Refresh for latest …: New Line/DC/Warner Bros’ Shazam! Fury of the Gods has had a less than heroic launch with $65.5M global, including $35M from the international box office . We always knew this sequel was going to come in lower than its predecessor , but the result is also far off where projections were ahead of the weekend. Overall, the main issue on Shazam 2 appears to be a disconnect with hardcore DC fans, and, when it comes to China, an increasingly cold-shoulder approach of audiences to Hollywood fare. Fury of the Gods was simply a no-show in the PRC with a slight $4.4M weekend. Despite getting a day-and-date release there, moviegoers did not turn up for Shazam 2 (in the heady days of 2019, the first movie bowed to nearly $30M). This is part of a concerning trend in the world’s second biggest box office market where (outside of Avatar ) folks have shied away from Hollywood fare. Interestingly, Shazam 2 has an 8.8 audience score on Maoyan whereas the … [Read more...] about ‘Shazam! Fury Of The Gods’ Strikes Out With $66M Global Bow – International Box Office
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Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin-Starring ‘Moving On’ Sees $800K Opening – Specialty Box Office
Roadside Attraction’s Moving On grossed an estimated $798k at about 800 theaters, about status quo this weekend for a specialty sector that’s better but still looking to break out. The audience for the Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin -toplined comedy was, not surprisingly, 63% female and 82% over 35. Some 64% were 50+. It played best on the coasts. Estimated per theater average for the Paul Weitz film that also features Malcolm McDowell and Richard Roundtree is just over $1k. Fonda and Tomlin play estranged friends who reunite to seek revenge against the husband of their recently deceased best friend. The film had trailer time before 80 For Brady where the duo played alongside Rita Moreno and Sally Field (and Tom Brady). That wide-release opening Paramount pic, now down to 168 screens in week 7, has grossed $39 million. Roadside Attractions co-president Howard Cohen called the opening number “positive” with word of mouth good and noted that midweek showings are … [Read more...] about Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin-Starring ‘Moving On’ Sees $800K Opening – Specialty Box Office
Bruce Willis’s Wife, Emma Heming Willis, Posts Emotional Thank-You To Fans On His Birthday
It’s a happy birthday to Bruce Willis , who turns 68 today. But while the occasion is joyous, his deteriorating condition from dementia has been hard on his family, Emma Willis Heming said in an Instagram message today. Last month it was revealed that Willis has frontotemporal dementia (FTD), an increasingly debilitating form of the illness. To relieve some of the stress, Emma has been using her Instagram platform to keep fans updated on the Die Hard actor’s condition. But today she vented her own emotional state. “So today is my husband’s birthday. I have started the morning by crying, as you can see by my swollen eyes and snotty nose.” She admitted that putting on a brave face in the ensuing months since Willis’s diagnosis has been a strain. “I just think it’s important that you see all sides of this,” she said. “I always get this message, or people always tell me that ‘Oh, you’re so strong, I don’t know how you do it.’ I’m not given a choice. I wish I was. … [Read more...] about Bruce Willis’s Wife, Emma Heming Willis, Posts Emotional Thank-You To Fans On His Birthday
With ‘Jesus Revolution,’ The Faithful Are Back In Their Movie Theater Pews
Watching Jesus Revolution surge past $45 million in ticket sales for Lionsgate —matching or besting The Fabelmans , The Banshees Of Inisherin, Tár , Women Talking and Triangle Of Sadness, combined—it finally seems safe to say it. The faith-based audience is back. Between Covid and the culture wars, it’s been a rough few years for those who make, promote and/or enjoy what are loosely called inspirational films. Sometimes the pictures are overtly religious, as with Jesus Revolution , the real-life story of a pastor and his counter-cultural following in the 1970s. Others are simply aspirational—moralistic, values-laden tales, like Creed III or Respect , about individuals striving to be more and better than they already are. Either way, the uplift business was having tough time until Top Gun: Maverick broke through, at the strictly secular level, last year. The last explicitly religious film to top $40 million at the box office appears to have been … [Read more...] about With ‘Jesus Revolution,’ The Faithful Are Back In Their Movie Theater Pews
Donald Trump Enjoys NCAA Tournament Amid Likely Arrest
