Top 5 Breakdown

1. Beauty and the Beast – £6,750,000 – £51,385,248

 Dropping 45.2% in its third weekend which is more than The Jungle Book dropped in its third weekend 29% taking £5.75m and total of £30.2m. The Jungle Book opened the week after Easter holidays while Beauty and the Beast will benefit from the Easter holidays that started on Monday.

After 17 days on release has overtaken last year’s The Jungle Book and has become the 25^th biggest film in the UK and will feature in the top 20 biggest films in the UK before the end of the week.  

Beauty and the Beast is currently holding slightly ahead of 2015’s Jurassic World (which took £5.77m in its third weekend dropping 48% and £48.9m) but Beauty and the Beast now benefits from Easter Holidays starting this week which will see it hold better over the next two weeks despite likely losing top spot next weekend by The Boss Baby and then The Fate of the Furious opening in two weeks’ time.

Beauty and the Beast is performing close to Toy Story 3 which £4.66m in its third weekend and £51.24m but benefited from three weeks of summer holidays but ticket prices were 30% cheaper; showing admissions tell a different story with 8.611m for Toy Story 3 (£5.95) Vs 6.751m (£7.61) for Beauty and the Beast.

After three weeks Toy Story 3 had taken 69% of its final box office if Beauty and the Beast holds similar will add £15.92m taking £67.3m but will likely see an Easter holiday boost which will see its BO be close to Toy Story 3 £73.8m.

But Toy Story 3 didn’t face any competition while Beauty and the Beast has The Boss Baby (will take top spot next weekend after a 9-day opening weekend), Peppa Pig: My First Cinema Experience and Smurfs: The Lost Village (despite its disappointing opening this weekend)

 

		OWE		2WE	2/D	2WE T	3WE	3/D	3 WE T	Final BO
Beauty and the Beast	17 Mar 2017	£19.7	3.81x	£12.30	37%	£38.85	£6.75	-45%	£51.35m	£78.6m*
Though the Looking Glass	27 May 2016	£2.22	4.01x	£1.35	41%	£7.01	£0.83	-39%	£8.30m	£9.91m
The Jungle Book	15 Apr 2016	£9.86	4.68x	£8.09	18%	£21.66	£5.75	-29%	£30.20m	£46.19
Cinderella	27 Mar 2015	£3.79	5.54x	£2.96	22%	£10.38	£1.78	-40%	£15.19m	£21.02
Into the Woods	9 Jan 2015	£2.48	3.96x	£1.99	19%	£5.36	£1.34	-33%	£7.27m	£9.83m
Maleficent	28 May 2014	£6.59	2.81x	£2.60	60%	£11.05	£1.57	-40%	£13.62m	£18.5
Oz the Great and ..	8 Mar 2013	£3.71	4.03x	£2.60	30%	£7.68	£1.34	-48%	£10.08m	£14.98
Alice in Wonderland	5 Mar 2010	£10.56	3.99x	£7.34	30%	£22.74	£4.84	-34%	£30.49m	£42.16

With Disney’s one first quarter release outperforming the slate of films rivals released over same period more of the same is expected for the rest of the year with strong buzz for both Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 and Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar’s Revenge after being screened at CinemaCon last week, Thor 3: Ragnarok (likely to perform as previous films) and Star Wars: The Last Jedi (no words needed) Cars 3 (previous films have underwhelmed at the box office compared to other Pixar films Cars opened July 2006 with £2.66m taking £16.1m and Cars 2 in July 2011 with £3.54m taking £15.09m. Disney’s only original film Coco opens a month after Paddington 2

2. Ghost In The Shell – £2,300,753 – NE

Opening was boosted with £335,000 from previews the sci-fi thriller was compared to Lucy opened 25th July 2014 with £3.07m total £14.12m and films like Aeon Flux opened 17th February 2006 with £512,426 total £961,020 and Ultraviolet opened 23rd June 2006 with £147,337 along with Resident Evil film series (the six films opened between £460,000 and £1.69m over the last 15 years).

After receiving mixed reviews and word of mouth its likely to drop heavily this weekend with the start of the Easter holidays as family films will dominate the top 10 with The Boss Baby and Peppa Pig joining Beauty and the Beast and Smurfs: he Lost Village.

