By Kit Bowen, Hollywood.com Staff
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Friday, December 29, 2006
Johnny Depp stars as Captian Jack Sparrow Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest |
Let’s face it, 2005’s box office slump made us quiver. The blockbusters of yesteryear weren’t able pull off the numbers they use to, and when 2006 rolled around, there was a determination to do better—and better they did. The total North American box office grosses for 2006 are estimated at approx. $9.42 billion, up nearly 5 percent from 2005’s $8.9 billion.
The summer of 2006 was much more successful than the disastrous one in 2005, thanks in part to the X-Men's Last Stand and return of Superman. There was also the Da Vinci Code breakers, talking Cars, a third impossible Mission—and of course, the piece de resistance, record-breaking Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest.
Horror and kiddie movies also did very well in 2006. For blood and guts, we had Hostel, The Hills Have Eyes and Saw III. For the lighter fare, we had Cars, Ice Age: The Meltdown, Over the Hedge, Monster House and Happy Feet.
This year's holiday season, however, wasn’t a stand out without a Harry Potter or a Lord of the Rings installment. But the new James Bond scored high on the charts, as did a Happy group of dancin’ penguins and Ben Stiller’s one Night at the Museum.
Here is our yearly breakdown of studio's successes and failures. Here's how they scored--and who reigned supreme in 2006.
10. The Weinstein Company (approx. 10 feature releases; $213.2 million total)
We know how it is, just starting out with a new company and all. But those Weinstein brothers--who acrimoniously split from Disney and their first baby, Miramax, in 2005—still managed to make their mark, coming in at No. 10.
Hits: The Weinsteins saving grace was the hilarious Scary Movie 4, which raked in $90.7 million. They also released the Dixie Chicks’ Shut Up and Sing, one of the year’s more critically acclaimed documentaries.
Misses: Growing pains can be hard, too, i.e. Doogal, Lucky Number Slevin and The Libertine. Better luck next year, boys!
9. New Line Cinema (approx. 10 feature releases; $237.4 million total)
Save for some serious Internet buzz over a few hundred Snakes on a Plane, New Line had a fairly quiet year, running the gamut of genres.
Hits: New Line saw their biggest numbers from horror franchises. Final Destination 3 stood as their highest grosser this year at $54 million, while Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning made $39 million.
Misses: Unfortunately, Snakes didn’t live up to the hype, only squeezing $34 million from moviegoers. Sounds like a fair amount but they were expecting a lot more. Their attempts at children’s fare didn’t work out either, with Hoot and How to Eat Fried Worms falling by the wayside. Even the Jack Black comedy Tenacious D: in The Pick of Destiny failed to deliver.
8. DreamWorks (approx. six feature releases; $318.3 million total)
The Dream Team decided to join forces with Paramount this year, packing a small but somewhat powerful punch.
Hits: You can always count on DreamWorks Animation to turn in something profitable. DW’s hilarious CGI gem this year was Over the Hedge, which took in a cool $155 million. The musical extraordinaire Dreamgirls, which opened Christmas Day, is also off to a good start, netting $8.9 million in one day. But watch out for these guys in 2007. Shrek 3 is on its way!
Misses: DW made a few mistakes, however. Both the animated Flushed Away and Clint Eastwood’s WWII drama Flags of Our Father missed the mark. Then there was also She's the Man. Yikes.
7. Lionsgate (approx. 14 feature releases; $330.2 million total)
Lionsgate really isn’t so minor anymore, are they? As No. 10 on the list last year, the once-small distributor that could, comes roaring back to easily clear the seventh place slot. Guess the title of “little guy” now goes to smaller distribs like ThinkFilm and Newmarket, who are also on the rise.
Hits: Lionsgate understands the nature of good old fashioned torture. They released two of the highest grossing horror films of 2006, Hostel ($47.2 mil) and Saw III ($80.1 mil), plus the critically acclaimed The Descent ($26 mil). Lionsgate also backed phenomenon Tyler Perry and his Madea's Family Reunion ($63.2 mil). Not too shabby.
Misses: Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector and Employee of the Month. Enough said.
6. Universal Pictures (approx. 18 feature releases; $922.6 million total)
Universal drops from last year’s third place to sixth, but with the help of Focus Features--their indie offshoot--the studio still released an impressive slate in 2006.
Hits: Some included: Inside Man ($88.5 mil); United 93 ($31.4 mil); The Break-Up ($118 mil); You, Me and Dupree ($75.6 mil); Miami Vice ($63.4 mil). Focus Features had a few stand-outs, too, such as Dave Chappelle's Block Party ($11 mil) and Jet Li's Fearless ($24 mil).
