Weekend Forecast: ‘Bohemian Rhapsody,’ ‘The Nutcracker and the Four Realms,’ & ‘Nobody’s Fool’

What’s come to be known as holiday movie season officially begins this weekend with a trio of new releases looking to ignite the post-Halloween weekend and lead into a November slate that offers a lot of promise for moviegoers and exhibitors. Poised to lead the way will be Fox’s Bohemian Rhapsody, the long awaited biopic featuring Rami Malek as Queen front-man Freddie Mercury. Social media activity has been impressive leading up to release, with Facebook activity far outpacing that of A Star Is Born on a consistent basis. Twitter trends are highly encouraging as well, although not quite on par with ASIB or Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again during their pre-release windows. Bohemian‘s traditional tracking tips the scale back in Rhapsody‘s favor with significantly higher interest among men under 25 and comparable interest levels among other...

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CineLife’s Re-Release of Original ‘Halloween’ Sets Event Cinema Record for 2018

PRESS RELEASE ____________________________________________________________________________ Los Angeles, CA – CineLife Entertainment, the event cinema division of Spotlight Cinema Networks, has revealed it has set an industry record for event cinema distribution in less than one year of being active in the event cinema arena. The re-release of John Carpenter’s Halloween has become the largest domestic classic revival of 2018, appearing on nearly 900 screens. In addition, the re-release has reached international success, with screenings in a total of 25 countries, catapulting its worldwide distribution to over 1,600 screens. John Carpenter’s Halloween...

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Regal Unveils New Logo as Part of Rebrand

PRESS RELEASE _________________________________________________________________________ KNOXVILLE, Tenn., Oct. 29, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — Regal, a leading motion picture exhibitor operating one of the largest theatre circuits in the United States, and since March of this year part of Cineworld Group, the 2nd biggest exhibitor in the world, today announces the launch of its new logo. The rebranding is part of a larger strategy to commit $1.0 billion over 5 years to build new cinemas and renovate existing ones, to ensure that Regal is ‘The Best Place to Watch a Movie!’ During this initiative, customers can expect to see Regal’s updated logo appear in theatres nationwide, as Regal looks toward the future of cinematic innovation. “The entertainment industry is progressing further into the future, driven by cutting-edge technology and creativity,” said Ken Thewes, CMO at Regal....

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Concessions Manufacturer Proctor Companies Adds Five to Executive Team

PRESS RELEASE ____________________________________________________________________ October 30, 2018, Littleton, Colorado – Proctor Companies has added several new full time employees to its Project Management and Sales Teams. These additions will help Proctor Companies maintain the highest level of service to its clients. Project Management Team Changes to Project Management include an expansion of the team with the addition of three new employees. Shaun Polak, boasting 25 years of foodservice construction and management experience, joins Proctor as Director of Project Management to lead the PM team. Michael Weingardt, also a foodservice veteran of 25 years, has taken a project manager position. Dina Wagner, a 15-year foodservice construction professional, joins the team as a project coordinator to support project managers in the field. Peter Pulk stays on as a senior...

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Movio Launches Dynamic Content, A New Personalized Email Tool for Cinema Marketers

PRESS RELEASE _________________________________________________________________ Auckland, NZ and Los Angeles, CA; October 30, 2018 – The launch of Movio’s Dynamic Content tool allows cinema marketers to achieve effortless campaign personalization, in a matter of minutes, on a scale never possible before. The recent innovation, which uses moviegoers’ past viewing habits to generate hyper-personalized audience campaigns, enables marketers to send 5,000+ unique email combinations in just 15 minutes*. Working with leading global cinema exhibitors to Beta test the product, Movio is making the campaign process effortless for the marketer but super personalized for the recipient. Using a combination of Movio’s advanced machine learning tools, Movie Insights and Audience Insights, Dynamic Content identifies each member’s highest propensity from a choice...

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New York’s Historic Bedford Playhouse Outfitted with Christie Projectors

PRESS RELEASE ____________________________________________________________ CYPRESS, Calif. – (October 30, 2018) – Christie® cinema projectors illuminated all three screens for the September grand opening of New York State’s newly-renovated, historic Bedford Playhouse. The original Playhouse first opened its doors in April 1947, and 70 years later the total audio/visual design and installation phase for the new complex was awarded to Digital Media Systems Inc., a valued Christie business partner, as part of the construction of the new facility that begun in spring, 2017. The Bedford Playhouse is a former movie theater located in Bedford, New York, which closed its doors in 2015. Soon after, a grass roots organization was formed under the leadership of Bedford resident John Farr, with the goal of transforming the theater into a not-for-profit arts house cinema, cultural...