Donald Trump is certainly not acting like a guy on the verge of being arrested ... He flew to Oklahoma Saturday night and enjoyed himself at a college sporting event. The former President showed up at the BOK Center in Tulsa for the NCAA Wrestling Tournament -- hours after he announced that he would be arrested Tuesday by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg over the Stormy Daniels hush-money case. AP Videos showed Trump smiling and waving at the crowd as he walked through the stadium with his entourage. Trump also shook hands with fans and took group photos with them. At one point, he raised his fist in the air -- apparently in defiance of his looming indictment. Trump was invited to the tournament by Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), who was seen standing next to 45 and posing for pictures with him. By early next week, Trump could be posing for a very different photo -- that of a mugshot. Bragg is reportedly getting ready … [Read more...] about Donald Trump Enjoys NCAA Tournament Amid Likely Arrest
L.A. County Coroner: Lindsay Lohan’s Excuse Is Total BS
Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter thinks Lindsay Lohan 's latest excuse -- that she was late to the morgue because she had trouble finding the entrance to the Coroner's office -- is a big pile of dog crap. As we reported, Lindsay's publicist just released a statement -- claiming Lindsay's tardiness was "due to a combination of not knowing the entrance to go through and confusion caused by the media waiting for her arrival." But Winter just told reporters -- there's no way Lindsay was confused about anything ... because she's been to the Coroner's office before. And, Winter claims, the Coroner's office even went out of its way to avoid confusion -- giving the actress specific step-by-step directions on where to go. … [Read more...] about L.A. County Coroner: Lindsay Lohan’s Excuse Is Total BS
Def Leppard’s Rick Allen Speaks Out After Florida Attack
Getty Def Leppard's Rick Allen is breaking his silence after being attacked last week -- and it sounds like he's actually calling on forgiveness for the alleged culprit. The rock band's longtime drummer issued a statement Sunday, which has some encouraging updates on his condition. He says, "Thank you everyone for your overwhelming support. Your love and prayers are truly helping. My wife Lauren [Monroe] was thankfully not with me at the time of the incident. We are together now, and working on recovering in a safe space." Broward County Sheriff's Office According to ABC News, which obtained his remarks, Allen and his family are now shifting their attention toward "healing for everyone involved" ... although he doesn't really elaborate. There's more ... RA goes on to say, "We ask you to join us in our effort to move from confusion and shock to compassion and empathy. We understand this act of violence can be triggering for so many people." … [Read more...] about Def Leppard’s Rick Allen Speaks Out After Florida Attack
Michael Winterbottom Talks Blurring Of Lines Between Documentary & Fiction; Appeals For UK Film Funding Rethink – Qumra Masterclass
Michael Winterbottom has devoted much of his filmmaking career to revisiting real-life events through works blurring the boundaries between documentary and drama to various degrees. The filmmaker shed light on his approach in a recent Doha Film Institute (DFI) masterclass, going behind the scenes of Welcome To Sarajevo , 24 Hour Party People , In This World , The Road To Guantanamo , A Might Heart and Eleven Days In May . “It’s a continuum, even if you’re filming a fantasy film in a studio on a green screen there is an element of document to that. You’re recording that moment of the act of performance,” he said when quizzed on his attitude towards documentary versus fiction. “Equally, even in a documentary like Eleven Days … you’re trying to shape that story, so it a continuum,” he added, referring to the 2022 documentary commemorating 68 children killed in Israeli bombing raids over Gaza in May 2021. Winterbottom elaborated on this idea through his … [Read more...] about Michael Winterbottom Talks Blurring Of Lines Between Documentary & Fiction; Appeals For UK Film Funding Rethink – Qumra Masterclass
John Oliver Guts SVB & Signature Bank Collapses, & Yes, There’s Another Fox News Shiv Too
It looked like a good week for Fox News on Last Week Tonight with John Oliver today as the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and uncertainty in the financial world replaced the searing revelations resulting from Dominion Voting’s lawsuit against the Rupert Murdoch-owned cable newser on the HBO series. Well, at least for a while. Promising “not to bore you with every little detail,” Oliver proceeded to rip and tear into the intricacies of investing in long term Treasury bonds and the losses piled up by the now failed Santa Clara, CA based bank as interest rates have risen over the past year or so. “It’s essentially a classic story of a bank doing a lousy job of judging and hedging against risk,” the multi-Emmy winner stated. And then, while that prickly lawsuit and embarrassing text chains by Tucker Carlson, Laura Ingraham and Sean Hannity weren’t in the spotlight, Oliver went right back to taking a whack at the Fox News piñata. “That is so stupid, I’m almost … [Read more...] about John Oliver Guts SVB & Signature Bank Collapses, & Yes, There’s Another Fox News Shiv Too