Korean hit #Alive kicked up another $2.2M this weekend, holding well throughout the mid-weeks, but with an overall 63% Friday-Saturday-Sunday dip from the comparable weekend days last session. The timely thriller that’s set against the backdrop of a city in lockdown due to a virus has now grossed $11M. It’s a continued indication that moviegoers
International Box Office
EXCLUSIVE: While many offshore markets are showing increasing signs of life as cinemas return, there are still several question marks surrounding when the majority of the world gets back to the theatrical business – chief among them for the international box office is China. There has been some chatter that Middle Kingdom movie theaters may
The international box office this weekend was again led by Korea, with major local release #Alive taking a 70% share of the market. The zombie horror thriller from Spackman Entertainment’s Zip Cinema sold 1.06M tickets in its first five days for a gross of $7.4M through Sunday, again demonstrating the strength of new offerings, particularly
The big international box office news this week isn’t actually from the weekend — which was again led by Korea and saw continued ups and downs versus last session as moviegoers await new product. Instead, after 100 days of closure, French cinemas re-opened beginning Monday this week, and with at least 40 films programmed for
Solstice Studios has finalized deals with key offshore distributors to bring psychological thriller Unhinged to cinemas across the world. The Russell Crowe-starrer, which has a domestic date of July 10, has set deals in the UK, Europe, Australia, Asia and Latin America. Directed by Derrick Borte, the road rage movie will see rollout in the
As Regal Entertainment owner Cineworld prepares to re-open its movie theaters, the group has agreed a $250M secured debt facility with a set of private institutional investors. The new facility reaches maturity in 2023 and follows covenant amendments and a revolving credit facility increase of $110M set at the end of last month. Under that
After making a strong debut in Japan last weekend, Sony’s Little Women this session crossed the $100M mark at the international box office. The Greta Gerwig-directed update on the classic tale now has an offshore cume of $101M and a global haul of $209M to date. The current frame was worth $475K from 12 overseas
The UK’s Cinema First has announced that 450 films will be made available for theatrical screenings once movie theaters re-open for business in the coming weeks. The content has been collated by the Film Distributors’ Association with the aim of aiding programmers and cinema operators to choose the widest possible mix of product that will
Regal Entertainment owner Cineworld Group has confirmed it will re-open cinemas in some of its markets during the last week of June, with all theaters expected to be back online during the course of July. Cineworld chief Mooky Greidinger had previously told Deadline he expected a late June/early July start back to operations, while the
Sony’s Oscar winner, Little Women, originally began offshore rollout back in late December 2019, but continued to show off its grit at the international box office this weekend. The Greta Gerwig-directed update on the classic opened in Japan at No. 1 with $495K. In total, currently playing on 440 screens in 13 offshore markets, the
EXCLUSIVE: Looking at the international box office over the past few weekends, if there’s one trend that’s beginning to emerge from the smattering of cinemas back in operation, it’s that audiences are responding to new product — and fresh re-releases. Exhibitors are getting the job done with what’s available to them, but it’s still slim
EXCLUSIVE: Some international box office markets that are up and running — even if not at full steam — saw increases this weekend while others faced drops given good weather in some spots and an overall lack of new product. However, Disney floated Kristen Stewart-starrer Underwater into Korea for the first time with a No.
