Inferno' Gets Burned at Box Office; 'Madea Halloween' Stays on Top
October 30 2016 - 10:10PM
Dow Jones News
"Inferno" flamed out at the box office this weekend.
Tom Hanks's latest turn in the Robert Langdon series was beat
out by "Tyler Perry's Boo! A Madea Halloween," which surprised
Hollywood by holding the No. 1 spot, taking in $16.7 million in the
U.S. and Canada.
"Inferno" barely made a flicker, with an estimated $15 million
opening, which put it in second place, well below expectations for
the movie, which arrived with no new competition. Holdover "Jack
Reacher: Never Go Back" came in third, at $9.6 million.
Like so many movies in today's Hollywood, "Inferno," released by
Sony Corp.'s Sony Pictures Entertainment, will have to lean hard on
overseas returns to make up for lost ground in North America. Its
global gross is approaching $150 million.
The domestic opening of "Inferno" is well behind its
predecessors in the series. "The Da Vinci Code" rode enthusiasm for
the best-selling book to a $77 million opening in 2006, and "Angels
& Demons" followed in 2009, with a $46 million debut.
"Inferno," which had a budget of about $90 million, hit theaters
after several weeks of well-performing, adult-oriented fare like
Mr. Hanks's own "Sully" and "The Girl on the Train." That may have
led to some moviegoing fatigue in "Inferno's" target audience, and
the World Series likely stole some of the older males who make up
the movie's core demographic, said Rory Bruer, Sony's president of
world-wide distribution.
"We ran into some rough breaks," said Mr. Bruer. Overseas
grosses will help offset domestic returns, he said.
A Halloween theme also likely helped "Boo!," which was released
by Lions Gate Entertainment Corp., keep its top spot. The movie
fell only 41% in its weekend performance, bringing its two-week
total to a hit $52 million.
Overseas, Walt Disney Co.'s comic-book adaptation "Doctor
Strange" has already started raking in ticket sales in several
markets, collecting $86 million ahead of its North American debut
on Nov. 4.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 30, 2016 21:55 ET (01:55 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Sony (NYSE:SONY)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Sony (NYSE:SONY)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024
