In Entertainment Weekly’s Summer Movie Preview issue, the EW staff compiled a prediction of the Top 10 Highest Grossing Movies of the Summer.
1. Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (355.9 million)
2. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (310.8 million)
3. Hancock (280.4 million)
4. Wall-E (280.3 million)
5. Iron Man (267.7 million)
6. The Dark Knight (255.0 million)
7. Kung Fu Panda (244.6 million)
8. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (176.5 million)
9. The Incredible Hulk (147.2 million)
10. Tropic Thunder (146.6 million)
When I first saw their list, I was actually pretty shocked. How could The Dark Knight place so low? And Prince Caspian at #2? Really? And the biggest superhero of the summer: Will Smith’s? Over Iron Man, The Dark Knight and The Incredible Hulk?
I was prepared to write an article on why Entertainment Weekly is wrong, but as I did more and more research, I started to doubt my first impressions.
EW Might Be Right…
For example, let’s take a look at The Dark Knight. The first film, Batman Begins, made $205 at the domestic box office. Most super hero sequels actually make less than the first film:
- Spider-Man made $403M, Spider-Man 2 made $373.
- Superman made $134M, Superman II made $108M.
- Batman made $251M, Batman Returns $162M.
The only real example of a sequel making more than the original is X-Men which made $157M, and X2 made $214. There are a variety of reasons why this happened, not limited to the second film’s promotion budget and theater count (a difference of almost 700 screens). So history shows us that comic book sequels generally don’t make more money than the first film in the series, but that doesn’t mean it can’t happen. Let’s look at best case scenario: The Matrix made $171M, and the sequel The Matrix Reloaded made $281M. That’s a 64% increase. What if The Dark Knight could pull the same type of increase? It would be $336M. I don’t think anyone expects The Dark Knight to pull Reloaded type numbers, especially with the looming death of Heath Ledger. EW’s prediction of $255M is a 24% increase over Batman Begins. I wouldn’t be surprised if The Dark Knight could pull out $275M but any higher would be pushing it.
EW Might Be Wrong About…
Hancock is a completely different matter. I understand that Will Smith is red hot, and that none of the movies Smith has starred in the last five years have made less than $138M…. BUT the movie looks stupid, and I haven’t talked to one person who would list it as their most anticipated movie of the summer (or maybe even top 5). Smith’s biggest movie since Independence Day was I Am Legend, and that only made $256M. And I actually knew a lot of people that were excited to see that movie.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe made $291M but I feel a lot of people felt slighted by the first film. Disney promised the new big fantasy film franchise and people for the most part were left disappointed. I don’t see how The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian could out perform the first. I would guess that Narnia might not even cross the $250M mark.
Discuss: Do you agree with Entertainment Weekly’s Top 10 predictions?
April 23rd, 2008 at 8:38 pm
I really, really believe that Indiana Jones is not going to do the numbers people are saying it will. I guarantee that. And what’s with the DK being so low?
April 23rd, 2008 at 8:49 pm
WALL-E will do $330 million and will be #1 or #2
April 23rd, 2008 at 8:58 pm
Didn’t EW also say that Superman Returns was going to dominate the box office and be number 1 for that summer?
April 23rd, 2008 at 8:58 pm
My Top 10 Would Be:
1 - Indiana Jones
2 - The Dark Knight
3 - Kung Fu Panda
4 - Wall E
5 - Iron Man
6 - Get Smart
7 - The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
8 - The Mummy 3
9 - Sex & The City Movie
10 - The Happening
April 23rd, 2008 at 9:01 pm
Indy
walle
tdk
ironman
get smart bombs, BIG as does speed racer
April 23rd, 2008 at 9:05 pm
Certainly not the order.
I’d bump up Wall-E to 2nd and certainly do some shifting. I don’t see the latest Mummy outing doing THAT well, but I would say that josh has something there with the Sex and the City Movie.
The hardest one to predict will be The Dark Knight. It’s really impossible to tell how viewers will react to Ledger’s death. Will they flock in drove’s to see his last completed on-screen appearance? Or will they be driven away by it? And boy does it look dark. I think it’s a tough call for sure.
For now, my top 5:
1) Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull ($325M)
2) Wall-E ($300M)
3) Iron Man ($275 M)
4) The Dark Knight ($250 M)
5) Hancock ($200 M) — Will Smith hasn’t had a movie gross under $100M since Ali.
