A year ago, Lionsgate got back in business with filmmaker Tyler Perry [TPERR] as Boo! A Madea Halloween opened to a robust $28.5 million. They quickly produced a sequel, Boo 2! A Madea Halloween [BOAM2], pitting the loudmouth grandma against more monsters. With the exception of 2013’s A Madea Christmas, the Madea films typically open around $25 million. The Perry fanbase has been fairly consistent, so expect Boo 2! A Madea Halloween to grab around $24 million from 2388 theaters
The disaster film Geostorm [GEOST] finally arrives after a series of long delays and costly reshoots. Warner Bros. is not screening Geostorm for critics nor previewing it Thursday night, which should speak to the quality of the PG-13 rated film. Still, the marketing should appeal to fans of CG disasters. Rolling into 3246 theaters, Geostorm could gather $13 million.
After a better than expected debut, Happy Death Day [HTDTH] is still likely to drop 55% in its second weekend to $12 million.
Only the Brave [NOEXT] is based on a real 2013 wildfire that killed 19 firefighters. Sony is pushing the heroism of the story, but moviegoers may not be in the mood for a film that closely resembles the news of deadly wildfires in California. Dropping in 2577 theaters, Only the Brave may rescue $10 million.
Universal targets adults with the R-rated thriller The Snowman [SNOWM] based on a best-selling mystery novel. However, Michael Fassbender [MFASS] is an unproven draw outside of fanboy films. Opening in just 1812 theaters, The Snowman could pack in $8 million.
With good word of mouth, The Foreigner [FRGNR] could hold slightly better than 50% for a $7 million second weekend.
Pure Flix offers Same Kind of Different as Me [SKODM], which was originally a Paramount release. The PG-13 rated faith-based drama may tally $3.5 million from 1362 theaters.
That’s the whisper on the virtual trading floor.
Tag(s): TPERR, BOAM2, GEOST, HTDTH, NOEXT, SNOWM, MFASS, FRGNR, SKODM