Each week Jacob recaps the weekend box office and the winners and losers in the Midnight Warrior Fantasy Movie League.
WEEK 02 BOX OFFICE BREAKDOWN
I hope all you newcomers are having a blast in our league! It’s an easy starter league with 18 contestants where 1/6 of the league gets a Perfect Cineplex in Week 02! Not only that, but School of Rock was VERY close to a Perfect Cineplex last week as well. So congratulations! And to the newcomers, holy hell have we made a steep learning curve for you this season!
So, with a wider expansion than expected, Tom Ford’s Nocturnal Animals came in heads and shoulders above the rest in what should have been a no-brainer for this week. I, however, stuck to my CinepLex Luthor role as villain and went with an alternate disastrous pick. Nevermind the fact that personally I had no faith in this film, and was predicting no widespread appeal. I guess I can’t be right about every single movie. Wait, I was also wrong about Fantastic Beasts which came in at a measly $51.8K per bux, which was well below what I expected. I heard some chatter that Beasts would have a shot at Best Performer this week, but I just don’t think it can happen.
Let’s see a double feature of this kid’s movie and also this psycho-thriller (qu’est-ce que c’est?)
This week was the second week in a row that Moana anchored the Perfect Cineplex. So far this has been going strong, but how will it handle the drop of another giant highly anticipated Disney blockbuster? (Hint: Not great.)
As for our league, three players tied with Perfect Cineplexes, and School of Rock is way out in first place. Close behind is O PC, Where Art Thou? (formerly Film School Dropout). It looks like this season is shaping up to be a rematch of the top teams from last season, but 7 other players are above $100 million on the season, meaning this week’s high grossing cineplexes could turn the tide for anybody.
Join War Starts at Midnight to compete against the 18 other Cineplexes in this league!
WEEK 03 PREDICTIONS
Welcome to the hell that will be Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. This week, FML has decided to split the grosses for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday into their own days. If Rogue One follows in the footsteps of The Force Awakens, you’ll be getting your best bang for your bux on Friday, where TFA made $119 million dollars. Remember, FML counts Thursday “preview” premiere screenings in Friday’s gross as per the industry standard.
The problem with this is finding out a way to spend the rest of the dollars in your cineplex. Two screens of Rogue One Saturday is the next best play, covering over $900 bux with a very high $/bux films. Also, if this picture isn’t attracting as much of the midnight screening crowd, you can expect Friday to fall a little flatter and Saturday to run away with this. This is a toss-up, but I’m inclined to go with the 2x Saturday personally.
So, how do I use my remaining $96? Well, that’s really easy. One screen of Moana and 5 empty screens after that. Wait, no. The real answer is that everybody should check screen counts on Thursday and then make a call. If Manchester by the Sea takes the large screen jump as predicted, it could be a contender for BP. If La La Land makes a big jump then you can count on two tickets purchased by Jacob and Chris, if you want to factor that in.
But, without that info, I am going to go with the following play…
Do you have a bad feeling about this? Tell me why on twitter. If you want to see me really use the force, follow me @jakerg23 for some last second flip-flopping of the highest order.