New at BOP: Review: Matrix Resurrections Movie Review: Moonfall Movie Reviews: Scream The #1 Movie in America November Forecast The Many Saints of Newark October Forecast New Trivia Question All site updates Share & Save   Tweet Print this column

April Showers Bring May Box Office Powers

Kim Hollis: Iron Man's $100 million opening weekend reflects the ninth largest debut in box office history; however, it is only the eighth largest opening in May. What is it about this month that allows for such spectacular opening weekends? Is it more than self-fulfilling prophecy?

Tim Briody: That's all it is. If this, or a Harry Potter, or a Spider-Man film were released in January, September, or any other perceived box office dead zone, it'd still perform as well. It all goes back to Twister back in 1996.

Joel Corcoran: I agree that a sequel in an established franchise - like Harry Potter or Spider-Man - is going to do well regardless of what time of year it opens. But I don't think you can say the same thing about a new, standalone film, even a film that has the potential to establish a franchise. I think there is something about May that can provide a boost to movies. May (and especially early May) essentially serves as the "preseason" for the summer blockbuster season, if you view the traditional summer season of Memorial Day through Labor Day. There's a certain excitement among movie buffs in May akin to the stirring baseball fans feel in March and that football fans feel in August. I think that excitement can give a certain edge to films opening in May.





Reagen Sulewski: I think it's mostly self-fulfilling prophecy. Hollywood is by its very nature a game of follow the leader. No one wants to be the person to stick their neck out and lose. So, if you've got a shiny blockbuster you want to launch, you put it in May. Then, if it fails, well, you gave it every shot.

Kim Hollis: I do think there's something to be said for releasing an exciting film right after the box office black hole that is April. While I'm sure that something like Iron Man would do well regardless of release date, I do wonder if it would be $100 million great. Get the audiences good and starved for something special, and your results spike a bit.

David Mumpower: I am on the fence on the subject. I do agree that this is self-fulfilling prophecy to a degree. The art of staking out the first week of May and Memorial Day weekends has made the various distributors hundreds of millions of dollars over the years. Audiences have shown the willingness to avoid stinkers, however, meaning that a good calendar date alone is not enough. Having said that, there is also something to the idea that with winter over, no football or college basketball to watch, and most NBA and NHL teams eliminated, the movie theater becomes a primary form of entertainment for most.

Continued:       1       2       3       4