After flopping in the US, the inquest started over why the film flopped many blamed social media in the same way they attacked remakes of Pointbreak and Ghostbusters. The difference with Ghost in the Shell the controversy was genuine and could of easily be avoided by the producers if they signed an Asian actress for the lead role.

Of course, it was understandable why producers wanted Scarlett Johansson for the role having previously appeared in the similar 2014 film Lucy and starring in the Avengers films as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow. (failure of Ghost in the Shell has probably pushed back plans for a Black Widow spinoff film even further even though DC have Wonder Woman opening in June and Joss Whedon announcing plans to write and direct Batgirl movie).

Producers must have realised casting a white actress for the remake of an iconic Manga film would be problematic especially after Emma Stone was a half-Chinese/half-Hawaiian woman in Aloha, Rooney Mara was a Native American in Pan, most of the cast in Gods of Egypt were white as was Ridley Scott’s Exodus: Gods and Kings. The problem producers had with those films and Ghost in the Shell was of course with a film with $110m budget they need a cast that can open the film there are of course many female Asian actresses but few have global recognition and none have opened a film as Scarlett Johansson has previously done.

Had it just been the casting of a white actress to play an iconic Japanese character audiences might still have been accepting of the film but then were rumours of digital effects making the white actors look Asian, Paramount admitted tests were done but only for supporting characters but just the thought of it generated negativity and talk of whitewashing which was also seen recently in The Great Wall. Paramount created a viral marketing campaign to promote film IAmMajor.me to allow fans to upload photos of themselves and add bold statements but instead, fans took to Twitter to highlight howt it not only whitewashes Motoko Kusanagi, but also how it was also an example of white feminism.

Ahead of the release of Ghost in the Shell were rumours Warner Bros would f make their long in development Akira (had The Hughes Brothers, Jaume Collet-Serra, Christopher Nolan and George Miller attached to direct) Get Out director Jordan Peele was rumoured to be in talks but is unlikely to happen after its poor opening.

Hollywood has finally been able to get the recipe right for films based comic-books but still having as much trouble remaking Japanese manga as they do making films from computer games with many terrible versions of both made over the decades. tempted to make a good film based on a computer game for decades far too many to mention individually but two of the worst must be 1993’s Super Mario Bros and 2008’s Speed Racer (the only film premiere I have ever walked out on and I’ve seen some bad films). Always must question a film that has been in development for a long time as there is probably a reason Speed Racer was in development for over 14 years until Joel Silver and Wachowskis got involved (was a couple of years after The Matrix trilogy and was thought could do no wrong, how they were so badly wrong) Speed Racer opened May 9th 2008 with £362,182 taking £1.61m. 

Paramount’s first quarter was unexpectedly disappointing with Monster Trucks, XxX3: The Return of Xander Cage and Rings performing as expected and despite Oscar nominations Fences failed to find a wide audience.

Paramount will be hoping Baywatch repeats the success of 21 Jump Street rather than Chips while Transformers: The Last Knight while likely be their biggest film of the year talking similar to previous films audiences at CinemaCon were surprisingly positive with the footage.

While An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power will get the media coverage thanks to Trump unlikely to do much better than its original which took £572,095 in September 2006. Mother! Jennifer Lawrence will be competing against herself with Red Sparrow opening the following weekend. While Daddy’s Home was, a pleasant surprise rushed sequels rarely match up to their success while 10 Cloverfield Lane underwhelmed last year so more of the same for Cloverfield 3. The surprising thing with Paramount’s upcoming films is except for Transformers all are release a week after US.

3. Smurfs: The Lost Village – £1,383,059 – NE

After taking only £467,000 from previews last weekend comparing with £2.52m for The Boss Baby the reboot of the Smurfs had a very disappointing opening in the UK opening 63% less than 2011’s The Smurfs and 57% less than 2013’s The Smurfs 2.

The Smurfs opened August 10th 2011 – £3.77m (£1.47m from previews Weds/Thurs) taking £16.64m

The Smurfs 2 opened August 2nd 2013 – £3.22m (£1.45m from previews) taking £11.47m

Sony Pictures will be hoping the Easter holidays will give Smurfs a boost but with The Boss Baby and Peppa Pig: My First Cinema Experience opening this weekend it’s going to be hard for The Smurf to build on its opening.

