At this year’s Sundance Film Festival, Geremy Jasper’s debut film “Patti Cake$” was one of the most sought after projects in Park City, triggering a bidding war between Focus Features, Neon, Annapurna, Fox Searchlight and The Orchard. Fox Searchlight was the winner, purchasing the film for $9.5 million. It was the second-highest movie buy at this year’s festival, only behind the $12 million Amazon spent to grab the rights to “The Big Sick.”
But unlike “The Big Sick,” “Patti Cake$” is not performing up to its price tag.
Despite praise from critics for the film and its leading actress, Australian rising star Danielle Macdonald, “Patti Cake$” made just $66,000 from 14 screens for a per screen average of $4,711. By comparison, “The Big Sick” made $108,000 from just four screens in its initial limited opening and has gone on to gross $38 million after expanding nationwide. Fox Searchlight will be hoping word-of-mouth can lead to a rebound as it expands to 70 screens next week, followed by a nationwide release of 300-400 screens for Labor Day weekend. The film has a 76 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Meanwhile, The Weinstein Company’s “Wind River” expanded nationwide to 694 screens in its third weekend and made a very solid $3 million to finish in the top 10 among all films this week. By comparison, director Taylor Sheridan’s last film, the Oscar-nominated “Hell or High Water,” made $3.5 million from 909 screens in its third weekend this time last year.
Elsewhere, Samuel Goldwyn’s “Gook” opened on two screens in Los Angeles this week and made an estimated $31,100. Named after a racial slur used against Asian-Americans, the film is written, directed by and stars Justin Chon and follows a pair of Korean-Americans in Los Angeles on the first night of the 1992 riots. The film has a 90 percent RT score.
Also opening this weekend is Amazon/IFC’s biopic “Crown Heights,” which features “Get Out” star LaKeith Stanfield as Colin Warner, a man wrongfully convicted in 1980 of murdering a teen in Brooklyn. The film made $27,552 from three screens for a PSA of $9,184. The film was written and directed by Matt Ruskin and has a 70 percent RT score.
Among holdovers, Neon’s “Ingrid Goes West” made $280,000 from 27 screens in its second weekend, keeping its PSA over $10,000 and bringing its total to $438,000. The Fox Searchlight documentary “Step” nears the $1 million mark after making $205,000 from 306 screens in its third week, bringing its total to $809.000. Finally, The Orchard’s “The Hero” starring Sam Elliott passed $4 million in its eleventh week in theaters with $17,631 from 39 screens.
Top 10 Highest-Grossing Monster Movies, From 'Godzilla' to 'King Kong' (Photos)
This month's "Godzilla vs. Kong" is the latest addition to the collection of creature features that have come out over the decades, the most successful of which have featured kaijus, giant apes, and dinosaurs.
10. "Kong: Skull Island" (2017) $165 million
Before Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson teamed up in "Captain Marvel," they appeared together in this MonsterVerse film that marked Kong's return to the big screen after 12 years. With $566 million grossed globally, the film ensured the success of the MonsterVerse and set the stage for "King of the Monsters" and "Godzilla vs. Kong"
9. "Jurassic Park III" (2001) $181 million
The "Jurassic Park" movies have ranged in quality over the years, but the desire to see dinosaurs chase humans who are too stupid to realize that resurrecting them is a bad idea has always been a hot ticket. Despite lukewarm reviews, "JP III" made $369 million worldwide.
Universal
8. "Godzilla" (2014) $200 million
Made 16 years after Roland Emmerich's version, Gareth Edwards restores Godzilla to a form more resembling his classic Toho appearance. The film was better received by critics and audiences and has now spawned a cinematic universe that will lead to Godzilla doing battle with King Kong in a 2020 crossover.
Legendary/Warner Bros.
7. "King Kong" (2005) $218 million
Speaking of Kong, here he is in Peter Jackson's remake which was released 72 years after the original. Jackson's version went far over budget, with the cost ballooning to $207 million. But the gamble paid off, as "Kong" made $550 million worldwide
6. "Signs" (2002) $227 million
M. Night Shyamalan was riding at the peak of his "Sixth Sense" popularity when he made this alien film in which the invaders' biggest weakness is -- SPOILER ALERT! -- water. While it was a box office success, "Signs" marked the start of a long series of critical pans for Shyamalan that ended with his 2015 thriller "Split."
5. "The Lost World: Jurassic Park" (1997) $229 million
In the classic style of sequels raising the stakes, "The Lost World" featured a grand finale in which a T-Rex escaped its confinement and began destroying San Diego. Since such destruction would permanently kill the idea of a dinosaur theme park, "Jurassic World" decides to just ignore this movie.
4. "Jaws" (1975) $260 million
Steven Spielberg's legendary movie about a giant killer shark remains to this day one of the most important movies ever made, creating the blueprint for the modern blockbuster as we know it. Then, 18 years later, Spielberg changed the movie biz again with...
3. "Jurassic Park" (1993) $402 million
A powerful testament to the sense of wonder and terror movies can instill in their audience. "Jurassic Park" wowed audiences around the world, pushed the boundaries of what could be done with computer-generated imagery, and for over two decades, was the most successful creature feature ever made...until...
Universal
2. "Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom" (2018) $417 million
The pedigree of the "Jurassic Park" franchise, combined with the immense popularity of leading man Chris Pratt, has made "Jurassic World" into a potent franchise for Universal. The latest installment of the series grossed $1.3 billion worldwide, and the only creature feature that has grossed more is...
Universal
1. "Jurassic World" (2015) $652 million
...its 2015 predecessor, which stands as one of the top 10 highest-grossing films on the domestic charts and the highest-grossing film in Universal history with $1.67 billion. Combined, the two "Jurassic World" films have grossed $3 billion at the box office. To quote the greedy Donald Gennaro in the original "Jurassic Park,": "We're gonna make a fortune with this place."
Universal
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Godzilla may be King of the Monsters, but another group of reptiles have the advantage at the box office
This month's "Godzilla vs. Kong" is the latest addition to the collection of creature features that have come out over the decades, the most successful of which have featured kaijus, giant apes, and dinosaurs.