April 23rd, 2008 at 9:06 pm
Um, what’s EW credibility on such previous lists? Pretty lousy, I am going to guess.
Jones at 1: Probably. Doesn’t matter if it’s mediocre. So were the Star Wars prequels. No one cared.
Narnia at 2: Wrong. The producers have misfired by making this film darker. Parents will not bring the family and kids en masse.
Hancock at 3: Someone at EW trying to kiss Will Smith’s tucus? This will not be 3. Or 6.
Wall-E at 4: Probably will be #2 for the summer. Adults, kids, all will attend.
Iron Man: I feel like everyone is overestimating the appeal of this movie. I could be wrong.
The Dark Knight: This is the must see movie of the summer. Could even beat Jones. EW is wrong.
The Mummy: EW is insane. No one gives a fuck about this movie.
Tropic Thunder: Complete question mark.
Incredible Hulk: Will not be on the top ten for the summer.
Kung Fu Panda: Will be on top ten. It’s animated - it’s summer.
April 23rd, 2008 at 9:08 pm
Yea they’re most likely wrong. I think Hulk would do way better than people are talking about, probably pass the $200mil mark. Its only being bashed by the internet because nothings really coming out and the CGI lookes blocky, but hey remember what we were saying when Iron Man came on during the SuperBowl or when the Transformers’ trailer came out. I feel that now that Marvel owns the rights to their characters we’re gonna see them promote the latest movie coming out and after its released go ballistic with the promotion. As for Indy, it’ll probably make more since the previous films were so popular and stuck with people and American culture for so long. Its a film parents and children want to see alike. They’re way off with Kung Gu Panda, and Wall-E. Those are summer movies and personally knowing a few parents, they’ll just go to any G or PG rated movie just because they know its “kid safe”. Look at Ratatouille and Cars, they made like $500mil worldwide each just because of their both animated movies. Narnia 2 might not make that much domestically this time around but it’ll probably make twice as much overseas than in the states. Dark Knight is probably gonna make more than Begins with the hype from the last one and people wanting to see Heath Ledger’s portrayal of the Joker. Even before his death he was being praised for his performance. Now with his passing many people would like to see one of his last performances on screen. Now lets face it, with Iron Man’s badassness its probablly gonna make “Pirates of the Caribbean 2″ money worldwide. Thats all I have to say about that. One last thing. They were smoking crack when they said Mummy 3 would make that kind of money domestically. Worldwide maybe. Honestly, they should of ended it when Imotep died.
April 23rd, 2008 at 9:09 pm
I think that four movies are actually in the running for the #1 movie:
Wall*e
Dark Knight
Indy 4
Iron Man
Of those 4, two have a greater chance because of a wider audience,
Indy and Wall*e. There’s a good chance it’ll be close between those two.
1. Indy 4 (310 Mil.)
2. Wall*e (280 Mil.)
3. Dark Knight (270 Mil.)
4. Iron Man (240 Mil.)
Dark Horse: Chronic-What?!-cles of Narnia could pull in 260 Mil. But I’m just not sure it can muster up the buzz in time.
The rest of the Summer movies? Going to disappoint Hollywood. Everything will “under perform” till Harry Potter #? in the Fall.
April 23rd, 2008 at 9:22 pm
PS. I’m in the camp that says Heath L’s death will make ticket sales rise. The real life drama surrounding it all will make some people ignore the Darkness of the movie. I’m looking at you freshman girls.
PSS. When this movie does come out, Can we have an agreement that if the Joker Doesn’t die at the end of the TDK, No one will jump on here and start Screaming about who should play the Joker in the next Batman? Kind of a dead give away.
April 23rd, 2008 at 9:46 pm
The Dark Knight will be much higher than that. People forget that the first film already laid down the ground work for it’s upcoming sequel. And people are expecting a shit ton more of greatness in TDK. And rightly so, from what we’ve seen. Sorry EW, I don’t see it that far down the list.
TDK also carries the stigma of Ledger’s last great performance. This will usher more crowds into the theatres. I have a tremendously great feeling about TDK in general.
