Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

'Dark Knight' Nabs Biggest Debut Ever
EW ^ | 7/20/08 | Joshua Rich

Posted on 07/20/2008 3:15:21 PM PDT by Borges

Holy blockbuster, Batman! The Dark Knight grossed a behemoth $155.3 million from Friday through Sunday, according to early estimates, to score the biggest three-day opening in box-office history, while leading the way on a weekend for the record books.

The second Batman movie from star Christian Bale and director Christopher Nolan finished at No. 1 (as anticipated, duh!), and, assuming the early estimates hold, it set new standards in just about every category imaginable. It scored the biggest three-day opening weekend of all time (beating Spider-Man 3's $151.1 mil bow). It achieved the best opening day and single day in history ($66.4 mil, shattering Spider-Man 3's mark of $59.8 mil). It brought in the most money from Friday midnight shows of any release ever ($18.5 mil, passing Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith's $16.9 mil). It banked a record $6.2 mil from 94 IMAX venues over the weekend (Spider-Man 3 had the old record, $4.7 mil). And it did it all with the biggest theater count, 4,366 locations, of all time.

Oh, but for Bale, Nolan, costars Maggie Gyllenhaal and the late Heath Ledger, Warner Bros., DC Comics, and everybody else involved (all of whom scored career-best bows, naturally), things get even better. The Dark Knight is already more than three-quarters of the way to passing the $205.3 mil that 2005's Batman Begins earned during its entire domestic run. This followup film also drew raves from ticket buyers, scoring a solid A CinemaScore review from a crowd that skewed slightly male and older. And if you add that to the critical coos that The Dark Knight had already been earning, as well as the fact that it's really the last mega-blockbuster movie to hit the multiplex this summer, the film should continue its remarkable run for weeks to come.

As it happened, The Dark Knight wasn't the only record breaker at the box office this weekend. By coming in at No. 2 with $27.6 mil, Mamma Mia! set a new mark for the biggest premiere ever for a movie musical, if that early estimate holds (Hairspray banked $27.5 mil on its first weekend a year ago). That total also passes the $27.5 mil that star Meryl Streep's The Devil Wears Prada earned in its debut two summers back, and it can be credited to the same crowd: older women. Yep, a whopping three-quarters of the film's audience was ladies, and 64 percent was over the age of 30. But they loved Mamma Mia!, and along with the few fellas who also came to see Pierce Brosnan in the Broadway adaptation, they gave it a nice A- CinemaScore grade.

Mamma Mia! and The Dark Knight accounted for nearly 75 percent of all box-office revenue this weekend, so there was little money to go around for the rest of the movies in release. Hancock (No. 3) fell 56 percent to bank $14 mil. Journey to the Center of the Earth (No. 4) dropped an expected 43 percent to earn $11.9 mil. Hellboy II: The Golden Army fell a colossal 71 percent to earn just $10 mil, after bowing at No. 1 last time around. (That ranks among the 40 worst second-weekend declines in history, ouch!) And newcomer Space Chimps (No. 7) failed to take off, with a mere $7.4 mil.

The success stories continued in America's art houses where the Sundance thriller Transsiberian averaged a sweet $17,608 in two venues.

Overall, the cumulative box office set yet another record: The weekend's $253 mil total domestic gross was the biggest three-day sum in history (smashing the mark of $218 mil, from the first frame of July 2006, when Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest led the way). Needless to say, the box office was up an eye-popping 64 percent from a year ago. And, needless to say, with Batman protecting them even more than before, everyone in Hollywood will sleep well tonight.


TOPICS: TV/Movies
KEYWORDS: batman; boxoffice; darkknight; hollywood
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-90 next last

1 posted on 07/20/2008 3:15:22 PM PDT by Borges
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Borges
More money in the pockets of the anti-American, pro-socialism establishment! Sigh!
2 posted on 07/20/2008 3:18:04 PM PDT by RoseofTexas
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: RoseofTexas

What are you talking about?


3 posted on 07/20/2008 3:18:30 PM PDT by Borges
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Borges
Ben Jr. went to see “Dark Knight”.

Based on his report Mrs. Lurkin and I decided we will not go to see it. And despite her hints of interest - I'm confident we won't see “Mamma Mia” either!

4 posted on 07/20/2008 3:19:14 PM PDT by BenLurkin
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Borges

I think he’s talking about Hollyweird.


5 posted on 07/20/2008 3:19:29 PM PDT by library user (There's no sandwich like prawn sandwich.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: Borges

gotta adjust these numbers for inflation, at the least..aside from raw dollars, this is nearly meaningless info aside from the fact the 8$ tickets are helping theaters and studios.