Sony has had mixed start to 2017 with T2: Trainspotting opening strongly but failed to match the success of the original film as while it might have overtaken Trainspotting 1996 box office 21 years later would have needed to take another £10m to match its inflation increased box office. Underworld: Blood Wars, Resident Evil 6, Billy Lyn’s Long Halftime Walk and Life all flopped but Passenger held strongly despite the poor reviews showing the strength of Jennifer Lawrence star-power.

Their remaining films for 2017 has much promise despite terrible trailer Rough Night could attract a similar audience of Bad Moms last year and despite its new trailer giving the plot away Spider-Mam Homecoming is likely to perform strongly and be their biggest film of the year.

The Dark Tower, Blade Runner 2049, Flatliners, and Jumanji are their big unknown’s audiences a CinemaCon finally saw footage of The Dark Tower but cinema audiences have yet to see a trailer. While Blade Runner 2049 has got cinephiles salivating its 35 years after the original film will today’s teens? Edgar Wright’s Baby Driver had a lucrative August release date but brought forward to June will it be able to find an audience. While do audiences really need or want reboots of Flatliners and Jumanji.

4. Get Out – £1,095,500 – £6,794,001

Dropping only 20% in its third weekend Get Out; after Split opened stronger than Get Out in January with £2.54m Vs £2.16m while dropping more in its second weekend 37% Vs 22% Get Out is now holding better in its third weekend 20% Vs 38%.

Its box office total is 18% less but M. Night Shyamalan director and James McAvoy profiles would give Split advantage over its opening weekends but then word of mouth is far important.

Split took £8.26m after 3 weeks going on to take £11.18m 4.4x opening if Get Out was to do similar would take £9.5m.

Universal have had a steady first quarter of 2017 with Split and Get Out doing far better than expected while Sing and Fifty Shades Darker doing slightly less than expected while The Great Wall had a decent opening but faded away very quickly.

Summer slate starts in two weeks with Furious 8 which has received strong buzz after screening at CinemaCon last week, The Mummy reboot and Despicable Me 3 (expected to be the biggest animated film of the year but as its first sequel its plot is unexciting) but its Atomic Blonde that has got many excited about after surprising audiences at SXSW the film was formerly known as The Coldest City which was the title of the graphic novel was based on. American Made previously called Mena, The Snowman and Pitch Perfect 3 fill out their slate for the year

5. Power Rangers – £864,591 – £3,055,495

Dropped 45% in its second weekend would normally be a strong second weekend but after a disappointing start last week of £1.57m it’s a disappointing performance for what was expected to be the launch of a new franchise for Lionsgate.

22 years ago, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers took £4.12m the reboot will overtake its box office but it should of more than doubled its box office with average ticket prices more than doubled in the years since. The Easter holidays starting this week could see it holding better over the next two weeks but exhibitors are more likely to bet on the Baby or Peppa.

Chronicle screenwriter Max Landis wrote the original draft of Power Rangers script which he described as a fun, goofy, retro teen action film but they fired him to make a Chronicle reboot as seen by the trailers. But Power Rangers failed to match the opening of either Fantastic Four or Chronicle which opened with £2.19m in February 2012 taking £6.87m and Fantastic Four opening with £2.68m in August 2015 taking £5.65m.

After Lionsgate’s massive success with La La Land and strong performance of Hacksaw Ridge, the remaining slate for 2017 is much riskier highlighted by Luc Besson’s Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (highest budget French film ever $180m) opening 20 years after The Fifth Element.

Next up are films set in Second World War about Dunkirk and Churchill will be seen again later in the year in two more high-profile films Dunkirk and Darkest Hour. The Finest directed by Lone Scherfig (The Riot Club, One Day and An Education) starring Gemma Arterton and Sam Claflin and Churchill directed by Jonathan Teplitzky starring Brian Cox and Miranda Richardson.

Other box office news

Free Fire – Studiocanal – opened with £480,644 from 334 screens while being director Ben Wheatley’s second biggest opening High-Rise £542,788 which pen on less than half Free Fire screens. The film generated strong media coverage closing the London Film Festival last October so was strange decision to set its release date five months later as normally films premiering during the festival will open over the following month causing congestion with other releases. While High Rise opened on 153 screens Free Fire opening on 335 screens gives it no room for expansion.

Studiocanal have had a disappointing first three months of 2017 with Manchester By the Sea their best performer but Silence, Gold, The Founder and Lost City of Z all disappointing but do have Steven Soderbergh’s Logan Lucky in August and Paddington 2 in November still to come with Paddington 2 likely to do like the first film.

