January 31, 2010

Avatar continued to steam along with a sixth weekend estimated gross of $30.1 million. Its incoming competition (combined) grossed roughly the same amount. The Mel Gibson thriller (his first screen role in seven years) Edge of Darkness struggled to $17 million while the programmer romantic comedy When in Rome did a passable $12.1 million.

The blahs also infected niche and exclusive debuts including two new offerings on the Bollywood circuit. The regional release of the inspirational Preacher’s Kid marked the second straight weekend of lack of faith and sales for this fare and there weren’t a lot of scares for the fourth edition of the omnibus Horrorfest. Only a couple of exclusive premieres registered a pulse. The German import North Face grossed $21,800 from four venues and the American independent comedy Saint John of Las Vegas had a comparable $21,400 box office at two sites.

Overall that translated into viewing downturns from both last weekend and from the comparable frame in 2009.

There was a big question mark hovering over the screen return of Mel Gibson in the adaptation of the acclaimed British mini-series Edge of Darkness. Though he’s directed two successful films in the interim and popped up in the news in primarily unflattering fashion, he was a member of the elite box office dependables. Trackers predicted his return picture would gross around $20 million and the actual box office appeared to refute the old saw about absence making the heart grow fonder.

Pundits pretty much were on target about the commercial prospects of When in Rome.

Weekend revenues should clock in at about $123 million that translates into a 16% dip from seven days earlier. It was also 4% diminished from 2009 when the debut of Taken launched with $24.7 million followed by Paul Blart with $13.9 million and The Uninvited at $10.3 million.

Avatar continued to maintain holds that mirrored the sort of stamina Titanic demonstrated more than a decade ago. Last week it surpassed the earlier pictures global record and next weekend will move ahead to position one among box office grossers in the North American marketplace.

The film also figures to receive considerable love when Oscar nominations are announced Tuesday. While in no way a hard and fast rule, the best picture winner has generally gone to the biggest grosser among nominees on the slate. So, Avatar’s logical competition would be The Blind Side, which is pushing toward $240 million, and not The Hurt Locker, which has sputtered out at $13 million and may earn a spot in Oscar record books as the lowest grossing (adjusted for ticket prices) best picture candidate of all time.

-by Leonard Klady

Domestic Market Share: January 1-28, 2010