BEYONCE NUMBER 1 @ THE BOX OFFICE FRIDAY & SATURDAY

Box Office: Obsessed Is The Biggest Last-Weekend-of-April Opener Ever

Posted on Friday, April 24th, 2009 at 11:16 pm by: Steve Mason

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Recording superstar Beyonce Knowles is building a bankable resume for herself as an actress with Sony Screen Gems’ Obsessed as the latest title burnishing her resume. Co-starring the excellent Idris Elba (The Wire), this low budget, PG-13 genre pic has scored a far-above-expectations $11M on Friday, and it will likely reach $27.5M for the weekend. That is the best opening yet for the former Destiny’s Child lead vocalist as an above-the-title star, topping 2003’s The Fighting Temptations and Cadillac Records from late 2008.

BEYONCE KNOWLES Date Title (click to view) Studio Lifetime Gross / Theaters Opening / Theaters 4/24/09 Obsessed SGem $28,500,000 2,514 $28,500,000 2,514 12/5/08 Cadillac Records Sony $8,195,551 701 $3,445,559 687 12/15/06 Dreamgirls P/DW $103,365,956 2,797 $378,950 3 2/10/06 The Pink Panther (2006) Sony $82,226,474 3,477 $20,220,412 3,477 9/19/03 The Fighting Temptations Par. $30,250,745 2,026 $11,758,372 2,026 7/26/02 Austin Powers in Goldmember NL $213,307,889 3,613 $73,071,188 3,613 Note: Titles in grey are cameo or bit parts and not counted in totals and averages. Lifetime Gross Total (6): $465,846,615 Average: $77,641,103 Opening Gross Average (5): $27,399,106 (Wide Releases Only)

ALL-TIME TOP 10 OPENINGS ON LAST WEEKEND OF APRIL

1. Obsessed (2009) - $27.5M (projected)
2. Mean Girls (2004) - $24.4M
3. Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Universe (2005) - $21.1M
4. Baby Mama (2008) - $17.4M
5. RV (2006) - $16.4M
6. Identity (2003) - $16.2M
7. Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay (2008) - $14.9M
8. XXX: State of the Union (2005) - $12.7M
9. Driven (2001) - $12.1M
10. United 93 (2006) - $11.5M

EXCLUSIVE STEVE MASON EARLY FRIDAY ESTIMATES

1. NEW – Obsessed (Sony) - $11M, $4,375 PTA, $11M cume
2. NEW – Fighting (Rogue) - $3.72M, $1,610 PTA, $3.72M cume
3. 17 Again (Warner Bros) - $3.61M, $1,109 PTA, $31.91M cume
4. NEW - The Soloist (Dreamworks/Paramount) - $3.43M, $1,695 PTA, $3.43M cume
5. NEW – Earth (Disney) - $2.61M, $1,447 PTA, $9.39M cume
6. State of Play (Universal) - $2.58M, $1,029 PTA, $22.12M cume
7. Hannah Montana: The Movie (Disney) - $2.21M, $685 PTA, $61.41M cume
8. Fast & Furious (Universal) - $1.86M, $524 PTA, $5.79M cume
9. Monsters vs. Aliens (Dreamworks/Paramount) - $1.8M, $536 PTA, $168.09M cume
10. Crank: High Voltage (Lionsgate) - $1M, $450 PTA, $10.11M cume

EXCLUSIVE STEVE MASON EARLY 3-DAY ESTIMATES

1. NEW – Obsessed (Sony) - $27.5M, $10,939 PTA, $27.5M cume
2. 17 Again (Warner Bros) - $10.83M, $3,327 PTA, $39.13M
3. NEW - The Soloist (Dreamworks/Paramount) - $10.29M, $5,084 PTA, $10.29M cume
4. NEW - Fighting (Rogue) - $9.74M, $4,219 PTA, $9.74M cume
5. NEW – Earth (Disney) - $9.39M, $5,208 PTA, $15.04M cume
6. State of Play (Universal) - $8.38M, $2,987 PTA, $26.61M cume
7. Monsters vs. Aliens (Dreamworks/Paramount) - $7.56M, $2,251 PTA, $173.85M cume
8. Hannah Montana: The Movie (Disney) - $7.41M, $2,295 PTA, $66.63M cume
9. Fast & Furious (Universal) - $5.79M, $1,625 PTA, $144.95M cume
10. Crank: High Voltage (Lionsgate) - $2.8M, $1,259 PTA, $11.91M cume
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Beyonce made 11.2 million BOTH days!