I also have faith in Hellboy 2 doing fairly well this summer :)
April 23rd, 2008 at 9:49 pm
I seriously am flabbergasted on how anyone cannot put TDK at LEAST in the top 3. Obviously there is a lot of nostalgia with Indiana Jones. It has Spielberg, Lucas and Harrison Ford…It’ll do very well. Pixar is always gold, so Wall-E will crush everything it touches for a couple of weeks.
BUT WAKE UP PEOPLE!!!
To elaborate on an earlier point, Batman Begins made $205 million domestically. That is really impressive because people we fed up and completely turned off by anything batman thanks to Schumacher and Clooney. Batman Begins has had two years on DVD to add on to the box-office fan base, from people who were skeptical to see it in theaters due to past Batman film debacles (Forever and Batman and Robin). Because of this, Batman has gained back its credibility, prestige and coolness. Nolan has created open-mindedness and the willingness of moviegoers to see his films in theaters.
Christian Bale is one of the hottest actors in Hollywood right now. Academy award nominees and winners in the cast include: Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Heath Ledger, Gyllenhaal and Morgan Freeman. Automatic credibility among adult movie-goers.
And for the idiots who site that it is too “adult” and “dark” for parents not to bring their kids to…that is so fucking irrelevant. I believe The Matrix Reloaded was rated R and is super violent, but it still made $281 million at the box-office. Is Lord of the Rings Two Towers and Return of the King for Kids? No! It is violent, DARK, with epic battle scenes, with monsters and orks. Is that for Kids? NO! But it still managed to make over $350 million each.
Every one knows the Joker. He is a favorite villain for millions of people around the world because of the comic books, Burton’s batman and the animated series. That itself bumps up its box-office gross by $100 million.
It is still 3 months away…Warners hasn’t even begun to MASS market the movie to the world, even though it has thousands of people jumping through hoops already in its revolutionary viral campaign.
Lastly…HEATH FUCKING LEDGER!!!!…So many people know this is his last COMPLETED FILM…That alone is going to draw, Ledger fans (non-bat fans) to the theaters. On top of that, worldwide bat-fans and even non-bat fans, but who are action fans, will want to see his performance that already seems brilliant and revolutionary.
If tracking the buzz and anticipation surrounding summer blockbusters to make in-the-ball-park, accurate box-office predictions, then this person who made these predictions from Entertainment Weekly should LOSE THEIR FUCKING JOB!
My prediction? The Dark Knight will be the highest grossing film of 2008 with $380 million.
peace
April 23rd, 2008 at 9:56 pm
i could see the new mummy movie breaking 200 million if it gets good review, that was a hot franchise….nearly a decade ago
Wall-e would be a good bet for #1 for me, with Indy a little less than 300 million
April 23rd, 2008 at 10:01 pm
i agree with almost everything seth said, & completely agree with all the posters about TDK - which will be THE BIGGEST comic book film of the entire bunch in 08′. even as i say that - ledger as the joker has ben highly anticipated since before the cameras ever rolled - is a massive understatement.
April 23rd, 2008 at 10:07 pm
Gosh all these movies look so BOOOORING.
April 23rd, 2008 at 10:20 pm
Indy will COMMAND the box office at #1…no doubt. No telling whether or not it will live up to the originals from a critical standpoint, but it will reel in the cash. I think its going to be alot better than people expect. Wall-E will come in at #2 with Iron Man at #3. Dark Knight, Hulk and Caspian will probably be in the middle somewhere. Hancock won’t even make the top 10. Tropic Thunder should make the top 8.
There, now its correct. EW was obviously a bit off.
April 23rd, 2008 at 10:20 pm
I actually saw a prescreening of Hancock and while I did find it entertaining I was hoping it was Indie or Dark Knight up until they announced what we were seeing. I don’t think Smith will be able to be that big of a draw and I definetly see Dark Night, Indie, Iron Man and maybe even Hulk ahead of Hancock mainly because each of those have a built in following already where as Hancock doesn’t.
April 23rd, 2008 at 10:24 pm
Indiana Jones
Wall-E
The Dark Knight
Iron Man
Narnia
Kung-Fu Panda (barf)
Hancock
The Happening
The Mummy
Get Smart, Incredible Hulk, Tropic Thunder
Jones will either make over 350 or under 135. Ledger’s death will up The Dark Knight’s sales. Narnia’s too dark. Iron Man has all the buzz. Kung-Fu Panda is animated trash (as opposed to good animation like Wall-E) that people eat up. The rest are star-driven question marks.
