Paramount and CJ 4DPLEX Team Up to Screen Gemini Man In ScreenX

PRESS RELEASE LOS ANGELES, CA (September 30, 2019) — CJ 4DPLEX and Paramount Pictures have announced the expansion of their ongoing partnership to release the first-ever ScreenX title between the two leading companies, the action-thriller Gemini Man by acclaimed director Ang Lee. Gemini Man in ScreenX will begin its release in theaters worldwide beginning October 2, 2019 on 233 screens, across 22 countries, including 33 screens in the U.S. with Regal Cinemas, B&B Theatres and CGV Cinemas. The film opens in the U.S. on October 11th. Gemini Man in ScreenX will feature key sequences of the film expanded and projected onto the left and right side walls of the auditorium. The announcement between the two companies follows past releases of A Quiet Place, Mission: Impossible – Fallout, Bumblebee, and Crawl in 4DX, another...

Read More

New in Novo: Debbie Stanford-Kristiansen Brings Luxury to Gulf Region Theatres

Earlier this year, Boxoffice Pro partnered with Celluloid Junkie to present the fourth annual list of Top Women in Global Exhibition, published in our CinemaCon issue. Throughout 2019, Boxoffice Pro continues to pay tribute to the women who have an immeasurable impact on the exhibition industry with a series of in-depth profiles. Debbie Stanford-Kristiansen is “someone who very much likes to be challenged.” Born and raised in Brighton, England, where she’d make weekly trips to a theater “just across from the seafront,” Stanford-Kristiansen has been the CEO of Novo Cinemas, which operates cinemas throughout Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, and the United...

Read More

Studio Weekend Estimates: Abominable Ascends to No. 1 w/ $20.8M; Downton Abbey Dips to 2nd w/ $14.5M

The final weekend of September saw families returning to North American multiplexes with the release of Universal’s Abominable, the first animated film to hit theaters since the debut of Warner Bros.’ Angry Birds 2 in mid-August. Though the Dreamworks Animation and Pearl Studio co-production opened to a relatively modest estimated $20.8 million – a few million short of last September’s Smallfoot ($23 milllion) — it was enough to lift it to No. 1 over holdovers including Downton Abbey, Hustlers and Ad Astra. Debuting on an ultra-wide 4,242 screens, Abominable opened at the higher end of expectations thanks to a mixture of generally positive reviews (80% “Fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes), a relatively enthusiastic audience response (“A” Cinemascore) and the aforementioned fact of its being the first animated release to hit theaters in over a month. While its opening number is...

Read More

Weekend Estimates: Abominable Summits to Top Spot w/ $20M+ Debut

Saturday Update: Universal and DreamWorks Animation’s Abominable is on track to finish in first place this weekend with an estimated $20 million+ debut, in line with pre-release expectations. The well-reviewed original film earned $5.69 million on opening day Friday, comparable to the $6.43 million start by Warner Bros.’ Smallfoot one year ago this month, as well as the $5.79 million and $5.77 million first days by the same studio’s LEGO Ninjago Movie and Storks, respectively. Downton Abbey is on course for a second place finish in its sophomore frame as it posted another $4.38 million on Friday, a to-be-expected sharp drop of 68 percent from opening day last week. The hit television-to-cinema release has earned a strong $48.4 million in just eight days of domestic play as it targets a $14 million+ weekend. Hustlers continued its strong play with another $3.66 million...

Read More

Long Range Forecast: Frozen II, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, and 21 Bridges

This week’s report focuses on a trio of new releases slated to open the week before Thanksgiving in hopes of building momentum that should last through the heart of holiday movie season. Frozen II Opening Weekend Range: $115 – 145 million PROS: The original film was an undisputed phenomenon, earning over $400 million domestically and $1.27 billion worldwide on the back of an enormously popular soundtrack and high repeat viewings. Frozen solidified the reemergence of Disney’s in-house animation studios as a top-tier powerhouse and remains the highest grossing original animated film of all time. Trailer reactions and social media metrics are strong once again for this sequel, earning trend comparisons to recent Disney/Pixar sequels like Incredibles 2, Finding Dory, and Toy Story 4. As the first tentpole animated release to open since July’s The Lion King, demand for...