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Greatness Awaits: Interview with ‘In Search of Greatness’ Director Gabe Polsky

What made the best athletes of all time the best? In his provocative new documentary In Search of Greatness, in theaters November 2, Gabe Polsky puts forth a counterintuitive explanation – with implications extending far beyond the world of sports. Rather than those with the best physical stature, Polsky contends that it’s the innovators whose innovations change their sport who truly excel. He cites examples of athletes who were hardly perfect physical specimens but broke the mold: boxer Rocky Marciano going undefeated after pioneering shorter punches closer to his opponent, or Dick Fosbury breaking the high jump world record by jumping backwards. Polsky spoke to BOXOFFICE about how his movie will change how he parents his newborn son, the film’s political implications, and landing interviews with legends like Wayne Gretzky, Jerry Rice, and Pelé. Your film’s message...

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Under Pressure: Interview with ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ Producer Graham King

The story of Queen—John Deacon, Brian May, Roger Taylor, and, of course, Freddie Mercury—the larger-than-life band whose influence still reverberates, and whose hits continue to thrill audiences, has been an ongoing passion project for Graham King. The British producer is known for bringing the stories of 20th-century icons to the silver screen—including The Aviator, Martin Scorsese’s Howard Hughes biopic starring Leonardo DiCaprio, and Ali, Michael Mann’s Muhammad Ali saga starring Will Smith. His latest, Bohemian Rhapsody, tracks 15 years of the band’s history, from its origins and early days to its tour de force performance at Live Aid in 1985. Boxoffice spoke with King about the long road of preproduction, his feelings about the band, and Rami Malek’s electrifying performance as Mercury. What is it about this story that inspired you to fight to get it on-screen? I...

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Studio Movie Grill Supports the Education Community as ‘The Hate U Give’ #DAYOFDIALOGUE Ambassador

PRESS RELEASE — Dallas, Texas – October 25, 2018 –Studio Movie Grill (SMG) the leader of the in-theater dining concept operating 314 screens in 30 locations nationwide, today announced it will welcome more than 3,500 teachers and students from school districts in and around the communities they serve for an SMG Movies + Meals #DAYOFDIALOGUE with THE HATE U GIVE, the acclaimed motion picture based on Angie Thomas’ best-selling novel. SMG’s #DAYOFDIALOGUE will take place on October 29th at 11:00 AM in each respective participating city. All participating schools will receive free tickets to see the film and free lunch provided to all attendees. Hosted in partnership with educational outreach firm BazanED, and supported by BazanED’s full free companion curriculum for in-school use, the collaboration is designed to enhance students’ knowledge of race relations, empower student...

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SoundFi: At The Movies Expands Its Theatrical Footprint With Spotlight Cinema Networks’ 40th-Anniversary Re-Release Of John Carpenter’s Classic ‘Halloween’

PRESS RELEASE — LOS ANGELES, Oct. 29, 2018  — SoundFi, a revolutionary audio technology company bringing moviegoers and fans closer to the movies they love, announced today that John Carpenter’s Halloween(1978) is the second film to bring their immersive 3D audio delivery format optimized for headphones into theaters. Through a partnership with Spotlight Cinema Networks’ event cinema distribution arm, CineLife Entertainment, and the SoundFi: At the Movies app, the highly anticipated 40th-anniversary re-release of the John Carpenter classic film triumphantly returns to the big screen with a more immersive (maybe even scarier?!) soundtrack that fans can hear while reliving the spooky Halloween night chills in Haddonfield, IL from those many years ago. At these screenings, the SoundFi: At the Movies app allows fans,...

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Cinemark Signs Long-Term Renewable Energy Deal with AEP Energy Partners

PRESS RELEASE — PLANO, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Cinemark USA, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cinemark Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CNK), one of the world’s largest motion picture exhibitors, has entered into a nine-year virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) with AEP Energy Partners, a competitive energy subsidiary of American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP). Cinemark’s VPPA will support up to 40 megawatts of renewable energy from AEP’s Trent Mesa wind energy center in Nolan County, Texas. Once fully implemented, the 40 megawatts of power from Trent Mesa will produce renewable energy equivalent to the approximate power consumption of 120 Cinemark theatres or nearly 14,000 homes. Cinemark will receive renewable energy certificates (REC) for the 40 MW of wind power capacity representing approximately 38 percent of Cinemark’s current total annual domestic energy consumption. In addition...