April 23rd, 2008 at 10:45 pm
Pretty much what others have gone on about TDK here. I easily see it taking the first spot or at the very “least” fighting it out for the first spot.
I’m rolling with TDK here folks :)
April 23rd, 2008 at 11:09 pm
EW got it wrong, but frankly, who expected them to get it right?
1. Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (355.9 million)
2. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (310.8 million)
3. Hancock (280.4 million)
4. Wall-E (280.3 million)
5. Iron Man (267.7 million)
6. The Dark Knight (255.0 million)
7. Kung Gu Panda (244.6 million)
8. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (176.5 million)
9. The Incredible Hulk (147.2 million)
10. Tropic Thunder (146.6 million)
Here’s how I see it breaking down:
1. Indiana Jones $317 mil.
2. Wall-E $313 mil.
3. The Dark Knight $263 mil.
4. Iron Man $231 mil.
5. The Chronicles of Narnia $186 mil.
6. The Incredible Hulk $178 mil.
7. Kung-Fu Panda $153 mil.
8. Hancock $144 mil.
9. The Mummy $127 mil.
10. Tropic Thunder $118 mil.
As you can see, I agree with the movies - just not the order (or the box office gross)
There’s no way that 7 movies exceed $240 mil. DOMESTIC box-office in the same summer.
Iron Man will be hurt at the box-office from competition with Indiana Jones, Speed Racer, and Incredible Hulk. It will also lower their collective earnings. Indy survives the melee because it has the broadest appeal.
Same is true with The Dark Knight - which won’t face as much genre-related competition at the box office. The Wall-E crowd isn’t likely to represent a large part of TDK’s demographic.
Tropic Thunder is a wild card because of Ben Stiller and the whole “black-faced” Robert Downey, Jr. controversy. That being said, I’ll give it the benefit of the doubt.
Also, don’t be surprised if Hellboy 2 cracks the top 10. Guillermo Del Toro has expanded his profile thanks to Pan’s Labyrinth, and Hellboy performed very well on DVD. Could crack the $200 mil. mark.
April 23rd, 2008 at 11:09 pm
why is speed racer not even there????
and why is The Dark Knight not the #1 movie????
this is all wrong
April 23rd, 2008 at 11:52 pm
Do you guys remember when fanboys were cursing Ledger’s casting? My how the times have changed. If I had to pick one move to see this summer: The Dark Knight.
April 24th, 2008 at 12:05 am
What they are forgetting is people still had the bad taste and negative perception of Batman & Robin when Begins was released and they had to overcome that. With the character now firmly re-established they are primed for a much bigger opening weekend, and if the movie delivers, a much higher gross than Begins.
April 24th, 2008 at 12:28 am
I think the dark knight and wall-e will do better….
April 24th, 2008 at 1:21 am
hmmm… as much as I hate to say it, but everyone keeps forgetting Sex and the City… it’s chick show… every feamle in US would go and watch it… more than once
why titanic became TITANIC??? chick factor!!! they don’t care about all the comic/sci-fi movies as much as males… and another factor is males usually watch the movie and if they really like it, they’d bootleg it somehow for the 2nd viewing. but females don’t care. they’d pay for the 2nd, 3rd,… times
and in regard to Speed Racer, again as much as I hate to say it, but it’s a really big question mark.. I’d personally gonna watch it, (at least 3 times i guess) but pretty much everyone I know are not that hyped about it.
And Please don’t bring Panda and Wall-E this high… wall-e would barely crack 230 and Panda is gonna be way below 200.
and regarding the superheroes, hmmm… dont think Ironman would crack 230 either (GTA4 factor). They are correct about DK (about 260) and Hancock… might crack 250 (it’s Will Smith superhero) and Hulk… maybe around 180 (if it has good buzz)
April 24th, 2008 at 6:04 am
Speed Racer didn’t make the list and the Mummy did? I didn’t even know there was a new Mummy movie coming out.
April 24th, 2008 at 6:28 am
x2 was a much better movie than the original xmen movie. I am sure that had something to do with higher sales as well.