Read More

Sony and Disney Announce Third Film in Spider-Man: Homecoming Series to Be Produced with Marvel Studios and Kevin Feige, Set for July 16, 2021 Release

The rallying cry of fans around the world has been heard, and answered: Sony Pictures and Disney Studios have reached an agreement for the continuation of Spider-Man’s presence in the Marvel Cinematic Universe for at least two more films. The official press release: SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT AND THE WALT DISNEY STUDIOS ANNOUNCE THIRD FILM IN SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING SERIES WILL BE PRODUCED WITHMARVEL STUDIOS AND KEVIN FEIGE Film Dated for Release on July 16, 2021 Spider-Man to Appear in a Future Marvel Studios Film [Culver City, CA – September 27, 2019] Sony Pictures Entertainment and The Walt Disney Studios jointly announced today that Marvel Studios and its President Kevin Feige will produce the third film in the SPIDER-MAN HOMECOMING series, starring Tom Holland. The film is scheduled for release on July 16, 2021.  As part of the arrangement,...

Read More

CinéShow 2019: Exhibitor Marketing Evolves in the Social Media Age

Grassroots marketing campaigns go viral as movie theaters appeal to moviegoers online It was a tense start to the week at CinéShow 2019, with details of the negotiations over a theatrical run for Netflix’s The Irishman being leaked through industry trade outlets. There was anxiety in the air, especially as the streaming giant prepared to screen its remaining slate of titles during major festivals in the subsequent weeks: Telluride, Toronto, and Venice all on the schedule. Uncertainty about how the rest of 2019 would play out prevailed until official news came down midweek that Netflix would give The Irishman a cursory theatrical release under...

Read More

NCM and Screenvision Team Up for Campaign Against World Hunger

PRESS RELEASE National CineMedia (NCM) and Screenvision are joining the next phase of “Feed our Future”, a global cinema ad campaign that shines a light on the United Nations World Food Programme’s (WFP) life-saving work on the frontlines of world hunger. Starting today, the advertisement will air in NCM’s Noovie show on movie screens across the U.S. through November 2019. The “Feed our Future” campaign is part of a unique partnership between SAWA, the Global Cinema Advertising Association, and WFP, which is the leading humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide.  The new campaign aims to build on last year’s results that helped to double awareness of WFP among those who saw the ad and raised more than half a million dollars through online giving or through a 38% increase in downloads of the agency’s Share the Meal donation App,...

Read More

Joker Dominates Across Social Media As Release Date Approaches

The upcoming Joker was the most impressive film on social media this week, as it was the only offering to chart across all three tracked services. Given its modest budget of $55 million (especially modest considering just how much comic book adaptations generally cost), the fact that it has generated so much buzz across the three demographics served by these platforms indicates strong opening potential next weekend.  Twitter Film New Page Likes Posts Post Likes Post Retweets  Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker        3,527  19  116,300         21,307   Joker        3,710  7           71,795         15,984   Knives Out         1,243  9          ...

Read More

Hearing the Picture: How Audio Description Creates a True Movie Experience for the Blind and Visually Impaired

More than 26 million adults in America are blind or have low vision. But despite their inability to see the spectacular images on today’s cinema screens, many still crave an entertaining night out at the movies. And thanks to audio description, they can enjoy hit films along with other moviegoers. Audio description (A.D.) uses a prerecorded audio track in which a narrator details what’s happening on-screen, including actions, gestures, facial expressions, settings, and costumes. The customer listens on a headset to narration that augments the dialogue, sound effects, and music that the rest of the theater audience is hearing. As of June 2, 2018, all first-run cinemas equipped with digital projection equipment for at least six months are required to make available both audio-description headsets and closed captioning for their visually and hearing-impaired customers, respectively. Roy...

Read More

Hearing the Picture: How Audio Description Creates a Real Movie Experience for the Blind and Visually Impaired

More than 26 million adults in America are blind or have low vision. But despite their inability to see the spectacular images on today’s cinema screens, many still crave an entertaining night out at the movies. And thanks to audio description, they can enjoy hit films along with other moviegoers. Audio description (A.D.) uses a prerecorded audio track in which a narrator details what’s happening on-screen, including actions, gestures, facial expressions, settings, and costumes. The customer listens on a headset to narration that augments the dialogue, sound effects, and music that the rest of the theater audience is hearing. As of June 2, 2018, all first-run cinemas equipped with digital projection equipment for at least six months are required to make available both audio-description headsets and closed captioning for their visually and hearing-impaired customers, respectively. Roy...

Read More