The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 goes for the three-peat this weekend, if it gets there it will become the fifth film to do so this year. The bad news is that it’s trending around $80 million short of the sequel, meaning $800 million worldwide could now be out of reach unless the international market comes up huge. Have you heard that Jennifer Lawrence song from the film yet? It’s on Spotify and YouTube, pretty haunting. I’ve got it coming in at just under $20 million, the dip will go back to accelerating this weekend.
Penguins of Madagascar has a shot this weekend, clearly much more so than it did last weekend. Speaking of, what the heck is up with audiences punishing sequels right now? This opened at less than half of the 2012 version. Weird thought, but I bet the decision not to name it Penguins of Madagascar: 4 cost them about $15 million dollars overall. Let’s give it $15.3 million overall and move on with our lives.
Horrible Bosses 2 is yet another sequel that got murdered. I don’t want to even hope that people are tired of sequels, because there’s too much prove from even this year that it’s way early to make such a claim. Still, wouldn’t that be a wonderful world? Another movie that looks awful (financially) next to its opener, there’s more bad news a ‘coming with $9.3 million this weekend.
Just to keep up the feeling of deja vu, let’s hit up The Theory of Everything again. $4.7 million is my call, but I’m not sure as to their expansion schedule as of press time. I haven’t seen a budget here yet, but it couldn’t have cost more than $10 million, could it? It’s all dialogue and inside sets. Plus the actors, as good as they were, are largely unknown. You thinking what I’m thinking? Pure profit!
Current Record: 55-115-6 against the wisdom of the crowds
SIDE NOTE: Some of the theater numbers below are estimates. We’ll have the actual counts in Sunday’s wrap-up article.