April 24th, 2008 at 6:29 am
I think that Dark Knight will make more than anticipated. I know that the crucial male 18-25ers will be out in force. It is being unbelievably hyped by everyone my age I’ve talked to.
April 24th, 2008 at 7:16 am
Top 10:
1. Indiana Jones 4 (405 million)
2. WALL-E (325 million)
3. Narnia: Prince Caspian (315 million)
4. Iron Man (310 million)
5. Dark Knight (305 million)
6. The Incredible Hulk (285 million)
7. Sex and The City (250 million)
8. Speed Racer (225 million)
9. Kung Fu Panda (185 million)
10. Tropic Thunder (175 million)
Watch Out For:
Star Wars Clone Wars
Mummy 3
Hancock
April 24th, 2008 at 8:10 am
Why the hell is the mummy above ANYTHING at ALL? No one is going to see that. Especially not before Tropic Thunder or Hulk. What the hell?
April 24th, 2008 at 8:32 am
Christopher Nolan has already said that Tim Burton’s biggest mistake with the Batman Franchise was killing the Joker in the first film. I really doubt he’ll die in the Dark Knight, and maybe next time we’ll get my first choice, which was Adrien Brody.
I’d also bet that Ledger’s death will only be positive for the numbers, despite (or because of) being a tragedy. Heath Ledger’s going to be an icon now.
April 24th, 2008 at 8:43 am
You know what screw rankings. Summer 2008 belongs to the CRITICS. I say that because Gas is $4 and your average movie ticket cost $10. I don’t see people going to the theaters every week , unless the reviews and word of mouth are more than good. With the economic problems in the U.S. I don’t see this being a big summer revenue wise.
April 24th, 2008 at 9:54 am
I’m predicting WALL-E will be the surprise dud of the year… it’ll do well for sure (maybe $200mil), but this is not cutesy-looking like Pixar’s past movies… I don’t think as many of the little kids are going to want to see it.
So far from the commercials I’ve seen, it almost seems like the only thing the movie has going for it is that it has the Pixar label. There’s no dialogue at all in the commercials, no cute critters, nothing warm or fuzzy…
April 24th, 2008 at 11:48 am
Kung Fu Panda? barf. That movie bothers me and I haven’t even seen it. I think this will go the way of Surf’s Up (which was 90348239 times better than Happy Feet yet was totally ignored).
I love Will Smith but Hancock is just…there are no words.
I’m over Wall E. I think it will be the lowest Pixar movie to date.
April 24th, 2008 at 12:03 pm
I think the Indy estimate is too low…look for Indy to bring in 400 mil or more. People who haven’t seen a movie in years will buy a ticket. It appeals to every demo from age 7 to 77. I also agree with EW on Hancock, never count out smith over 4th of July weekend. Ironman is out too early to make over 200mil, look for it to bring in 180mil tops.
April 24th, 2008 at 1:58 pm
Iron Man is going to have 2-3 weeks of good earnings being the first summer release. Speed Racer looks like possibly the most stupid movie ever, big opening weekend with no legs then Narnia which won’t appeal to the same audiences the first one did. That puts Iron Man in an easy 80-90 million first week and to 220-250 total.
Speed Racer out #2, big friday and saturday then word of mouth comes around saying how bad it is and MAYBE 90-100
Narnia out 3 with a big first weekend then a huge drop for Indy 4 which will kill it’s legs, along with the darker tone and not the mass appeal of the first one takes it to 180-200, maybe.
Then Indy 4 which will stomp every may and early june release. It’ll be #1 for at least 2 weekends, possibly 3 depending on how Kung Fu Panda catches on with families. Indy easily into 250 by the end of June, and finishing around… 340-360
next is Sex and the City which will do a nice weekend a struggle to 60-80 million
Kung Fu Panda will catch on with families for being with animals, animal animation always does well… but it wont be a monster, i’d say around 150-160
hulk… hopefully this wont be as horrible as the hulk a few years ago, edward norton will probably make this a much better version but i cant say it’ll do better than 150, more around 140 or a little less
get smart and the love guru will bomb as most would expect… being summer will put them around 100 million, dont expect more
wall-e will catch red hot and easily pass 200, probably finishing around 250
Hancock, will smith is always good, this doesnt look amazing, but a comedy/superhero movie should be interesting… 150-160
hellboy, i dont know anyone who really cares, much like the first movie, maybe around 100
next is my #1 summer movie, dark knight with heath ledger’s death surrounding the film as well as an iconic villain will put it up toward 300 million and very close to indy
who cares about the x files…
mummy 3, maybe 10 years ago this would be a rocket, but not in 2008, around 130 is a good guess
pineapple express, 80-100m — tropic thunder, 90-110 — meh.