Misses: Some of those, too: American Dreamz, Idlewild, The Black Dahlia, Man of the Year, Let's Go to Prison, while Focus released Waist Deep and The Return. It happens.
5. Paramount Pictures (approx. 14 feature releases; $934 million total)
Paramount always stays in the middle of the studio box office race (they were in fourth place last year)—never gaining the top spot but staying in the game nonetheless.
Hits: Failure to Launch, with its $88.3 million take, started things off early for Paramount. Then came their big blockbuster, Mission: Impossible III, which grossed a respectable $133.3 million (but not nearly the business the studio had hoped). Oliver Stone’s World Trade Center, with $70 million, and Jackass: Number Two, with $72.7 million, help boost the numbers. And under their indie banner, Paramount Classics, they also released the Golden Globe-nominated Babel and the Al Gore’s searing documentary An Inconvenient Truth.
Misses: Then again they also put out The Last Kiss, Barnyard: The Original Party Animals and Ask the Dust. Can’t win them all.
4. Warner Bros. (approx. 22 feature releases; $1.2 billion total)
Last year’s top dog slipped in 2006, dropping to fourth place—but not for lack of trying.
Hits: WB had a pretty full slate in 2006, with big hits such as V for Vendetta ($70.4 mil), Superman Returns ($200 mil), The Departed ($119.2 mil) and Happy Feet ($149 mil). Even the critically panned Poseidon managed $60.6 million. Still to come? Letters From Iwo Jima, Clint Eastwood’s flip side to the Flags of Our Fathers WWII conflict.
Misses: The flops, however, were considerable. Case in point: Lady in the Water, The Wicker Man, The Ant Bully and The Fountain. Word is still out on The Good German and We Are Marshall, but it’s not looking too good.
3. 20th Century Fox (approx. 32 feature releases; $1.3 billion total)
Fox drops just one notch to third place, but hands down, they win the most released movies of the year award, a feat accomplished with the help of their prolific independent distributor, Fox Searchlight (who released 11 features).
Hits: First there was The Hills Have Eyes ($41.7 mil), then Ice Age: The Meltdown ($195 mil), then X-Men: The Last Stand ($234 mil). Even Fox Searchlight’s little film that could Little Miss Sunshine ($59.3 mil) proved worthy. But what really put Fox on the map in 2006—well, maybe not exactly dollar-wise—was releasing that guy named Borat on the world ($122 mil). That achievement alone merits a pat on the back. Fox’s Christmas release, Night at the Museum ($42 mil its opening weekend), should also sweeten the year end numbers.
Misses: Still, with all those releases, there’s bound to be a bunch of bad apples: The Sentinel, Just My Luck, The Omen, Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties, Trust the Man, A Good Year--need we go on?
2. Buena Vista (approx. 18 feature releases; $1.5 billion total)
Climbing the charts from last year’s fifth place to second, Disney kept things fairly low-key this year, acquiring Miramax’s art-house sensibilities (The Queen, the docu The Heart of the Game) and releasing a relatively truncated—but prevailing—list of films.
Hits: On the surface, it seems like the Mouse House should have come out on top, having released the two highest grossing movies of the year: Cars with $244 million and POTC: Dead Man's Chest with $423 million. Not too mention Eight Below ($81 mil) and Step Up ($65 mil).
Misses: But then again they did have stinkers like The Guardian, Deja Vu, Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause--and the bottom of the barrel, Annapolis. Guess that’s the way the cookie crumbles.
First place goes to…
1. Sony Pictures (approx. 24 feature releases; $1.7 billion)
Congrats to Sony for charging back from last year’s sixth place ranking. But unlike Buena Vista, you can’t pinpoint just one or two huge blockbusters for Sony. Instead, they managed to release a steady stream of moneymakers, which also included newly acquired MGM’s own slate of films.
Hits: Here’s what they did right: Underworld: Evolution ($62.3 mil); R.V. ($71.1 mil); The Da Vinci Code ($217 mil); Click ($137 mil); Monster House ($73.6 mil); Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby ($148 mil); Open Season ($84.3 mil); Casino Royale ($137 mil)
Misses: And here's a few missteps: Ultraviolet, Basic Instinct 2, All the King*s Men, The Grudge 2 and Marie Antoinette. Oh well, can’t win them all.
Estimates reported as of Dec. 26
Photo(s) by Walt Disney/Touchstone/Hollywood Pictures- © 2005- All Rights Reserved