There weren’t many in the business world who felt Disney’s four billion dollar investment in Star Wars was a foolish one, but in the wake of The Force Awakens restoring vitality to the franchise’s brand and bottom line it looks like a bit of a steal. In a little over a week the film has totaled an astonishing $544,573,329 in the domestic market alone and blown past a billion dollars worldwide before even reaching the massive China market. Though hundreds of millions of dollars were spent in marketing, the holiday season was dominated by Wookies and droids in a way even the most optimistic couldn’t expect and the result is a veritable cash cow. A ridiculously low drop of less than 40% from last weekend gives the film the kind of legs reserved for the most elite of elite film releases. The film’s second weekend estimated total of $153,522,000 would qualify as the tenth best first weekend of all time. That is how big this film is. Though numbers will drop more drastically from here on out, the damage is done.
For a look at how the new film compares to the original when inflation is factored in, have a peek at the great divide between them.
Side Effects
New releases like the Will Ferrell/Mark Wahlberg comedy Daddy’s Home and David O. Russell’s Joy opened well while Point Break and Concussion disappointed. In limited releases the Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight and the brutal Leonardo Dicaprio adventure The Revenant actually posted higher per screen averages than The Force Awakens. Much like beloved space operas, beloved films from beloved auteurs are event films in their own way and both films look to gain ground as they open to more screens in January.
The Rest of Fandom
Krampus has enjoyed a nice run at the box office and the Hunger Games franchise is enjoying its last gasp in the top ten, but the rest of genre films will be dormant for the next couple of weeks until the new year begins and the ticket buying populace has resumed normal work and school schedule.
We’ll be here to tell you next Sunday.
Sources: Box Office Mojo