1- Indy 4 (350)
2- Dark Knight (320)
3- Wall-E (250)
4- Iron Man (230)
5- Narnia 2 (190)
6- Panda (150)
7- Hancock (145)
8- Hulk (140)
9- Mummy 3 (130)
10- Get Smart/Hellboy 2/Pineapple Express/Tropic Thunder (~100)
April 24th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
what the hell… every one knows the dark knight will dominate the box office. 1st who the hell is indiana jones, who wants to watch a bad acting 50 year old guy in a cowboy hat and a whip. 2nd hancock?? wtf are you serious lol wow ew are some retards for even listing this stupid movie COME ON. 3rd yea pixar does good put wall-e looks dumb as hell. 4th i dont even know what chronicles of narnia is. 5th ironman will do great but nowhere near tdk….in the end i alone am goin to see the dark knight probably 10 times its in theatre!
April 24th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
All these are predictions based upon hopes,dreams and preferences.These films will hit big numbers ,maybe not in that order,but not nearly as much as predicted because of the current and ongoing economic situtaion.We are in a recession.
The family films,Wall-E, Kung-Fu Panda and Narnia will be hit worst because with gas and food prices increasing ,it will cost a family of four, a pretty penny to go out to the show.Gas,ticketsconcession for a night or wait for the DVD/Blu-Ray in a month and have family night for less than half?
The others can and will be seen on sites on the net.Maybe not with big view and sound but enjoyable and cheaper none the less
April 24th, 2008 at 5:41 pm
Good point on the cost of going to the movies which I didn’t take into account on my first post…with the economy sucking hard, overall traffic will be down this year.
The fanboys for Dark Night need to calm down, no way it beats Indy or Wall-E…just not going to happen. Look at the big picture and the demo’s…tdk appeals to a smaller segemnt of peple.
Also for those thinking Ku Fu Panda will earn north of 200mil…remember most of its audience will be seeing it during the day when the matinee prices are lower.
April 25th, 2008 at 3:00 am
I think EW is underestimating “Mamma Mia!” which I see making “Hairspray” money and beating “Sex and the City”
April 26th, 2008 at 10:44 am
I am going to be completely objectionable here. Indiana Jones will take the top spot because it has a diverse fanbase and has no competition at the box office. The Dark Knight will be second because it also has a large fanbase, the marketing is insane (I’ve never seen such effort by a company to market its movie before), and because of Heath Ledger’s death, not to mention the successful reboot of the franchise with Batman Begins. The rest of the list is too hard to predict in order, but Iron Man, Wall*E, and Prince Caspian will definitely round out the top five.
Anyone who says that the top two will change is completely ignorant (I wouldn’t be surprised if TDK came out on top, though). Iron Man will do well, but it does not have the same pull as The Dark Knight. Wall*E will do well because Pixar movies always do well, but I don’t think it will be up within the top two because the “robots” idea is not as enticing as, say, the “talking toys” idea. Prince Caspian will do well, but it definitely will not be the number three movie of the year.
Overall, I am most excited for The Dark Knight. This is an incredible summer for the movies, but none look as good as TDK. Christopher Nolan is a genius, and his cast includes some of the most talented actors in Hollywood. Also, the marketing is seriously crazy (in a good way). Everyone knows about the movie now, too, because of Ledger’s death. If you don’t agree with me, simply watch the first full trailer (at atasteforthetheatrical.com) and you’ll be blown away. July 18 cannot come sooner, and although our economy has been suffering, this is one movie that people will see over and over in the theaters because it will be genius.
May 1st, 2008 at 8:46 am
lol some of you seem frustrated that TDK isn’t number 1. Who cares, at least it is still number one to you (or so I’d hope). I am looking forward to see Iron Man and thats not at the top but I dont care.
