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‘Jojo Rabbit,’ ‘The Lighthouse’ Fuel Biggest Indie Box Office Weekend of 2019

”Parasite“ also expands spectacularly with over $1 million from 33 screens

| October 20, 2019 @ 11:09 AM
JoJo Rabbit The Lighthouse

Fox Searchlight / Eric Chakeen

After a summer that sometimes left observers worried about the state of the indie box office, this weekend saw not one, not two, but three films earn per screen averages of over $30,000 in the biggest specialty weekend of 2019.

The top average of the weekend went to Fox Searchlight’s “Jojo Rabbit,” which opened on five screens in Los Angeles and New York and grossed an estimated $350,000 for an average of $70,000. That total is higher than the three weekend total of Searchlight’s last release, “Lucy in the Sky,” which grossed $59,000 this weekend for a total of $274,000.

“Jojo Rabbit” wasn’t the most critically acclaimed film out of the Toronto International Film Festival — it has a 77% Rotten Tomatoes score — but it won the festival’s coveted audience award. Fox Searchlight distribution chief Frank Rodriguez told TheWrap that audience and exhibitor response to the film has been strong, and noted that director Taika Waititi has generated interest from younger audiences thanks in part to his work at Marvel Studios.

Also Read: 'El Camino' Might Have Beaten 'Joker' at Weekend Box Office If Released in Theaters Nationwide

“Between his work on ‘Thor: Ragnarok’ and ‘Hunt for the Wilderpeople,’ Taika has really started to build interest in his films among all age groups,” Rodriguez said. “We had 75% of the audience under the age of 49, and we’re so encouraged by how widely appealing this film has been and should continue to be as we expand to eight more cities next week.”

“Jojo Rabbit” is written and directed by Waititi and stars him as an imaginary Adolf Hitler that dwells within the head of 10-year-old Jojo Betzler (Roman Griffin Davis). The boy aspires to be a great Nazi soldier, but his life is turned upside down when he discovers that his mother (Scarlett Johansson) is secretly hiding a Jewish girl named Elsa (Thomasin McKenzie). Rebel Wilson, Stephen Merchant, Alfie Allen and Sam Rockwell also star.

Also performing well in its initial release is A24’s “The Lighthouse,” Robert Eggers’ sophomore follow-up to his 2016 period horror film “The Witch.” Released on eight screens in five cities, the film has grossed $419,764 for a per screen average of $52,471. To take advantage of the Halloween season, A24 is expanding the film next weekend to 500 screens.

Also Read: 'Maleficent: Mistress of Evil' Gives Disney Another No. 1 Box Office Weekend

“The Lighthouse” stars Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe as two lighthouse keepers who spiral into madness after a storm falls over their cold island. Eggers wrote and directed the film, which has a 96% Rotten Tomatoes score.

But perhaps the most surprising result of the weekend was the performance of NEON’s “Parasite,” which expanded to 33 screens but made a spectacular $1.24 million for an average of $37,616. After two weekends, the Korean import has a total of $1.8 million, as it expands to 100-200 screens next weekend.

Taking a different release approach this week was Kevin Smith’s “Jay and Silent Bob Reboot,” which was released nationwide for two special screenings through Fathom Events and grossed $1 million. Smith will now take the film on a roadshow tour, starting with a stop in Ashbury Park, New Jersey, where the film made approximately $90,000 to bring its total to $1.1 million.

Also Read: 'Jojo Rabbit' Director Taika Waititi: 'I Felt Very Nervous' Playing Hitler (Video)

Among holdovers, two Roadside Attractions films are approaching $20 million, as “Judy” grossed $2 million in its fourth weekend and “The Peanut Butter Falcon” grossed $226,000 in its 10th weekend. “Judy” now has a total of $19 million, while “Falcon” has a total of $19.8 million.

Finally, Sony Pictures Classics’ “Pain and Glory” passed the $1 million mark in its third weekend, grossing $463,532 from 67 screens to bring its total to $1.1 million.

Antonio Banderas, Kerry Washington and 95 More Portraits From TheWrap's Toronto Studio (Photos)

