13.71 million
6. Bohemian Rhapsody - $1.30 million - Week 12 - Up 40.8% - Total: $64.13 million
7. Colette - $1.01 million - Week 1 - NEW - Total: $1.01 million
8. The Upside - $875,004 - Week 1 - NEW - Total: $875,004
9. Ralph Breaks the Internet - $830,431 - Week 7 - Down 41.2% - Total: $21.45 million
10. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse - $771,576 - Week 5 - Down 31.0% - Total: $11.08 million

The Winner
Move over Mary Poppins Returns, the iconic comedy duo Stan & Ollie stole the show this weekend, opening in first place with $3.31 million. While the number 1 debut is impressive, $3.31 million may be a softer win than expected. It could be argued that a British biopic about two Hollywood legends should have been bigger, especially after The Favourite was able to gross more than $5 million during its opening weekend. Stan & Ollie has had great reviews (93% on Rotten Tomatoes) but has failed to attract much awards attention. However, BAFTA did nominate the film for Outstanding British Film, Best Leading Actor and Best Make-Up/Hair. It is possible that the UK will rally behind Stan & Ollie - it should have strong word-of-mouth and will definitely play well with older audiences in the coming weeks. It will be interesting to see how Stan & Ollie fairs when faced with Mary Queen of Scots this coming weekend.

The New Entries
Both Colette and The Upside opened in around 300 locations this weekend - a fairly limited release. Colette topped The Upside by 13%. Debuting at number 7, Keira Knightley's Colette grossed a smidge above $1 million this weekend. Colette relied on Knightley's star power and its box office takings are in-line with the last films that Knightley solely fronted - Begin Again opened with $780,000, Anna Karenina debuted with $1.4 million and The Duchess impressed with $2.58 million. While Colette's debut is softer than some of Knightley's bigger hits, this $1 million+ weekend shows there is still an audience who will pay to see Knightley on the silver screen. With minimal marketing, competition from Stan & Ollie and zero awards buzz (despite good reviews), Colette's opening weekend certainly isn't a loss for Lionsgate. Knightley-led dramas tend to have longevity so $5 million should not be unreachable for Colette's final UK gross.

Colette's smaller opening may have redeeming qualities but things aren't as positive for The Upside. Aside from the film having a respectable per-theatre-average, a $875,000 debut for a film starring Bryan Cranston, Kevin Hart and Nicole Kidman is disappointing. Thankfully, The Upside was a hit stateside otherwise STX Entertainment would have released yet another dud. This was a fairly crowded weekend for older audiences and with Stan & Ollie, Colette and The Upside to choose from, they are likely to gravitate towards the films with strong reviews - The Upside's rotten 40% approval rating couldn't compete. The Upside's target audience is also vague - Kevin Hart is a mismatch with the older audience and the current controversy surrounding his persona probably didn't do him any favours. When looking at this trio's most recent films, - Hart's Night School opened with $2 million in September 2018, Cranston's The Infiltrator grossed $480,000 in July 2016 and Kidman's The Beguiled debuted with $540,000 in July 2017 - it becomes clear that UK audiences aren't overly keen to rush to the cinema to see them on the big screen; The Upside's $875,000 opening suddenly makes sense. It is hard to predict The Upside's future - it could have strong legs, but it could also be swallowed by Glass and Mary Queen of Scots next weekend.

The Biggest Drop
Oh, how the mighty have fallen! Mary Poppins Returns spent three weeks topping the UK box office but finds itself with the biggest decline this weekend. Poppins drops 48.8% to $2.9 million, finishing in third place. A 48.8% drop actually isn't awful - it is unfortunate that the other films held so well and Poppins finds itself in this category. However, a 48.8% drop also doesn't suggest that the film will thrive for as long as initially thought - the film's drops are getting bigger each week. That being said, this decline is smaller than Beauty and the Beast's fourth-weekend drop (-59.1%) and about the same as Into the Woods' (-45.2%). Unless Poppins continues to fall at this rate (or worse), it should be around for quite a while. Luckily for Disney, Mary Poppins Returns has grossed $49 million in a little under a month and should come close to $60 million by the end of its UK run. Poppins is currently the UK's eighth biggest film of 2018 and will likely climb to sixth in the coming weeks.

