The Swifties are taking their dance moves and friendship bracelets to multiplexes across the country this weekend, with cinemas turned into concert venues. AMC Theaters said Sunday that unparalleled enthusiasm helped propel “Taylor Swift: The Tour” to a North American debut of $95 million to $97 million at the box office.
It was easily the highest-grossing concert film debut of all time, and before adjusting for inflation, it surpassed the $73 million gross of 2011’s “Justin Bieber: Never Say Die.” In today’s dollars, that’s about $102 million. If Monday’s totals match the higher end of forecasts, it could be the biggest October opening ever. The one that was beaten was “Joker,” which debuted with $96.2 million in 2019.
A Unique distribution experimentsHigh pricing, star power and relaxed movie theater etiquette – more dancing and shouting than a Star Wars premiere – made it an undeniable hit. The film, based on Swift’s summer performances at Southern California’s SoFi Arena, is playing in 3,855 locations across North America with “surprise” previews Thursday night. Those showings brought opening-day grosses to $39 million, the second-highest total of October behind “Joker”‘s $39.3 million.
“It’s a staggering number,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. “It’s unprecedented for a concert film to have a blockbuster opening weekend.”
Swift, the film’s producer, bypassed the Hollywood studio system to distribute the film and reached a deal directly with AMC, the largest exhibition company in the United States. With 274 million followers on Instagram, Swift needs little traditional marketing to get the word out.
Beyonce struck similar deals with exhibitors” Renaissance: The Films of Beyoncé, It will open on December 1st. The two superstars posed together at the premiere of “The Eras Tour” in Los Angeles earlier this week.This is the star power Hollywood actors need to inject 90 days strike This has left most red carpets devoid of glamorous talent and resulted in several high-profile films being postponed until next year.
Directed by Sam Wrench, “The Eras Tour” isn’t just playing on AMC screens either. The company, headquartered in Leawood, Kansas, is working with sub-distribution partners Variance Films, Trafalgar Releasing, Cinepolis and Cineplex to screen the film in more than 8,500 theaters in 100 countries around the world.
Swift has been getting a lot of attention lately because she relation and kansas city chiefs Tight end Travis Kelce. The two made surprise appearances on “Saturday Night Live” this weekend and were also photographed holding hands in New York.
This led to some exaggerated predictions over the weekend, with some analysts predicting that “The Eras Tour” could earn more than $125 million. Dergarabedian said it’s common for people to have high expectations for a big brand like Swift. There’s also no precedent for an event like “The Eras Tour” and a celebrity like Swift.
“The law of gravity does not apply to Thales,” Dergarabedian said.
Both films achieved good results critic and audiences, who gave the film an A+ CinemaScore, a metric that typically indicates a movie will continue to do well beyond its opening weekend.
Elizabeth Frank, executive vice president of global programming and chief content officer for AMC Theaters, said in a statement that they are grateful to Taylor Swift.
“Her stunning performance delighted fans, who dressed up and danced in the film,” said Frank. “With the overwhelming number of referrals and fans purchasing tickets multiple times to see the concert film, we anticipate “Taylor Swift Special: Era Tour’ concert film will be shown to large audiences in the coming weeks.”
The stadium tour continued internationally, causing Ticketmaster’s website to crash and resale prices to become astronomical. Pollstar expects it will earn about $1.4 billion. Concert films give fans better seats and a more affordable way to see a show for the first or fifth time. The price is higher than the national average of $19.89, referencing her birth year and 2014 album, while premium large-format screens like IMAX cost closer to $29 each. Even so, they still have far fewer seats than a stadium show.
Showtimes are also more limited than standard Hollywood blockbusters, but AMC guarantees at least four screenings per day at all AMC theaters in the U.S. on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and many theaters also have no refunds or exchanges. Fans will also have to wait a while before The Eras Tour can be seen streaming – part of the AMC deal is a 13-week exclusive theatrical run.
“Another landmark weekend for movie theaters,” Michael O’Leary, chief executive of the National Association of Theater Owners, said in a statement.
“This year, moviegoers across the country were treated to an experience like never before,” O’Leary continued in a statement. “The debut of ‘Eras Tour’ once again proves that fans are hungry for other experiences to be shared in a public way, and Theater owners are creative in creating unforgettable moments in their cinemas.”
O’Leary said a survey of 6,000 people conducted by his organization and the Film Foundation found that 72 per cent wanted to see more concert films on the big screen.
“The Eras Tour” accounted for more than 70% of the weekend’s total box office. “The Exorcist: The Believer” ranked second with $11 million in its second weekend, followed by “Paw Patrol” in third with $7 million. Rounding out the top five were “Saw X” ($5.7 million) and “The Creator” ($4.3 million).
“This is great news for theaters,” Dergarabedian said. “Mid-August, ‘The Eras Tour’ wasn’t even on our radar yet. If you take that out of the equation, it’s going to be a completely different weekend.”
Estimated ticket sales for U.S. and Canadian theaters Friday through Sunday, according to Comscore. Final domestic data will be released on Monday.
1. “Taylor Swift: Time Tour,” $95 to $97 million.
2. “The Exorcist: The Believer,” $11 million.
3. “Paw Patrol: The Movie,” $7 million.
4. “Saw,” $5.7 million.
5. “The Creator,” $4.3 million.
6. “The Haunting of Venice,” $2.1 million.
7. “The Blind Man,” $2 million.
8. “The Nun II,” $1.6 million.
9. “The Equalizer 3,” $960,000.
10. “Stupid money,” $920,000.
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