  • TIFF2019 portrait split
  • Robert Pattinson, Robert Eggers, and Willem Dafoe, The Lighthouse
  • Kerry Washington, American Son
  • Antonio Banderas, Pain and Glory
  • Bryce Dallas Howard, Dads
  • Isabelle Huppert, Frankie
  • Isabelle Huppert and Ira Sachs, Frankie
  • Christopher Plummer, Knives Out
  • Katherine Langford, Knives Out
  • Jaeden Martell, Knives Out
  • Jamie Lee Curtis, Knives Out
  • Don Johnson, Knives Out
  • Toni Collette, Knives Out
  • Knives Out Cast and Director Rian Johnson
  • Finn Wittrock, Renée Zellweger, and Rupert Goold, Judy
  • Cynthia Erivo, Harriet
  • Leslie Odom Jr, Harriet
  • Kasi Lemmons, Harriet
  • Harriet Director and Cast
  • Marielle Heller, A Beautiful Day
  • Enrico Colantoni, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
  • Kelvin Harrison Jr, Waves
  • Alexa Demie, Waves
  • Lucas Hedges, Waves
  • Taylor Russell, Waves
  • Trey Edward Shults, Waves
  • Waves Cast and Director Trey Edward Schults
  • Dakota Johnson, The Friend
  • Jason Segel, The Friend
  • Matthew Teague, Dakota Johnson, Jason Segel, and Gabriela Cowperthwaite, The Friend
  • Jamie Dornan, Synchronic
  • Jamie Dornan and Ally Ioannides, Synchronic
  • Ally Ioannides, Justin Benson, Jamie Dornan, and Aaron Moorhead,Synchronic
  • Priyanka Chopra Jonas, The Sky is Pink
  • Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Shonali Bose, The Sky is Pink
  • Isla Fisher, Greed
  • Isla Fisher and Steve Coogan, Greed
  • Beanie Feldstein, How to Build a Girl
  • Alfie Allen, How to Build a Girl
  • Alfie Allen and Beanie Feldstein, How to Build a Girl
  • Coky Giedroyc, Caitlin Moran, Beanie Feldstein, and Alfie Allen, How to Build a Girl
  • Bolude Watson, Hearts and Bones
  • Andrew Luri, Hearts and Bones
  • Hugo Weaving, Hearts and Bones
  • Hearts and Bones cast and Director Ben Lawrence
  • Gabe Polsky and Steven Warshaw, Red Penguins
  • Kyle Marvin and Michael Angelo Covino,The Climb
  • Alex Wolff, Bad Education
  • Ray Romano, Bad Education
  • Bad Education Cast
  • Military Wives Director and Cast
  • Ellen Page, There's Something in the Water
  • Taika Waititi, Jojo Rabbit
  • Roman Griffin Davis, Jojo Rabbit
  • Alfie Allen, Jojo Rabbit
  • Stephen Merchant, Jojo Rabbit
  • JoJo Rabbit Cast and Director Taika Waititi
  • Gael Garcia Bernal, Ema
  • Mariana Di Girolamo, Ema
  • Santiago Cabrera, Ema
  • Gael Garcia Bernal, Mariana Di Girolamo, Santiago Santiago Cabrera, and Pablo Larraín, Ema
  • Julie Delpy, My Zoe
  • RIchard Armitage, My Zoe
  • Richard Armitage and Julie Delpy, My Zoe
  • Halina Reid, Instinct
  • Carice van Houten, Instinct
  • Valerie Pachner, A Hidden Life
  • August Diehl, A Hidden Life
  • Stellan Skarsgård, Hope
  • Andrea Bræin Hovig, Stellan Skarsgård, and Maria Sødahl, Hope
  • Laysla De Oliveira and Rossif Sutherland, Guest of Honour
  • Makoto Shinkai, Weathering With You
  • Daniel Radcliffe, Guns Akimbo
  • Samara Weaving, Guns Akimbo
  • Guns Akimbo Cast and Director Jason Lei Howden
  • Charlie Hunnam, True History of The Kelly Gang
  • George MacKay, True History of the Kelly Gang
  • Justin Kurzel, True History of the Kelly Gang
  • True History of the Kelly Gang Cast and Director
  • Josh and Ben Safdie, Adam Sandler, Uncut Gems
  • Idina Menzel, Uncut Gems
  • Kevin Garnett, Uncut Gems
  • Julia Fox, Uncut Gems
  • LaKeith Stanfield, Uncut Gems
  • Uncut Gems Cast and Directors Safdie Brothers
  • Edgar Ramírez, Wasp Network
  • Wagner Moura, Wasp Network
  • Wasp Network Cast and Director Olivier Assayas
  • Alex Wolff, Human Capital
  • Maya Hawke and Alex Wolff, Human Capital
  • Human Capital Cast and Director Marc Meyers
  • Willem Dafoe, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, and Edward Norton, Motherless Brooklyn
  • Claes Bang, The Burnt Orange Heresy
  • Giuseppe Capotondi, The Burnt Orange Heresy
  • Hirokazu Koreeda, The Truth
  • Jonathan Pryce, The Two Popes
  • The Two Popes Cast, Writer and Director
  • Malky Godman, Keith Thomas, Dave Davis, and Menashe Lustig, The Vigil
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Toronto Film Festival 2019: Robert Pattinson, Renée Zellweger, LaKeith Stanfield and more stop by TheWrap’s studio in the Thompson Hotel

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