This weekend’s top 10 box office took £14,560,829 down 22.4% from last weekend £18,776,329;

Weekend admissions 1,965,024 down 21.4% from last week 2,500,073       

Weekend was up 38.8% from last year (£10,488,336) Eddie the Eagle £2,828,427 opened.

2015: (£12,365,545) The Duff £891,180, John Wick £508,73, Woman in Gold £491,214, Paul Blart Mall Cop 2 £480,073, Hot Tub Time Machine £90,200 and Lost River £54,264 opened.

Next weekend in 2016 (£11,057,951): The Huntsman Winters War £3,029,680, Midnight Special £497,023, Hardcore Henry £206,578 and The Man Who Knew Infinity £147,000 opened.

17 films opened at weekend: Ghost in the Shell, Smurfs: The Lost Village and Peter Kay’s Car Share: A Second Series Celebration took 96.1% of box office leaving £166,831 shared between 14 others.

Admission for the first three months are claimed to be 47m would mean a three-month box office of £348.27m as admissions are calculated by Cinema Exhibitors Association average ticket price of £7.41 but as anyone who actually pays to go to the cinema knows they won’t get change of £10 this is fake news as real admissions are nearer 35m over 25% less.

UK Box Office Top 10

 

US Box office

US Box Office Top 10

The Boss Baby followed the trend of films opening bigger than were tracking to as it was expected to open with about $35m and expected to open behind Beauty and the Beast instead opened with $50.19m having the tenth biggest Dreamworks Animation opening in the US close to 2015’s Home opened with $52.1m also opened three weeks after a Disney re-imagination Cinderella. Despite receiving mixed reviews, it received A- CinemaScore. Faces competition from Smurfs: The Lost Village this weekend.

Beauty and the Beast drops 47.4% in its third weekend taking $45.42 and $395.45m total; the third weekend was close to the third weekend of The Jungle Book last year $43.71m having a lower drop of 29% taking $253.37m. Beauty and the Beast has overtaken The Jungle Book’s final box office of $364m. If Beauty and the Beast holds as The Jungle Book will take a final box office of $514m.

Ghost in the Shell opened with $18.67m lower than Paramount predicted that was close to last year’s 10 Cloverfield Lane $24.72m; after receiving mixed reviews and B CinemaScore audiences weren’t interested. Scarlett Johansson’s previous action film Lucy opened with $43.8m in 2014 was compared with Ghost in the Shell but was R rated but as action films John Wick 2 and Logan Ghost in the Shell PG-13 probably alienated many expecting an R-rated version.

Power Rangers dropped 64.8% in its second weekend with $14.5m and $64.76m the biggest of the top 10 not a good sign for Lionsgate who had plans to make up to seven sequels. But opening a week after Beauty and the Beast was always a strange choice date for Power Rangers. The film has taken almost $100m worldwide from 70 territories.

Focus Features’ The Zookeeper’s Wife opened on only 541 screens taking $3.3m opening on tenth after receiving positive reviews will expand this weekend adding 300 screens.  The film stars Jessica Chastain and is directed by Niki Caro who will next direct the Mulan Disney Live-action re-imagination next up for Jessica Chastain is Molly’s Game the directorial debut of Aaron Sorkin.

Opened April 7^th

Opening UK

• The Boss Baby – 20^th Century Fox

Animated comedy loosely based on the 2010 picture book featuring the voices of Alec Baldwin, Miles Bakshi, Steve Buscemi, Jimmy Kimmel, Lisa Kudrow and Tobey Maguire premiered in Miami Film Festival on March 12th receiving mixed reviews. It is Dreamworks Animation’s penultimate film to be released by 20th Century Fox after they were acquired by Universal Pictures last year.

Last week audiences for Beauty and the Beast got a surprising new trailer for Dreamworks Animation Boss Baby telling the audience “Look, you’ve all made an excellent decision to come see this movie today,” Boss Baby says to the audience. “You’re clearly shrewd, so let me lay this out for you. On March 31, my movie, DreamWorks’ The Boss Baby will be coming out.”

Alec Baldwin has generated much media coverage in recent months for his portrayal of Donald Trump on Saturday Night Live and many have compared Boss Baby to Trump.