France’s movie theaters will be allowed to re-open from June 22, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announced this evening. This is earlier than expected, as French Culture Minister Franck Riester said this week that cinemas were eyeing a July 1 re-start. The decision was made in concert with the industry, Philippe said today, in order to
As France awaits official updates that are expected to come later this week with regard to the re-opening of restaurants and perhaps fewer restrictions on travel, Culture Minister Franck Riester reiterated today that cinemas are eyeing a July 1 re-start. Speaking to France Info, Riester said the government is mulling dates to re-open cultural venues
EXCLUSIVE: It’s all very quiet on the international box office front, but this past weekend saw some decent increases in various markets. Cinemas are still just sputtering back to operations around the world, notably in parts of Europe and Asia. Germany remains the key major driving admissions — and largely from drive-ins, though Vue International’s
What a difference a year — and a pandemic — makes. At this time in 2019, Pokémon Detective Pikachu was the No. 1 movie in 72 markets with a $54M frame at the international box office while John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum took out a took out a $35M hit in 66 and Avengers:
Warner Bros has keyed up a re-release of Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy in Hong Kong and Taiwan, ahead of the mid-July launch of the director’s latest epic, Tenet. The three films — Batman Begins, The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises — will release over several weeks. The first rollout is in Taiwan
Italy’s cinemas will get back to business from June 15, the government announced Saturday as it outlined an overall easing of lockdown protocols in what was the initial epicenter of the European continent’s coronavirus outbreak. As with other markets that are beginning to lift restrictions on moviegoing, there will be social distancing measures in place
France’s movie theaters may be able to re-open at the beginning of July, the country’s Culture Minister Franck Riester said today. A further update is expected at the end of this month, however, Riester told local radio this morning that the government believes a certain number of cinemas may be able to get back to
Germany’s Constantin Film has been awarded the Federal Film Board’s Branchentiger prize for the top local producer and distributor of 2019. This is the 13th consecutive year that the Resident Evil and Perfect Strangers maker has won the award. With it comes 3.1M euros in funding for seven new in-house productions as well as 600K
Chinese authorities will allow further leisure venues, including cinemas, to gradually re-open now that the coronavirus pandemic has largely been controlled in the country, the top administrative body said on Friday. This comes after movie theaters were shuttered nationwide in January, ultimately dealing a $2.5B+ loss to the box office in just the first quarter.
After German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday outlined plans for the easing of restrictions caused by the coronavirus crisis, the country’s most populous state has said cinemas will now be able to open from May 30. North Rhine-Westphalia, which is home to such major cities as Dusseldorf and Cologne, set guidelines on Wednesday, but noted
As exhibitors in major European markets begin eyeing potential openings at the end of June and through mid-July, some smaller hubs are returning to operation this week, albeit under strict social distancing guidelines and at reduced capacities. Overall, a somewhat clearer picture is beginning to emerge with regard to restarting the business in Europe —
French movie theaters will not be allowed to re-open when the country begins to lift its lockdown on May 11, while a ban on festivals and events that draw more than 5,000 people has been extended to September. That includes professional sports, notably the 2019-2020 soccer season. France’s Prime Minister Edouard Philippe made the statements
Undeterred by the current state of the industry, and despite posting a $668M profit loss for 2019, China’s Wanda Film is betting big on the local theatrical business. The division of Dalian Wanda Group said that it intends to spend about $431M raised in a non-public offering of A shares to build more Middle Kingdom
China’s Dalian Wanda Group has issued a statement regarding its AMC Entertainment, calling speculation about the chain filing for bankruptcy “pure rumors.” This comes after an S&P Global report last week forecasted AMC’s depletion of cash by mid-summer and its potential inability to re-open by June, and as chatter has swirled about a possible Chapter
French president Emmanuel Macron addressed the nation this evening, saying that in-home confinement spurred by the coronavirus crisis will be prolonged until May 11. While not specifically identifying the Cannes Film Festival, Macron also noted that festivals and other events drawing large crowds will not be allowed to go forward until at least mid-July. That
Alibaba Pictures, the entertainment arm of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group, has issued a profit warning, saying it expects losses for the financial year ended March 31, 2020 to range from RMB 1.1B-1.2B ($156M-$170M). That would be an increase of over 330% as compared to the previous year. The company cited “complicated difficulties in pursuing
A group of 51 European film and audiovisual organizations and individual companies has released a call for action by EU and member state decision makers to safeguard the future of the sector in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The statement, see it in full below, says the industry requires “urgent financial support now and
EXCLUSIVE: As movie theaters have shuttered around the globe due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, exhibition is among the front line of industry sectors feeling the crisis. Cineworld Group, which owns Regal Entertainment in the U.S. and is the world’s second biggest circuit, has faced challenges recently, including closing cinemas until further notice, a share