Nothing Limited About the Per Theater Chart

October 2, 2007

The Darjeeling Limited was the top pick for limited releases over the weekend, earning nearly $140,000 in just two theaters for an average of $67,469. This is the best opening for a Wes Anderson film since The Royal Tenenbaums, at least in terms of raw dollars, and this film still earned a better average. Second place went to Lust, Caution with $63,918, which is one of the best averages we've seen all year. Into the Wild performed marvelously during its expansion this past weekend, earning an average of $19,135 in 33 theaters. On the other hand, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford fell nearly 40% without any expansion; it still earned an average of $18,470 in five theaters, but I was expecting more given its start. Finally, Itty Bitty Titty Committee opened with $11,505 in its lone theater.

Many films were in the $10,000 club, and not that many new releases didn't make it. The best of the rest was The Price of Sugar with an estimated $5,000 in one theater while Outsourced was relatively close behind with an average of $4,028 in eight. On the other hand, Trade's average barely topped $1,000, with just over $110,000 in 90 theaters for an average of $1,312. Finally, the re-release of Sharkwater went poorly with an average of just $619 in 60 theaters.

This past week also saw milestones reached for a couple of Per Theater Chart alumni:

  • In the Valley of Ellah continues to expand, earning more than $1 million over the weekend while reaching the $3 million milestone. However, with a sub-$2,000 per theater average, it will likely start shrinking fast from now on.
  • Across the Universe earned just over $2 million over the weekend while reaching $5 million in total. However, unlike the previous film, its per theater average suggests further expansion is possible and that makes reaching more milestones much more likely.

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Filed under: Across the Universe, Into the Wild, The Darjeeling Limited, In the Valley of Elah, Se jie, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Sharkwater, Trade, The Price of Sugar