The Best Holdover
Continuing its impressive run, Bohemian Rhapsody increases by a stellar 40.8% in its twelfth weekend. Rhapsody grossed $1.3 million and was inches away from returning to the top five. The Queen biopic has now totalled over $64 million in the UK. This makes it the country's fifth biggest film of 2018 (it has the potential to go higher). Rhapsody was likely boosted by big wins at the Golden Globes and seven BAFTA nominations. If The Academy recognises Bohemian Rhapsody on January 22nd, there will be an even bigger curiosity factor. Despite lukewarm reviews, Bohemian Rhapsody has been positioned as a film that audiences need to see.


Source: ComScore

Next week, Glass and Mary Queen of Scots will joust it out for the top spot in what should be a very competitive weekend at the UK Box Office. Will either film post the biggest opening of the year so far?

It's another week flying high for Mary Poppins as the Disney musical spends its third week at number one. The Favourite was close to stealing Poppins' crown with a strong debut. Poppins made $5.65 million while The Favourite earnt $5.06 million. This is a surprisingly strong debut for such a small film. Andre Rieu's 2019 New Year Concert finished in fourth place, earning $2.22 million over the weekend.

Here are the top 10 films this week!
1. Mary Poppins Returns - $5.65 million - Week 3 - Down 40.2% - Total: $43.65 million
2, The Favourite - $5.06 million - Week 1 - NEW - Total: $5.06 million
3. Aquaman - $2.36 million - Week 4 - Down 24.0% - Total: $23.26 million
4. Andre Rieu's 2019 New Year Concert From Sydney - $2.22 million - Week 1 - NEW - Total: $2.22 million
5. Bumblebee - $2.21 million - Week 2 - Down 65.7% - Total: $11.59 million
6. Ralph Breaks the Internet - $1.41 million - Week 6 - Down 12.4% - Total: $20.20 million
7. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse - $1.12 million - Week 4 - Down 13.5% - Total: $9.84 million
8. Bohemian Rhapsody - $923,159 - Week 11 - Up 12.2% - Total: $61.60 million
9. Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald - $465,625 - Week 8 - Down 33.6% - Total: $42.64 million
10. Holmes & Watson - $446,791 - Week 2 - Down 59.4% - Total: $3.04 million

The Winner
Mary Poppins Returns spends its third (and probably final) week at the top of the UK box office. Poppins' takings dropped 40.2% to $5.65 million. Whilst this is much steeper than last week's tremendous hold (-8.2%), it isn't that surprising considering that the film's main audience, families, will have less time and money to spend after December's festivities. This drop is on par with Beauty and the Beast's (2017) third-week drop but is slightly higher than the third-week drops of Into the Woods (-33.3%) and The Greatest Showman (-11.5%). Poppins did open higher than both of those films so bigger drops are to be expected. Currently, Poppins has made $43.65 million in the UK; it's one of the ten biggest films of 2018 and will likely crack the top five if it can surpass $60 million. Musicals tend to have longevity and Poppins' awards nominations (and potential wins) should help her to keep drawing in audiences. Mary Poppins Returns has become Emily Blunt's most successful film in the UK, grossing more than The Girl on the Train ($29.5m), The Devil Wears Prada ($26.5m) and A Quiet Place ($16.9m). It's unfortunate that Poppins' worldwide numbers are softer as it has been a juggernaut in the UK.

The New Entries (Top 10)
Poppins may have held on to the crown for the third week but The Favourite was not far behind. The Olivia Colman/Emma Stone/Rachel Weisz period comedy grossed an impressive $5.06 million. Its box office is slightly inflated as the film did open on New Year's Day (Tuesday-Sunday), but a number two debut for an independent film with niche appeal is a great achievement. The Favourite is one of the only smaller films this award season that has buzz. Last year, Three Billboards, The Shape of Water, Lady Bird, Darkest Hour etc all competed for Oscar glory, whereas it is audience favourite Black Panther, A Star is Born and Bohemian Rhapsody that are the frontrunners this year. The Favourite might have benefited from the deprivation of high-brow awards affair.

The Favourite is a big win for director Yorgos Lanthimos. It opened higher than the final UK box office takings of The Lobster and The Killing of a Sacred Deer combined! The Favourite is also a big win for Stone, Colman and even Weisz. The film's cast has been a major selling point so this $5 million+ debut is a great sign for The Favourite's leading ladies. This opening is on par with La La Land's second weekend ($5.38m). Its opening is 38% lower than La La Land's. Although The Favourite doesn't have the same buzz as La La Land, if it manages to stick around until the end of awards season, it has the potential to surpass $20 million. Thinking more realistically, The Favourite will likely close with around $13-15 million.