Guero loco:
C’mon, you can’t be putting down other movies becuz ur movie isnt at the top. Wall-e looks good, Indy might be old, but doens’t mean he can’t kick some serious movie ass. But Hancock, yea i dont see how thats beating all the others. Narnia is just for those old folks anyhow, so i don’t really care much.
May 2nd, 2008 at 9:17 am
Good call about the gas prices — could definitely have an impact. I like Indy 4’s staying power — that film will still be in 2nd run theaters in September. Hancock will benefit from being the only major July 4th weekend release, but with the exception of the “Incredibles” (Pixar factor) and “Unbreakable” (6th Sense follow-up factor), I can’t recall any superhero movie with an unestablished character doing that well. I predict Hancock will be Generation Y’s “Greatest American Hero” (look it up, junior).
I think Iron Man will benefit from leading the pack, and Dark Knight will get boatloads of free press. Really unsure about Get Smart (is Steve Carrell hot or cold or does it matter?), Sex and the City (how does a Pay Cable hit translate to ticket sales?), Caspian (didn’t see the first one, didn’t hear good things), or Mama Mia! (baffled).
Going back to gas prices, I think that means you’ll definitely see teen films skewing higher than normal — grown-ups have a better ability to substitute to low-cost activites than teens.
May 7th, 2008 at 9:20 pm
My top ten prediction would be:
(11. Speed Racer ($120ish) — Even though it looks cheesy, people for reason i think will go see it. i dunno)
10. Get Smart ($133) — People love Steve Carrell and his movie has people laughing. Besides, it going up against the Love Guru so there shouldn’t too much competition.
9. Kung Fu Panda ($140) — Sadly, because the name Dreamworks is behind it, it will do well. But this looks dumb period.
8. The Mummy 3 ($144) — I think this will be similar to Ocean’s 13 and Rush Hour 3 where the movie opened less than the originals and made less. But i think there is enough of a core audience and it is the last big movie of the summer that it can make up its money.
7. The Incredible Hulk ($168) — This is really iffy. If the word-of-mouth is good, so will the box office totals. Because the first one sucked, whether or not people like it will really make the difference.
6. Hancock ($199.9) — Will Smith is on fire now, but his latest is not his greatest. It will not cross $200 only because of the lack of plot. I Am Legend only did well because the last film to come out for that audience was Beowulf a month before and Superbad before that. They were eager for something. This film I hope will flop though.
5. The Dark Knight ($241) — Heath Ledger’s death will most likely bring on a possible Best Supporting Actor nomination, but I don’t think that his death will affect business too much. The film has an IMAX release which will boost sales and the trailers and posters are hyping everyone up. ;But the film is too dark to bring in a wide enough audience to crack $300 million.
4. Iron Man ($288) — It has great critical reviews and an astounding opening weekend. Being the first big movie of the summer, it won’t be a suprise to see this crack the top 3 either.
3. Wall*E ($290) — With the huge best picture win and box office success of Ratatouillle, PIXAR is on a huge roll. Though the film does seem like a fill-in until the much-anticipated Toy Story 3 (Yay!), I believe the critical reviews will be strong enough to pull in a core family audience. But this is a very risky film because of the lack of dialouge.
2. Indiana Jones 4 ($320) — Even though it is one of the most anticipated films ever, and Steven Spielberg isn’t going to make a horrible film, fans and critics will always find something “drastically” wrong with the film, causing the persentages to fall greatly. It won’t be a disappointment, but not phenomenonal.
1. Narnia 2 ($329) — Call me crazy, but Disney hardly ever goes wrong. Even if it is too dark for families, a lot of teens are also attracted to this film. And the movie’s reviews will probably be better than Indy 4.
June 25th, 2008 at 10:30 am
I’m not sure what will be the top film of the year but I can say for sure that it will not be walle. Anyone who says that it will be the highest grossing film of the year has obliviously not seen it. I watched it last night at a special premiere and it was just okay. Okay it was actually boring … Caspain , Kung Fu Panda , The Incredibile Hulk , Iron Man , Camp Rock … they are all better films and it`s easy to see that Hancock will be better as well. With the multitude of great films that are being thrown out this year its hard 2 say that walle even deserves to finish in the top 10. And actually it doesn`t.
(Before u hate see the film … trust me walle is just like the new england patriots OVERRATED )