SATURDAY PM: These kinds of movies are so demeaning to women when the wife and a deranged "other woman" catfight over a man. But there's no denying that female filmgoers love this winning formula. (Remember the big box office of its inspiration, Fatal Attraction?)

So it was no surprise to Hollywood that Screen Gems/Sony's Obsessed starring Beyoncé did so well FRIDAY and SATURDAY, opening No. 1 to $11.2 million BOTH DAYS in North American grosses from 2,515 theaters for what was an overperforming $26M weekend. Amazing, since the studio claims it cost only $20M and was expecting only $18M. This was the 2nd biggest Screen Gems opening ever. The pic did best with female audiences under 25, followed by females over 25.

By contrast, Rogue/Universal's pummel pic Fighting with star of tomorrow Channing Tatum (of the upcoming G.I. Joe) appealed to males under 25 and debuted in 2nd place to $4.5 million Friday from 2,310 venues for a projected $11M weekend. That's in line with expectations for this formulaic he-man genre.

No. 3 went to the Zac Efron starrer 17 Again from New Line/Warner Bros with $3.9 million (down 60% from its opening last Friday) from 3,255 dates but could jump into 2nd place if its weekend tally reaches $12M for a new cume of $30M.

For months, there's been curiosity about how the DreamWorks/Paramount inspirational pic The Soloist would fare in theaters. This Robert Downey Jr/Jamie Foxx starrer was supposed to be released for Academy Award consideration in 2008, but Paramount delayed its debut in order to keep the spotlight and marketing on its two Oscar hopefuls The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button and Revolutionary Road. (Needless to say, DreamWorks was not amused...) The much-buzzed pic is based on the real life relationship between a Los Angeles Times columnist and a genius violinist who's also homeless. But The Soloist opened in 4th place Friday with $3.2 million from 2,024 runs for what should be an underperforming $9M. It proved a challenge to convince people the film wasn't a downer. The audience was led by females over 25 followed by males over 25 with some interest from, surprisingly, males under 25.

Disney's environmental documentary Earth (2009) opened, appropriately enough, on Wednesday which was Earth Day. It earned $2.9 million Friday from 1,804 plays for 5th place and a predicted $9.5M weekend. It's the first documentary from the Disneynature imprint and follows three animal families with impressive photography.

It's surprising how quickly Universal's journalism thriller State Of Play starring Russell Crowe and based on the BBC miniseries faded in a week after a disappointing opener because the studio really thought this pic would have legs. In the 6th spot, it made only $2 million (-55%) Friday from 2,807 theaters for what should be just a $6.5M weekend and new cume of a mere $24.7M.

Audiences ‘Obsessed’ With Beyoncé


Girl power dominated again this year on the last weekend in April, typically a low point in box office numbers just before the summer season. Obsessed, starring pop singer Beyoncé Knowles, out performed expectations for a surprise $28.5 million. In 2008, the late April opener Baby Mama, starring best girl friends Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, won that weekend.

Perhaps most shocking is the relationship drama with catfighting characters didn’t attract entirely female audiences. Only 58% of the opening audience were women, which is unusually high for most movies, but seems low for the type of low-budget ($20 million) PG-13 love battle. Nearly half were under the age of 25, according to Nikki Finke’s exit polling analysis.

It also establishes Beyoncé as more than just a supporting actress after appearing in an Austin Powers sequel and a series of musical acting roles like Dreamgirls, where she was upstaged by former American Idol contestant Jennifer Hudson. She certainly has a place at Screen Gems, who is celebrating their second largest opening ever.



Exit polling showed that the extraordinary opening was driven by female moviegoers. 58% of the audience was female and 42% male. Nearly half (49%) was under the age of 25 and 51% was over 25.