Andre Rieu's 2019 New Year Concert From Syndey was a massive success over the weekend. Rieu's concert was streamed to cinemas on Saturday and Sunday and grossed $2.22 million. Rieu's 2019 concert performed excellently for a live event. Although it won't stick around in the top 10 due to the nature of the event, it is already Andre Rieu's most successful cinema broadcast.

The Biggest Drop
As expected, Bumblebee had this weekend's biggest drop, sliding 65.7% from 2-5. Bumblebee's opening figures were inflated due to a tactical release strategy and now Paramount must pay the price. This weekend, Bumblebee grossed $2.21 million which takes its UK box office total to $11.59 million. Considering Bumblebee's opening weekend was enlarged, it is impressive that its second week drop is in line with the rest of the films in the Transformers franchise: Transformers dropped 73%, Revenge of the Fallen fell 47.9%, Dark of the Moon dropped 55.8%, Age of Extinction fell 84.8% and The Last Knight slid 64.6% - Bumblebee's 65.7% second-weekend drop isn't so bad after all! Bumblebee is already about a million away from outgrossing The Last Knight and will likely finish with around $15-20 million. Reviews have been overwhelmingly positive so word-of-mouth should be strong.

The Best Holdover
Mamma mia, mamma mia, in its 11th week of release, Bohemian Rhapsody sees the strongest hold this weekend. The Queen biopic's box office takings increased by 12.2% this weekend. Bohemian Rhapsody earnt $0.92 million and has now made $61.6 million in the UK; it's one of the most successful films of 2018. Films with longevity like Bohemian Rhapsody are rare - it's unusual that a film is still in the top 10, nevermind making increasing amounts of money, after 11 weeks of release. Even Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again and A Star is Born didn't last 11 weeks in the top 10. Despite opening much bigger, Bohemian Rhapsody's leggy box office performance is comparable to The Greatest Showman's. However, while Hugh Jackman still had over $10 million to make after its 11th week, Bohemian Rhapsody will likely close with $63-66 million. That being said, after big wins (including Best Picture) at the Golden Globes and potential Oscar nominations, Bohemian Rhapsody could be reignited. This film's success suggests great things for 2019's Elton John musical, Rocketman.


Source: ComScore

A resolution for me this year when it came to blogging was to write more than just film reviews - towards the end of Spring last year, I decided to remove the box office reports as they were becoming quite repetitive I wasn't enjoying writing them anymore. That meant that it was rare for me to write a post that was not a film review. In 2017, that is going to change.

This post is going to be all about why Moana is underperforming at the international box office and whether it will improve. As soon as Disney fast-tracked Moana after the mega-success of Frozen, everyone has been excited for the film. This is Disney's first princess film since the sisters of Arrendale and while the film has actually received even more critical acclaim than Frozen, audiences just haven't connected with Moana in the same way. Let's have a closer look at this problem....

Currently (as of January 8th 2017), Moana has grossed $450,094,182 worldwide - that is not the kind of number Disney is used to for their recent animated pictures. Frozen grossed almost $1.3 billion and Zootopia also managed to cross the billion mark (and Zootopia was meant to be their wild card for this year!). Moana has also opened in 84% of its markets which means that there are only 9 countries left for it to open in - Japan, Argentina, South Korea, Turkey, Hong Kong, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland. In this case study, the film's I will be comparing Moana to are Frozen, Big Hero 6, Tangled and Zootopia. From the countries I just listed, they made up 29% of Frozen's total gross, 19% of Big Hero 6's, 12% of Tangled's and 13% of Zootopia's - this suggests that not much more money will be made from these new markets. Japan and South Korea are the most promising so if Moana connects well in those territories, the film could go on to close with over $650 million worldwide - this would be in the same range as Big Hero 6. Disney would be disappointed with this total as Moana was expected to be a billion dollar picture and...well, it's not!

