‘Gloria Bell’ Is The Belle Of The Newcomers; ‘Apollo 11’ Orbits $1.3M Weekend: Specialty Box Office
Sebastián Lelio’s Gloria Bell handily took the best specialty debut mantle this weekend with one of the highest opening weekend per-theater averages for a limited release title this year.
The film dominated, as the specialty universe converged at the start of the weekend at SXSW. The A24 feature starring Julianne Moore, John Turturro and Michael Cera grossed an estimated $154,775 in the three-day, averaging $30,955. Gloria Bell is the re-imagined English-language and L.A.-set drama of a free-spirit, based on Lelio’s 2014 title, Gloria, set in Santiago, Chile, which took in over $2.1M via Roadside Attractions stateside.
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'Gloria Bell' Is The Belle Of The Newcomers; 'Apollo 11' Orbits $1.3M Weekend: Specialty Box Office
The US debut of Franco Rosso’s 1980 film, Babylon, had a solid start with its weekend exclusive at BAM in Brooklyn. Babylon grossed an estimated $20,096 over the weekend. The company also bowed 3 Faces by Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi with an exclusive New York run over the weekend, taking in $7,196.
Lionsgate Premiere opened The Kid, starring Ethan Hawke, Dane DeHaan, Leila George, Adam Baldwin and Chris Pratt, in 267 locations to $505K for a soft $1,891 PTA. Though not gangbusters, the title should turn a small profit.
Other limited release launches include Bollywood’s Badla from Reliance, which grossed over $614K in 94 North American theaters, averaging $6,535. And, Greenwich Entertainment bowed doc Ferrante Fever by Giacomo Durzi in a single location for $4K.
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Apollo 11 launched in regular theaters after exclusive landings in IMAX locations around the country last weekend. In total, the Neon release grossed $1.3M in 405 theaters, averaging $3,212 bringing the Sundance premiere’s cume to over $3.78M. Also noteworthy is that Apollo 11 made the overall box office top 10 as of Sunday afternoon.
Music Box Films added three runs for Transit in its second frame, grossing $42,538 for an $8,508 average bringing its cume to just under $90K.
Gloria Bell’s nearly $31K opening PTA outpaced Sebastian Lelio’s 2014 original, Gloria, which took in over $56K in its opening weekend in January of that year, averaging $18,818. That film, however, was set in Chile, was in Spanish and starred a veteran Chilean actor, Paulina García, who is not well known to North American audiences. The film proved to have legs though with its $2.1M North American cume, which in part made it attractive for a re-make in English starring a well known actor here.
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Lelio adapted the story into English and then went on to direct his other projects, including Oscar-winning A Fantastic Woman ($2.02M cume) and Disobedience starring Rachel Weisz and Rachel McAdams. That film, released by Bleecker Street last April, continues to be the filmmaker’s North American benchmark with a $237K opening weekend in five theaters ($47,479 PTA). It went on to cume over $3.49M on this continent.
Lelio and Moore reconnected after the director completed Disobedience. “She finished her other projects and we had a window in 2017,” said Lelio earlier in the week. “We put financing together very quickly and built a ‘family’ around Julianne including John Turturro and Michael Cera. I’ve always loved John Turturro’s work.”
A24 reported “enthusiastic sellouts” for Gloria Bell in New York and L.A. throughout the weekend. The company will roll the title into top markets this week ahead of a nationwide expansion set for March 22.
A24 added 23 runs for its thriller, Climax, in its second frame, bringing its count to 28 theaters. Directed by Gaspar Noé, the title took an estimated $110,786 in the three-day, averaging $3,957. It bowed with a $119,423 gross in its debut weekend, averaging $23,885.
In its third weekend, Roadside Attractions’ faith-drama Run The Race shed 322 runs vs. the previous weekend. Still quite wide though, the feature grossed nearly $608K in 753 locations, averaging $807 bringing its third frame cume to over $5.24M.
Oscilloscope reported Sunday that its compilation feature of cat videos, Catvideofest 2019 is “selling out shows all across the country,” including a $30K gross at Detroit Film Theater with just five showings. Catvideofest is playing as ‘alternative content’ at select showings and has not received full schedule runs in any city, according to the distributor. Over the weekend, the title purred a $141,500 gross in 55 theaters, averaging $2,573 bringing its cume to $216K.
Added Oscilloscope: “Due to its overwhelming success in top markets, exhibitors are adding encores throughout March to meet audience demand.”
Bleecker Street’s Arctic is closing in on $2M. In its sixth weekend, the adventure-drama starring Mads Mikkelsen grossed over $182K in 208 theaters ($876 average) bringing its total to over $1.98M.