Boss Baby is the ninth Dreamworks Animation film released by 20th Century Fox final film is Captain Underpants opening 28^th July (first trailer released last week). Universal Pictures release Dreamworks Animation films from start of 2018 with How to Train Your Dragon 3, Everest and Trolls 2 while 20^th Century Fox look to the future with Ferdinand opening in December with Anubis in 2018 and Pigeon Impossible in 2019 from Blue Sky Animation.

Trolls	21 October 2016	£5.44m	23.2%	£23.36m
Kung Fu Panda 3	18 March 2016	£4.76m	34.1%	£13.99m
Home	20 March 2015	£6.02m	24.1%	£24.97m
Penguins of Madagascar	5 December 2014	£1.61m	20.2%	£7.96m
How to Train Your Dragon 2	11 July 2014	£7.81m	32.2%	£24.25m
Mr. Peaboy & Sherman	7 February 2014	£3.91m	28.8%	£13.55m
Turbo	17 October 2013	£3.89m	34.3%	£11.32m
The Croods	22 March 2013	£5.37m	20.5%	£26.15m

Boss Baby took a strong £2.52m from previews Saturday/Sunday impressive for three reasons continued the strength of Beauty and the Beast, the opening of Smurfs The Lost Village and the sunny weather at the weekend. Last year Trolls took £2.43m from previews helping it have a £5.44m opening a similar opening is expected for The Boss Baby will see it replacing Beauty and the Beast from #1.

• Peppa Pig: My First Cinema Experience – eOne

Peppa Pig: My First Cinema Experience is probably one of the most important films being released this year being completely serious as the cartoon series is beloved by pre-schoolers who probably have never been to the cinema before if they were to enjoy the experience the first time then they will be back for more.

There was outcry recently of a soft play built within a cinema screen while seems crazy if these screens are children screens in addition to other cinemas within a multiplex then anything that gets young children to enjoy the cinema experience without the annoyance to adults must be good.

With Peppa Pig only an hour-long, exhibitors should have cut the prices looking at the long-term picture rather than just short-term gain. It will likely stop many from taking their children to see it as will feel are being ripped off to see nine episodes of Peppa pig as whilst might be new episodes the children would be as happy watch the same episodes they have seen many times before.

Peppa Pig launched in 2004 (218 episodes to date) but it was only a couple of years ago, thanks to my niece and nephew that I became part of the phenomenon that is Peppa Pig seeing the way they interact with anything Peppa Pig be it the cartoons, the toys or dolls.

Peppa Pig: The Golden Boots opened February 13^th, 2015 with £687,417 taking £2.32m with Peppa Pig: My First Cinema Experience likely to do similar over the Easter holidays even with the likes of Beauty and the Beast, Smurfs: The Lost Village and Boss Baby as they are all targeting older children. As in recent years with the Tinkerbell films, Peppa Pig will target a younger audience.

• Going in Style – Warner Bros

Heist comedy starring Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Alan Arkin, Joey King, Matt Dillon and Ann-Margret, directed by Zach Braff with a screenplay by Hidden Figures Oscar-nominated director Theodore Melfi (was originally attached to direct instead directed Hidden Figures) based on the 1979 film directed by Martin Brest.

It’s Zach Braff’s third film, as a director after 2004’s Garden State (opened with £128,366 in 48 screens taking £692,749 becoming a favourite on video) and 2014’s Wish I Was Here £27,739 from 36 screens.)

Similar films over the years include 1986’s Tough Guys starring Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas (was the first film Disney released under the Touchstone Pictures label the last film released by Touchstone Pictures was The Light Between Oceans in September 2016) and 2011’s Tower Heist starring Ben Stiller, Casey Affleck, and Michael Peña opened with £1.45m taking £4.37m. Tower Heist in 2011 started the early VOD release of films with Universal Pictures planned to release on VOD three weeks after opening for $59.99 but after exhibitors refused to book the film the idea was rejected, Paramount tried similar scheme in 2015 releasing films on VOD once films dropped below 1,000 screens exhibitors choosing not to book it. In recent weeks’ studios, have talked up early VOD again but now some exhibitors are willing to talk about it if they have a share of the box office.