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Studio Weekend Estimates: ‘Halloween’ Repeats at No. 1 w/ $32M; ‘Hunter Killer’ Opens to Soft $6.6M

Halloween is a repeat winner at the North American box office this weekend, snagging the top spot for the second weekend in a row with an estimated $32 million. Elsewhere, new wide and semi-wide releases Hunter Killer, Indivisible, and Johnny English Strikes Again failed to make much of an impact in a crowded frame. Dropping 58% from its powerful $76.2 million debut last weekend, Halloween demonstrated better-than-average legs for a horror sequel thanks to positive word-of-mouth, proximity to the titular holiday, a lack of competition in the horror space, and the addition of IMAX screens to the film’s theater-count tally. Looking at other recent blockbuster R-rated horror titles, it held up better than the sophomore weekends of The Nun (-66.1%), The Conjuring 2 (-63.2%) and Paranormal Activity 3 (-65.5%), though it couldn’t match It‘s mere 51.3% dip from...

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Weekend Estimates: ‘Halloween’ Slashing Another $30M+; ‘Hunter Killer’ Eyes $7M+; ‘mid90s’ Expands to $3M+

Universal’s Halloween is on target for a sophomore weekend north of $30 million with the studio reporting Friday’s official estimate at $10.02 million. That’s off an expected 70 percent from opening day last week, which was fueled by a fan rush during the first 30 hours of shows. The horror breakout crossed the $100 million domestic threshold yesterday, just its eighth of release, and now stands at $104.7 million going into Saturday. The studio projects a $30.05 million weekend, while Boxoffice is a little more bullish with a $32 million projection as of this morning. A Star Is Born held its ground in second place with another $4.185 million yesterday, giving it just a 26 percent Friday-to-Friday drop and an updated domestic cume of $138.8 million. We’re projecting around $14 million for its fourth weekend in release. Venom fell another 44 percent...

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Long Range Tracking: ‘Mary Poppins Returns,’ ‘Aquaman,’ & ‘Bumblebee’

This week’s report takes a look at three key holiday releases slated for the penultimate weekend of 2018, less than one week before Christmas Day. Note: due to the sometimes abnormal holding patterns of films around this time of year, tracking ranges and long-term forecasts are more volatile than with typical releases and could shift significantly in the weeks ahead. Mary Poppins ReturnsOpening 3-Day Weekend Range: $30 – 50 million All signs point to another major holiday success from Disney with this long-awaited sequel’s appeal to multiple generations of fans. Star Emily Blunt (Into the Woods, A Quiet Place) has won early praise for her faithful take on the iconic Julie Andrews character, while co-star Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton) provides another marquee name for a film that is bound to capitalize on the wave of successful musicals at the box office. Trailer...

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Trailer Impact: ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ Posts Highest Recall; ‘Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald’ Sparks Most Interest in a Cinema View

Top Three Trailers with Highest Recall Score Among Moviegoing Audiences Moviegoers tell us the trailers they most recall seeing at their most recent visit to a cinema, among films opening in the next 10 weeks. Bohemian Rhapsody (Fox) Friday, November 2 24.5% of moviegoers (358 respondents) saw and recalled this trailer. That’s down from a 28.2% peak last week. The film spends its second week in the top three on the recall metric, both at #1. Rami Malek stars in this biopic as frontman Freddie Mercury of the legendary ’70s/’80s rock band Queen. Dr. Suess’ The Grinch (Universal) Friday, November 9 22.8% of moviegoers (334 respondents) saw and recalled this trailer. That’s a new peak, up from 15.7% last week and a previous 16.9% peak. The film spends its first week in the top three on the recall metric, previously spending two non-consecutive weeks in fourth place. Benedict...

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SHOWEAST 2018 Bingham Ray Spirit Award: Tim League, Alamo Drafthouse

Among cinephiles, it’s common knowledge that a passion for the movies can have a big influence on major life decisions. In Tim League’s case, that passion drove him to take a big risk that would eventually change his life—and help popularize an alternative to moviegoing in the United States. In his mid-twenties, only several years removed from degrees in engineering and art history at Rice University, League traded in a fledgling career at Shell Oil to lease a movie theater in Bakersfield, California. That risk didn’t pan out, but he didn’t let that keep him down. Together with his wife, Karrie, League regrouped and decided to try his hand at exhibition one more time—this time in Austin, Texas. That theater has grown to become a fixture in American moviegoing, and today the Alamo Drafthouse brand stretches from exhibition (named the 22nd largest circuit in the U.S. &...

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