After shattering multiple box office records during last weekend, Star Wars: The Force Awakens [STAR7] continues to set a new high for each weekday. The second weekend promises to be another bonanza as Christmas Day held the third highest advance ticket sales. The Hobbit: Battle of Five Armies declined 25% in its sophomore weekend over Christmas last year, while The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King slipped 30% over the same period. With its massive opening weekend, Star Wars: The Force Awakens is likely to be more frontloaded. A still respectable 35% drop-off would result in about $161 million.
Will Ferrell [WFERR] and Mark Wahlberg [MWAHL] reunite for the family comedy Daddy’s Home [DHOME]. Their previous PG-13 rated effort The Other Guys debuted to $35.5 million in August 2010. With a more crowded marketplace and male teenagers unlikely to be interested in a movie about fatherhood, Daddy’s Home may bring in $20.0 million from 3271 theaters.
Jennifer Lawrence [JLAWR] toplines Joy [JOY] from writer-director David O. Russell [DORUS]. The PG-13 rated biopic has earned mixed reviews, which has muted its Oscar buzz. Interest from women remains high. Sweeping into 2896 theaters, Joy could mop up $15 million.
Sony’s Concussion [GAMEB] stars Will Smith [WSMIT] as the real-life doctor who discovered a degenerative brain disease among former NFL players. Smith’s last dramatic role came 7 years ago with Seven Pounds, which opened to $14.8 million. Concussion may be able to hit $12 million from 2841 locations.
The 1991 action classic Point Break [PTBR2] has been unnecessarily remade with Luke Bracey [LBRAC] and Edgar Ramirez [EDRAM]. Reviews are mostly negative, which will turn off older fans of the original. Launching in 2910 theaters, Point Break may ride out $11 million.
Steve Carell [SCARE], Brad Pitt [BPITT], Christian Bale [CBALE] and Ryan Gosling [RGOSL]combine their starpower for the R-rated drama The Big Short [BIGSH] about the 2007 financial collapse. After netting $1.3 million in limited release, Paramount exapnded the film wide to 1585 theaters on Wednesday and earned $2.3 million. With excellent reviews, The Big Short could add another $9 million over the weekend.
That’s the whisper from the virtual trading floor.
Tag(s): STAR7, WFERR, MWAHL, DHOME, JLAWR, JOY, DORUS, GAMEB, WSMIT, PTBR2, LBRAC, EDRAM, SCARE, BPITT, CBALE, RGOSL, BIGSH