Tower Heist in 2011 started the early VOD release of films with Universal Pictures planned to release on VOD three weeks after opening for $59.99 but after exhibitors refused to book the film the idea was rejected, Paramount tried similar scheme in 2015 releasing films on VOD once films dropped below 1,000 screens exhibitors choosing not to book it. In recent weeks’ studios, have talked up early VOD again but now some exhibitors are willing to talk about it if they have a share of the box office.

Was report last week by AARP said 30% of moviegoers in the US are aged 50 and over. Despite younger audiences shrinking studios are still targeting most their films to them often cannibalizing the marketplace in the summer months it used to be studios would mix popcorn movies with more grown up films during these months but they have become a rarity which means the autumn months are crowded.

Legacy-sequels studios made in recent years including Jurassic World and Star Wars: The Force Awakens and upcoming Blade Runner 2049 and Mary Poppins Returns will cross generations attracting the audience who saw the originals when they were children or young adults and their own children.

Eye in the Sky (opened with £1.11m taking £5.01m) last year and Woman in Gold in 2015 (opened with £494,512 taking £2.75m) both performed strongly in April both targeting the older audience who often go to the cinema more mid-week than weekends.

RED also featured an ensemble of retirees opened with £1,662,472 in October 2010 taking £6.84m and its sequel opened with £1.02m in August 2013 taking £2.75m.

• Table 19 – 20^th Century Fox

Quirky comedy starring Anna Kendrick, Craig Robinson, June Squibb, Lisa Kudrow, Stephen Merchant, Wyatt Russell and Tony Revolori and directed by Jeffrey Blitz and co-written with Jay Duplass and Mark Duplass. Received mixed reviews and a had limited release in the US in March will also have limited opening in the UK.

• City of Tiny Lights – Icon Films

Crime thriller starring Riz Ahmed, James Floyd, Billie Piper, Cush Jumbo, Roshan Seth and Antonio Aakeel and directed by Pete Travis; premiered at Toronto International Film Festival receiving mixed reviews. Icon Films hoping Riz Ahmed after starring in the excellent HBO drama The Night Of and Rogue One last year might generate some interest for the film which is unlikely.

Opening in the US

• Smurfs: The Lost Village – Sony Pictures

Animated adventure comedy reboot of The Smurfs unrelated to previous animated films released in 2011 and 2013. Features voices of Demi Lovato, Mandy Patinkin, Joe Manganiello, Jack McBraye, Danny Pudi, Rainn Wilson, Michelle Rodriguez, Ellie Kemper, Ariel Winter and Julia Roberts.

The Smurfs opened 29^th July 2011 – opened with $35.61m taking $142.61m

The Smurfs 2 opened 31^st July 2013 – opened with $17.54m taking $71.01m

Opening a week after Boss Baby and with the strong holdover of Beauty and the Beast is likely to mean Smurfs: The Lost Village will likely open closer to its sequel than the original.

• Going in Style – Warner Bros

Zac Braff’s ensemble remake with the cast including Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, and Alan Arkin will be targeting 50+ audience now takes over 35% of annual movie ticket sales and unlike other demographics is growing year on year; expected to open with $15-20m.

Similar films:

Las Vegas opened November 2013 with $16.33m taking $63.91m

RED opened October 2010 with $21.76m taking $90.38m

RED 2 opened July 2013 with $18.04m taking $53.26m

And films like Woman in Gold and Eye in the Sky.

• Gifted – Fox Searchlight

Drama film starring Chris Evans, Mckenna Grace, Lindsay Duncan, Jenny Slate and Octavia Spencer and directed by Marc Webb; reviews have been positive praising the performances of the actors.

After directing The Amazing Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 he is back to indie roots of 500 Days of Summer.

• Colossal – Neon

Sci- fi comedy starring Anne Hathaway, Jason Sudeikis, Dan Stevens, Austin Stowell, and Tim Blake Nelson and directed by Nacho Vigalondo; had its world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival receiving positive reviews. It’s the first film to be released by Neon owned by Tom Quinn & Tim League the CEO of Alamo Drafthouse theaters.

• Their Finest – STX Films

Romantic comedy starring Gemma Arterton, Sam Claflin, Bill Nighy, Jack Huston, Jake Lacy, Richard E. Grant, Henry Goodman, Helen McCrory, and Claudia Jessie and directed by Lone Scherfig based on the 2009 novel Their Finest Hour and a Half; had premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival receiving positive reviews after festival film was acquired by EuropaCorp for the US in January STX Films took over distribution for EuropaCorp.