Oprah Helps #1 ‘The Butler’ Open $9M Friday And $27M Weekend
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Summer 2013 has demonstrated there’s no accurate measurement anymore to predict domestic box office now that pre-release tracking is meaningless. So the next best gauge I’ve found more accurate week after week is pre-sales. Tracking showed Universal’s Kick Ass 2 (playing in 2,940 theaters) would be the #1 film this weekend.
In fact Lee Daniels’ The Butler (2,933 theaters) from The Weinstein Company was the #1 ticket-seller on both big online ticketsellers Fandango and MovieTickets Thursday - and indeed is the #1 film tonight with around $9 million and an ‘A’ CinemaScore from audiences to help word of mouth. it’s also looking like the biggest grossing film for the weekend with $27M (although TWC is lowballing $25M).
Also interesting to note is that 72% of Fandango’s The Butler ticket-buyers who were surveyed claimed that co-star Oprah Winfrey’s involvement increased their interest in seeing the film. Love her or hate her, Oprah in her first movie role in 15 years is helping The Butler‘s box office right now. (Back in 1998, at the height of her syndicated power when she could sell anything to anyone, she starred in and produced the film flop Beloved.) No one, and certainly not The Weinstein Company, expected The Butler‘s $25M negative cost film to double its $15M weekend projection much less land on top. This surprise hasn’t been seen since the similarly race- and civil rights-themed DreamWorks sleeper The Help opened in 2011.
