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Source: Business Wire
Theaters have taken steps to get back to normal, showing old photos in a few places while they wait for new releases from Hollywood studios.
Comscore Inc., the film and television researcher, reported weekend box office sales for the first time in five months since theaters closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. With only a fraction of US theaters in operation and few new films, theater owners may not know right away whether consumers are willing to perform in droves.
“The Spongebob Movie: Sponge On The Run” grossed $ 900,000 in 300 locations in Canada, while “Unhinged,” which opened internationally ahead of its US release on August 21, had 582,000 $ from 271 locations across the country. Across North America, “The Tax Collector” made $ 203,722 on its second weekend, while “The Rental” made $ 78,000 in week four.
While Comscore’s first data treasure since March does not yet have a full picture of box office performance, because some studios are keeping sales data private, the numbers provide a glimpse of what a return to the normal.
Cinemark Holdings Inc., a large chain, reopened some locations over the weekend and enforced social distancing and other restrictions that limit crowds in auditoriums. These changes will slow recovery efforts. As the weekend approaches, Comscore said 1,386 North American locations were open, less than a quarter of the 6,000 national multiplexes.
Around the same time last year, the Top 10 Films produced weekend sales of $ 110.7 million in the United States, led by “Good Boys,” a Universal Pictures R-rated comedy about students from sixth trying to make it to their first “kissing party”.
Major releases
Major Hollywood studios haven’t released any new films since March and the next big budget release, “Tenet” by Warner Bros. from AT&T Inc., is only due September 3 in the U.S. Biggest exhibitor, AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc., said last week that it has 184 theaters open overseas and will begin opening its 600 locations in the United States on August 20, in time for the Russell Crowe thriller “Unhinged” from the Solstice studios. A weekend full of major new films is unlikely until 2021.
The longer-term prospects for theaters are also on hold. Several potential blockbusters, the premiere of which was slated for 2020, including “Mulan” from Walt Disney Co., is making its debut on streaming services instead. The studios want to reduce the number of days that films are shown only in theaters, which is called the theatrical showcase.
AMC agreed to leave Universal Pictures of Comcast Corp., one of Hollywood’s largest studios, is making its films available for home viewing after 17 days, in exchange for reduced revenue. While no other studio or channel has made similar deals, the deal could set a precedent for faster delivery of movies to home audiences.