So what went wrong? The film hasn't had bad reviews so there is no reason for audiences not to be going out in their masses to see it. The biggest reason is that it is definitely not a Frozen - Frozen was pretty much revolutionary for a Disney film - the heart of the story were two sisters and any love interests took a back seat. I think this special connection between relatives may be what set Frozen aside. Even though Moana is a strong, independent female character too, she doesn't have that extra edge to touch the hearts of audiences. Some may say the connection with her grandmother or the fact that she is a dreamer but these are all qualities we have seen in animated film before, Moana wasn't as refreshing to audiences.

The soundtrack is liked by those who have seen the film but there has been no standout song and it hasn't actually performed too well. So far, the album has peaked at number 5 on the Billboard 200 and it should have gone to number 1 if Moana was a new phenomenon. I honestly think this is a rare case where Disney has got all the ingredients for a mega success but something unknown happened in the oven and it turned out just mediocre. Another reason could easily be over saturation - Zootopia, Finding Dory, The Secret Life of Pets, Sing, Trolls, Kung Fu Panda 3 are just some of the mainstream animated features that have performed solidly this year and even though Moana would make the list, it is towards the back of the pack - once again, unusual for Disney. Moana was one of the final animated releases of 2016 so audiences could have spent all their money on other things.

Moana's marketing campaign was also pretty light - I think it focused too much on Maui and should have made the film feel like an 'event movie'. I was always excited for the film but the actual marketing didn't make me excited until the final trailer.

So Moana's $450 million may be a little lacklustre for Disney but I think that should improve by the time the film has been released in Japan in March so hopefully this special flick will be able to rise (like the tide) to the $650 million mark. Who knows...maybe the final 9 markets will really connect with it and the film will have a resurgence in its current markets - hopefully we haven't seen the last of this film as it really is going out on a weak note. The good news is though, it has made enough money to at least break even so anything from now onwards is profit for Disney. However, let's not pity Disney too much - they had a cracking year!

Click here to read my review of Moana!

1/2 UPDATE - So almost a month later, let's look where Moana stands. The film still has 5 markets to open in - the spotlight is on Japan. So far, Moana has grossed over $533 million worldwide - it will probably close with or just shy of $600 million. This is a similar performance to Tangled so Disney shouldn't be too upset.

21/3 UPDATE - Moana has been released in all of its markets now and currently has a total of just over $606 million worldwide which is a positive - it will still have another couple of weeks till it has completed closed so $620 million is probably the maximum Moana will reach at this point. Not bad Disney, not bad.

 The reign of The Ice Queen and The Evil Queen didn't last long as The Jungle Book roared into the box office with a massive $14 million debut. Eye in the Sky debuted at number 3 with the kind of debut a film like Midnight Special should have seen - Eye in the Sky opened with $1.5 million+. Further down the top 10, some smaller films were able to crack the box office - Fan, The Spark and Criminal all took 7th, 8th and 9th respectively.

Here are the top 10 films this week!

 This week, The Huntsman: Winter's War dethroned Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice - it is important to note it's weekend number is a Monday-Sunday number due to previews. Midnight Special opened at number 6 with a debut that was much weaker than expected. Hardcore Henry was also able to crack the top 10 - however, it didn't really hit the box office hard, it had quite a weak debut.

This week, Kung Fu Panda 3 remained on top despite a steep second week drop and 10 Cloverfield Lane was just behind with a stronger per/theatre average. The Boy managed to crack the top 5 and High-Rise and Kapoor & Sons - Since 1921 were both able to crack the top 10 with very strong openings, despite relatively limited releases.

 I have recently taken a break from the box office for the past few weeks to focus on reviews and other content. Before we dive into this weeks box office, over the past few weeks, Grimsby opened solidly, The Forest disappointed, London Has Fallen topped the chart and Hail, Caesar! saw a solid debut. Right, you're all caught up so lets get into this weekends box office!

Kung Fu Panda 3 opened at number 1 and Allegiant came in at a distant second place. The Witch and Anomalisa both saw strong debuts further down the chart.

Deadpool continued its UK domination, staying at number 1. The film wasn't able to avoid a steep second week drop though. The highest debut came from the female comedy How To Be Single which took 3rd place. How To Be Single was the only new film to debut within the top 5.

Triple 9 was the only other new film to crack the top 10, taking 6th place with a solid $1.1 million.

 Deadpool took the top spot this weekend with a stellar $19.64 million - the highest opening of 2016 so far. Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip also did well, opening in second, with a strong $6.15 million (including preview weekends). Zoolander 2 underperformed this weekend, taking 3rd place with just shy of $3 million.