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Sony Classics’ Capernaum is also inching toward a milestone. The Lebanese-produced drama spent its 13th weekend in 45 North American theaters, grossing $60,883 ($1,353 average) taking its cume to over $1.46M.
Searchlight’s The Favourite starring Oscar-winning Best Actress Olivia Colman stands at $33.8M. In its sixteenth weekend, the title directed by Yorgos Lanthimos grossed $260K, averaging $935.
And Oscar-winning Best Documentary Free Solo has climbed to over $17.22M. In its 24th weekend in theaters, the title by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin took in $131,600 in 119 locations, averaging $1,106.
NEW RELEASES
3 Faces (Kino Lorber) NEW [1 Theater] Weekend $7,196
Babylon (Kino Lorber Repertory / Seventy-Seven) NEW [1 Theater] Weekend $20,096
Badla (Reliance) NEW [94 Theaters] Weekend $614,328, Average $6,535
Ferrante Fever (Greenwich Entertainment) NEW [1 Theater] Weekend $4,000
Gloria Bell (A24) NEW [5 Theaters] Weekend $154,775, Average $30,955
The Kid (Lionsgate Premiere) NEW [267 Theaters] Weekend $505,000, Average $1,891
RETURNING/SECOND WEEKEND
Apollo 11 (Neon) Week 2 [405 Theaters] Weekend $1,301,000, Average $3,212, Cume $3,780,952
Climax (A24) Week 2 [28 Theaters] Weekend $110,786, Average $3,957, Cume $280,652
Furie (Well Go USA) Week 2 [27 Theaters] Weekend $164,000, Average $6,074, Cume $395,464
Giant Little Ones (Vertical Entertainment) Week 2 [7 Theaters] Weekend $23,500, Average $3,357, Cume $40,568
Saint Judy (Blue Fox Entertainment) Week 2 [16 Theaters] Weekend $7,363, Average $460, Cume $67,866
Transit (Music Box Films) Week 2 [5 Theaters] Weekend $42,538, Average $8,508, Cume $89,730
The Wedding Guest (IFC Films) Week 2 [31 Theaters] Weekend $66,078, Average $2,132, Cume $90,306
HOLDOVERS / THIRD+ WEEKENDS
The Iron Orchard (Santa Rita Film Co.) Week 3 [22 Theaters] Weekend $23,170, Average $1,053, Cume $162,030
Run The Race (Roadside Attractions) Week 3 [753 Theaters] Weekend $607,745, Average $807, Cume $5,241,994
Total Dhamaal (FIP) Week 3 [117 Theaters] Weekend $150,000, Average $1,282, Cume $2,014,552
Wrestle (Oscilloscope) Week 3 [4 Theater] Weekend $4,750, Average $1,188, Cume $17,820
Birds Of Passage (The Orchard) Week 4 [50 Theaters] Weekend $61,343, Average $1,227, Cume $246,581
Catvideofest 2019 (Oscilloscope) Week 4 [55 Theaters] Weekend $141,500, Average $2,573, Cume $216,076
Ruben Brandt, Collector (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 4 [17 Theaters] Weekend $8,894, Average $523, Cume $50,687
A Tuba To Cuba (Blue Fox Entertainment) Week 4 [16 Theaters] Weekend $13,941, Average $871, Cume $59,394
Everybody Knows (Focus Features) Week 5 [283 Theaters] Weekend $445,000, Average $1,573, Cume $1,878,000
Lords Of Chaos (Gunpowder & Sky) Week 5 [17 Theaters] Weekend $7,435, Average $437, Cume $238,499
To Dust (Good Deed Entertainment) Week 5 [17 Theaters] Weekend $15,496, Average $911, Cume $123,442
Arctic (Bleecker Street) Week 6 [208 Theaters] Weekend $182,292, Average $876, Cume $1,983,722
Never Look Away (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 7 [77 Theater] Weekend $113,086, Average $1,469, Cume $860,249
Stan & Ollie (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 11 [61 Theaters] Weekend $52,657, Average $849, Cume $5,150,756
Capernaum (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 13 [45 Theaters] Weekend $60,883, Average $1,353, Cume $1,469,926
The Favourite (Fox Searchlight) Week 16 [278 Theaters] Weekend $260,000, Average $935, Cume $33,809,298
Free Solo (National Geographic Documentary Film/Greenwich Entertainment) Week 24 [119 Theaters] Weekend $131,600, Average $1,106, Cume $17,221,949
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