1) That Awkward Moment- 15M Weekend, 15M Total
In what will undoubtedly be one of the slowest weekends in recent memory, the “young adult” comedy That Awkward Moment is looking to capitalize on the rising stars of its young cast. Zac Efron, already a known quantity, teams up with Fruitvale Station’s Michael B Jordan and The Spectacular Now’s Miles Teller. Teller has already hit a few out of the park like TAM, both 21 and Over and Project X. I think the lack of direct competition will allow for a first place finish this weekend.
2) Ride Along- 12M Weekend, 92M Total
Ride Along, if you don’t count Ice Cube’s small role in 21 Jump Street, is his highest grossing film. It’ll be his first starring vehicle to cross the 100M mark. Just not this week.
3) The Nut Job- 9M Weekend, 51M Total
The Nut Job should be largely unaffected by the Super Bowl this weekend. It’s a kids film, plus if it was going to do business on Sunday, it would do it during the day, prior to the start of the Super Bowl.
4) Lone Survivor- 7M Weekend, 103M Total
Lone Survivor targets the audience that will not be going to the movies this Sunday. Lone Survivor will be making the bulk of its money on Friday and Saturday, with just a little dribble of cash on Sunday.
5) Frozen- 7M Weekend, 357M Total
It is entirely possible that the sing-along version of Frozen could actually BOOST Frozen. I’m banking that Frozen will gently slide this week, as it also faces no competition from the Super Bowl.
6) Labor Day- 6M Weekend, 6M Total
It is unlikely that Labor Day will make much of an impact this weekend. Yes, it does have Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin, but it is basically a recycled Oscar movie. There are a lot of more acclaimed dramas in theatres for Labor Day to compete with for attention.
7) American Hustle- 5M Weekend, 132M Total
Best Picture Contender American Hustle is in the running for a small dip this weekend, as I’m not sure the Super Bowl crowd is the target audience for this film anyway.
Review: American Hustle
8) Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit- 4M Weekend, 37M Total
Another casualty of Super Bowl weekend. Look for a 50%+ drop this weekend, as guys will be absent from movie theatres on Sunday.
9) I Frankenstein- 3M Weekend, 14M Total
With poor reviews and a weak opening weekend, I Frankenstein would drop over 50% anyway. Add on the Super Bowl weekend, and we could be looking at a 65-75% drop this weekend.
10) The Wolf Of Wall Street/August Osage County- 3M Weekend, 103M/31M Total
One of these films will round out the top 10. If both of them do, then I Frankenstein had a really awful second weekend. Neither film should be particularly harmed by the Super Bowl. Both are still running on a little bit of Oscar steam. Wolf will finally break 100M this weekend. It will be DiCaprio’s 9th 100M film, and technically Jonah Hill’s 13th 100M film, though that includes a lot of voice over work, and supporting roles.
Review: August Osage County
Movie Review: The Wolf Of Wall Street