A few weeks ago, tracking for Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation was supposedly in the toilet. Early reports suggested that Tom Cruise’s fifth outing as super-spy Ethan Hunt was not getting people excited. This would be the end, the experts said, of a franchise that has kept Cruise’s career surging forward for the past two decades. Well, that was apparently a big load of crap because Rogue Nation opened well and opened in the same ballpark as the rest of the franchise. Even with inflation differences, this series keeps on hitting the same box office sweet spot.
At the time of this writing, early estimates for the weekend box office have Ant-Man edging out Pixels for the top spot in this week’s top 10. That could change. With less than $1 million separating the films, Pixels may very well slide into first place tomorrow, winning one very close competition. But even if it does claim ultimate victory, it doesn’t change the fact that Pixels’ opening weekend is a massive disappointment and another nail in the coffin of Adam Sandler’s career.
Universal was already bathing in its Furious 7 and Jurassic World money Scrooge McDuck-style before Minions opened this week. Now the studio is looking at its third truly massive hit of the year, a run that feels nearly unprecedented. Universal already released two of the biggest movies of all time within the past four months, and now it’s looking like it may have three.
As expected, the Fourth of July holiday weekend saw a lot of people heading to the theater. Unfortunately for the new releases, those people gravitated toward films that have already been in theaters for a few weeks. Once again, Jurassic World and Inside Out dominated the top 10, leaving newcomers like Terminator Genisys and Magic Mike XXL out in the cold.
The latest installment of the "Halloween" franchise "Halloween Returns" was all set to begin production in Louisiana on the 15th of July, but apparently that isn't going to happen.
When Universal scheduled Ted 2, they surely had no idea that Seth MacFarlane’s swearing teddy bear sequel would be squaring off against one of the biggest box office juggernauts of all time...a juggernaut that they themselves had created. So it’s not surprising that Jurassic World topped the box office again and it’s not surprising that Pixar’s Inside Out held onto second place. What is a little surprising is how low Ted 2 opened, falling significantly short of its predecessor’s opening weekend.
Chris Pratt, now potentially Hollywood’s biggest star after Jurassic World became the fastest film ever to gross $400 million, has a history of making kids happy. Earlier this year, he and fellow Marvel-ite Chris Evans appeared, in character as Star-Lord and Captain America, at children’s hospitals in Boston and Seattle delivering toys and cheering up kids and parents alike. Hot off the success of Jurassic World, Pratt was back at it again this weekend, visiting Our Lady of the Lake Children's Hospital in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and while there he showed off some of his raptor training skills he’s becoming well-known for.
Here’s how crazy this weekend is: Pixar’s Inside Out had the biggest opening for an original, non-sequel of all time...and it still came in second to Jurassic World’s second weekend. There’s literally nothing to ashamed of here. Sure, it may be the first time a Pixar movie hasn't opened in first place, but the only reason it didn’t open in first place is because it was dueling 2015’s greatest juggernaut. These two are worthy opponents and both are victors.
The only people that will benefit out of this legislation are the lawyers. Which in terms of a Hollywood movie is the ending we have seen way too many times in Louisiana.
This new extended trailer for The Peanuts Movie hints at a film that's a bit more charming than you might expect. It also looks like it could be a legitimately good coming-of-age film, which seems about right with Paul Feig involved as a producer — he may be best known these days for his female-driven comedy films, but Feig is also the guy responsible for Freaks and Geeks, one of the greatest television shows of all time.
Everyone knew that Jurassic World was going to open big, but no one saw this coming. The fourth film in the beloved dinosaur-centric franchise had the second biggest domestic opening of all time, the biggest June opening of all time, and, with $511 million worldwide, the biggest international opening of all time. It also broke a bunch of records that we’ll get to in a few minutes. This was supposed to be the summer of Avengers: Age of Ultron. Unless something goes horribly wrong, this is officially the summer of Jurassic World.
British actor Christopher Lee has died at the age of 93. He actually passed away on Sunday at a hospital in Chelsea, England after being treated for respiratory problems.
The original Pitch Perfect grossed a modest $65 million at the domestic box office, which was just enough to justify a sequel. Three years later, Pitch Perfect 2 has just passed $160 million on a budget of only $29 million, so yeah, of course Universal is officially moving forward with Pitch Perfect 3. It turns out that a combination of snarky comedy and a capella remixes of pop hits is a license to print money. So much money.
I have an obsession with Netflix, especially because it carries the movies you haven't heard of but are great, and the ones you love but can't ever seem to find anymore. I have to tell you that I am quite saddened because there are few movies on the 'to go' list for this month that you need to see.