“American Sniper” turned its Oscar-qualifying run into a record-breaker this weekend, posting the top four-day limited box-office debut of the year, and the best ever during the Christmas period.
The Clint Eastwood-directed Iraq War saga starring Bradley Cooper and Sienna Miller brought in $850,000 from four theaters over the four days, an eye-popping $212,000 per-location average for distributor Warner Bros.
“The Grand Budapest Hotel” averaged $202,792 over three days in a four-theater opening in March for Fox Searchlight; the three-day total for “American Sniper” was $152,000.
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“American Sniper” also received a rare “A+” CinemaScore from audiences, which will provide momentum when Warner Bros. opens the drama from Village Roadshow nationwide on Jan. 16, a week after nominations for the Academy Awards are announced.
The R-rated “American Sniper” was written by Jason Hall and based on Chris Kyle’s autobiography of the same name. It follows his struggles to be a good father and husband while fighting in Iraq.
“The film’s combination of patriotism and real heroism clearly struck a chord,” said Dan Fellman, who heads domestic distribution for Warner Bros. “This was the perfect film for Clint, and
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Cooper, who has starred in “American Hustle” and “Silver Linings Playbook,” is on quite a run. He’s currently on Broadway, starring in “The Elephant Man.”
The big opening provides a nice rebound for Eastwood, coming off the soft performance of “Jersey Boys,” which he directed earlier this year, and 2012’s “Trouble With the Curve,” in which he starred.
