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False: Xmas Not Biggest Movie Day of the Year
December 25, 2008 2:29 PM
There may be five major movies opening Christmas Day, but the chance of any of them becoming the biggest box-office hit of the year is about as big as the chance of Santa being real.
"There are other days, like the day 'The Dark Knight' opened, that'll blow everything else into the weeds," said Paul Dergarabedian, who heads up box-office analysis agency Media by Numbers. "How big Christmas is for the industry depends on the movies that are in the marketplace and how well they do."
This yearthose movies are "Marley & Me" (starring Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson); "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett); "Valkyrie" (Tom Cruise); "Bedtime Stories" (Adam Sandler, Keri Russell); and "The Spirit" (Scarlett Johanssen, Eva Mendes). "Doubt," starring Meryl Streep and Phillip Seymour Hoffman, goes into wide release today after opening Dec. 12.
There is, of course, a reason studios chose to open movies on Christmas Day.
"You've got a captive audience; a whole group of people who are home, off work and out of school, and they need something to do after their Christmas morning festivities if they're celebrating," Dergarabedian said. "It's corny, but it's Hollywood's Christmas gift to the public. And in a way, it's a gift to the industry as well. It's a marketing platform. It offers a great opportunity for the studios to get their movies into the marketplace with a big splash."
Sometimes it works: When it opened on Christmas Day 2001, "Ali," starring Will Smith, banked $10.2 million in 24 hours and 2002's "Catch Me If You Can" made $9.9 million on its Dec. 25 opening day. And it's not just feel-good fare that fares well: l Last year, "Alien vs. Predator: Requiem" made $9.5 million during its Christmas opening.
"Typically, Christmas Day generates better box office than the average midweek nonholiday day," said Dergarabedian. "You've got five big release newcomers and those are going to generate some heat."
So even if the industry doesn't break records today, it'll probably earn itself a nice holiday bonus.
Sheila Marikar
December 25, 2008 | Permalink | Share | User Comments (11)
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So...Santa ISN'T real? Thanks for the unwanted down-low, Mr. Grinch! As to the movies - my guess is that "The Spirit" will do the best of them all.
Posted by: Publius | Dec 25, 2008 7:47:03 PM
Cruise has not made a good picture since he got greedy. This German flick is rediculous - Story is great but cruise looks like a fool trying to play a grown up apart.
Cedric the entertainer could have played the role better.
Posted by: a citizen | Dec 25, 2008 8:43:47 PM
You mean Santa is not real .So what happen to my list of presents that I wanted ok maybe the naked girl in bed when I come home from work was a bit much.But I was really looking forward to my one-stand was Stacy Dash.thanks alot SHELIA MARIKAR for wronging my christmas. MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR'S (She Said Santa is not real).
Posted by: KWOLF443 | Dec 25, 2008 8:46:41 PM
Who cares about the idiots in hollywood
Posted by: I am American | Dec 25, 2008 9:03:00 PM
Why does CBS insist on using "Xmas" instead of Christmas? This is a Christian nation. Our laws were founded on Judeo-Christian principles. Tell me, just how much crap do you want to inject into an already degraded society?
Posted by: GroversCorners | Dec 25, 2008 11:34:02 PM
I am American: You may want to look at the roots of Christmas before you start ripping into the persons use of "Xmas". The holiday has it's roots in paganism. Or did you think that there was a garnished evergreen tree and a jolly old man in a red suit at the birth of Jesus, which, by the way, was in the springtime. It's the same way with Easter; bunnies and chocolate eggs are about fertility, not the resurrection. Go read your history. The country was founded out of taxation without representation. As for our "degraded" society, it's hard to imagine anybody doing more harm than the evangelical sheep who put a ridiculously corrupt administration in office and then kept them there for a second term. Why don't you spend your time researching your own religion and the mysticism from which it sprang (you should start w/the Holy Trinity... ripped straight from Greek mythology). By the way, this is ABC, not CBS.
Posted by: Brad | Dec 25, 2008 11:55:57 PM
That last rant should actually have been directed at GroversCorners, not IamAmerican.
Posted by: Brad | Dec 25, 2008 11:57:34 PM
To "A Citizen" - When exactly was it that Tom Cruise got "greedy?" LOL Like him or not, Tom Cruise is still widely regarded as one of the best, most bankable, most talented actors of his generation. He's crazy, true. But his talent and professionalism transcend that, on the set and at the box office. If people aren't going to his movies, it's because of his personality, not his talent. Because most Hollywood insiders still agree that Tom is a Supernova in terms of acting and performing talent.
Posted by: Scott | Dec 26, 2008 12:03:36 AM
Boring movies this Christmas.I love watching the classics and spent my Christmas day watching them on the net and some for free, and bought a few to watch later on. Saw Australia and that was great movie, love Pitt and may go see his tomorrow. What I don't understand is that some people who don't gross well at box office still get nominated for movie performance. People get Oscars for movies that don't do well at box office and that's confusing. No one wants to see war movies these days (not my friends) and this may be reason why Tom cruise is doing as well. His movies lately are about politics and now a war, and we get enought of that on daily news. People need escapes, not reminders of what we learned in school already. Acting can be great but if story line is boring, what's the point. I can always look at their picture on the net if if it was the actor i went to movies for. I don't think kid movies do as well during holidays either because they want to play with their new toys. My niece and nephews go to movies often, but today and for remaing time off school thay want to play instead. Tom is excellent in drama/ adventure movies and no wonder Harrison Ford does well at box affice. He picks great escape movies. Love Pitt but lately his movies aren't a mystery. Most of us know story lines ahead of time and there's no appeal anymore since it's all been disclosed over and over. Even Jen's movies we have been told over and over that the dog dies and when you know begining, and ending what's the point. Hollywood needs to rethink their public relations to be more successfull. Leave something for the theater and even Challeging i so wanted to go see but when was told over and over that it was sad and boy and it's about justice, one knows the boy isn't found and that it's about the system only. Who wants to go see sad movies anyway. Not the actors fault, just the industry seems desperate and exploited. Just my two cents.
Posted by: zorra | Dec 26, 2008 2:29:36 AM
There's enought reality shows and reason why Pitt's movie may do better than the rest. It's creative writting/storytelling and has twists. Only unfortunate thing is that it's been so exploited that the mystery is out of the bag for same, but because it's not based on reality it's facinating to see what someone came up with and reason why I'll try my best to see it tomorrow. It's amaging how someone taught of such a story line, very clever. Don't think it's based on true event, and if if it ever happened it's not known about. Leave the reality stuff for tv, not the movies. Movies should be full of twists and surprises and be creative to be fun. Twilight was creative and so was dark knight and both not based on reality, but escape to unknown territory.
Posted by: zorra | Dec 26, 2008 2:47:41 AM
"Like him or not, Tom Cruise is still widely regarded as one of the best, most bankable, most talented actors of his generation."
...you've got to be kidding!
Posted by: Ed | Dec 26, 2008 6:36:21 AM
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