Refresh for more updates…There’s a great vibe out there about moviegoing right now, believe it or not; and October is just the beginning. While we had event films during the summer, we’ve got ’em all jammed packed in the next month, kicking off with Sony’s long-awaitedVernom: Let There Be Carnageon Friday stateside, followed by MGM/United Artist Releasing’sNo Time to Dieon Oct. 8, Universal/Blumhouse/Miramax’sHalloween Killson Oct. 15, and Warner Bros./Legendary’sDuneon Oct. 22.
Some have written into me about shortened hours at multiplexes in the last month and empty auditoriums post Shang-Chi‘s huzzah over Labor Day weekend. Hopefully, this assembly line of tentpoles will turn all of that around. Sony is conservatively estimating $40M over 3-days at 4,200 locations, including Imax and Premium Large Format, comping to A Quiet Place 2, however, tracking and leading exhibitors have them in the $60M+ range at the U.S. and Canadian box office. A confidence prevails, as it should. I was at a fan screening of Sony’sVenom: Let There Be Carnage Monday night at the Universal Citywalk Imax. There wasn’t an empty seat in the house and the movie played like gangbusters to great cheers with fans dressed in tow. Unlike the clunkyness of the first 2018 movie, which totally delivered and heightened the Venom mythology and continued this Sinister Six track which Sony is ultimately steering the bad boys of the Spider-Man franchise toward. Any indication as to howVenom: Let There Be Carnage takes the franchise to another level, is in the opening logos which explicitly read “In Association With Marvel”. That’s all we’re going to say about that. And because of that, whateverVenom 2opens to, it’s certain to play and play even if it’s losing Imax screens toNo Time to Diethe following weekend.
The firstVenombested its 30% Rotten Tomatoes score, a B+ CinemaScore and on-the-set warring buzz between star Tom Hardy and director Ruben Fleischer to post the best domestic opening for October with $80.2M beforeJokertook over that record a year later for the month with a $96.2M opening. Sony’s concern lies in how big the actual marketplace is at this point in time during Covid: There’s only been a few times during the summer when we’ve actually been above or at 2019 weekend levels, and there’s two other wide entries this weekend, however, not really a threat, and both available in homes: MGM/UAR/Bron’s Addams Family 2which is looking at moms and young girls with a hopeful teens 3-day B.O. at 3,700+ locations and a $19.99 PVOD availability at home, and Warner Bros’ The SopranosprequelThe Many Saints of Newarkavailable on HBO Max and 3,180 theaters, expected to do in the single digits. Look for that movie to really pop on HBO Max given that it’s based on a popular HBO series, duh.
Previews forAddams Family 2and Venom 2 (@ 3,475 locations) start at 4PM tomorrow whileMany Saints of Newarkwon’t have any previews.
Of the major offshore territories thatVenom 2is debuting in this weekend, it’s Russia tomorrow, where it’s primed to best Legendary/Warner Bros.’ Dunewith the besting opening of the pandemic besting their $7.8M opening with $8M. Russia’s theater capacity varies depending on where you live. Moscow has a 50% limit.Duneis heading into its third weekend in Russia, andNo Time to Diehasn’t arrived there yet.
Russia was the second best overall offshore market on Venom at $32.6M after China’s $269.1M. The bigger chunk of the sequel’s overseas rollouts starts on Oct. 13 with Korea, Japan, Spain, Italy among the notable markets. France, Germany, Netherlands won’t happen until Oct. 20 and 21 with Australia in November. Studio owners are waiting for this vital market to return from the pandemic. The majority of Southeast Asia remains closed. At historical rates,Venom opened to $13.6M in 2018 in Russia.
Jill Goldsmith will have our indie preview later in the weekend, but it’s important to note that NEON is debuting their Cannes Palme d’Or winnerTitanein 562 theaters in U.S. and Canada across 100 markets. The Julia Ducournau-directed French film follows a series unsolved crimes and a father reunites with his son, who has been missing for ten years. The pic in its logline is also billed as “Titane : A metal highly resistant to heat and corrosion, with high tensile strength alloys.” Ducournau is the second woman to win Cannes’ top prize after Jane Campion with 1993’sThe Piano.
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