6 posted on 07/20/2008 3:20:05 PM PDT by WoofDog123
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: library user
Oh a cheap generalization? You're probably right. Sigh.
7 posted on 07/20/2008 3:20:56 PM PDT by Borges
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: Borges
I've heard universal acclaim from folks I know who've seen it. As a bonus, it sounds like its political agenda is slightly right, if anything.

I'll probably check out a matinee this week, when there will hopefully be fewer ankle biters in the theater.

8 posted on 07/20/2008 3:22:59 PM PDT by TheWasteLand
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Borges

Man, I can’t wait to see this movie. All the showings were all sold out, so I’ll probably catch it when demand dies down a little. I have heard that this is not only the greatest superhero movie ever made, but one of the greatest overall movies as well. I’d never thought this would out-do Batman Begins, but I heard it did.


9 posted on 07/20/2008 3:24:31 PM PDT by Extremely Extreme Extremist (BARACK OBAMA WILL SAVE US! HE HAS RISEN!!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Borges
I wouldn't mind seeing it "The Dark Knight" but for the green indoctrination before the movie starts.
10 posted on 07/20/2008 3:25:02 PM PDT by the_daug
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Borges

Steven Greydanus at Decentfilms.com liked it a LOT. If the upcoming, potentially-catastrophic, week is reasonably successful, maybe my two oldest (17 and 14) can see it on Friday.


11 posted on 07/20/2008 3:26:31 PM PDT by Tax-chick (Tax-chick's House of Herpets. We're basking - how about you?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Extremely Extreme Extremist

It’s a passable time waster not much more. My vote for best superhero ever made goes to ‘Superman 2’.


12 posted on 07/20/2008 3:26:38 PM PDT by Borges
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: WoofDog123

Does anyone know of a website that lists ATTENDANCE, rather than GROSS RECEIPTS? Particularly concerning movies from the 30’s, 40’s & 50’s.

It really would be nice to compare Apples to Apples. After all, you could open a home movie with a total weekend attendance of 13 people in Zimbabwe and have the take be several billion! :-)


13 posted on 07/20/2008 3:28:14 PM PDT by BwanaNdege
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: BwanaNdege; WoofDog123

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/adjusted.htm


14 posted on 07/20/2008 3:31:40 PM PDT by Borges
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: Borges
My vote for best superhero ever made goes to ‘Superman 2’

ROFL. You're kidding or smoking crack, right?

15 posted on 07/20/2008 3:31:44 PM PDT by Extremely Extreme Extremist (BARACK OBAMA WILL SAVE US! HE HAS RISEN!!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: Extremely Extreme Extremist

It’s a small masterpiece and is a much better film than the first Superman film and any other film of that sort I’ve seen since then.


16 posted on 07/20/2008 3:32:47 PM PDT by Borges
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]

To: Borges

I saw it last night and it was pretty good. There was no reason, though, for Batman to have copped to the 5 murders that Dent committed. In order that the people of Gothago not lose confidence in their officials? As though with all the crime in Gotham no cops or aldermen had ever been corrupted. Better that they have the example of a dead corrupted Dent and a live incorruptible Batman than the other way around. Batman and Commissioner Gordon were discussing how it was important that the people have someone they can believe in and then finished by saying that the people needed a bad guy to believe in and that bad guy was Batman because he could take it. That was a bit weak, though it left things open to a sequel. Too bad Ledger died; he was a GREAT bad guy.


17 posted on 07/20/2008 3:35:42 PM PDT by aruanan
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: Borges

Terrence Stamp was the best thing about Superman 2. KNEEL BEFORE ZOD!!!


18 posted on 07/20/2008 3:35:43 PM PDT by Clemenza (Barack Obama is a Chance the Gardner for the 00s)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]

To: Borges
My wife and I went to see it today and it was a pretty good movie. What was interesting was that you could a LOT of parallels between the movie and the war on terror and this may seem weird, but the analogies you can draw between Batman and GW Bush are striking.
19 posted on 07/20/2008 3:37:39 PM PDT by DouglasKC
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Borges

Gary Oldman is at his best when he takes an understated role like (soon to be) Commissioner Gordon. Nevertheless, his best role was his rather outlandish performance in “The Professional.”


20 posted on 07/20/2008 3:39:04 PM PDT by Clemenza (Barack Obama is a Chance the Gardner for the 00s)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-90 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson