Daily Box Office Analysis for July 26, 2007
By David Mumpower
July 27, 2007
Today, there should be but one thing on your mind. The Simpsons Movie has finally arrived in theaters. If you do not feel this way then "God, Jed, I don't even want to know you." Okay, that's a West Wing quote, but the statement still applies. Silly things such as daily box office numbers are completely irrelevant in a world where after 18 years of waiting, Matt Groening has finally delivered a full scale movie version of Springfield's most famous family. It's a glorious day to be alive.
If you lack focus in the areas of importance in the modern world, I will offer up a brief summation of what happened yesterday in terms of domestic box office. That answer is as follows: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix did not manage to usurp I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry for first place. Potter managed $3.715 million while Sandler's latest comedy earned $3,827,025. This means that in its first week, the not-quite-gay comedy that seems to be legally actionable for its similarities to a certain Seinfeld episode finished in first place five out of seven days. With current box office of $52,547,115, the equally homoerotic and homophobic project has a chance to become a $100 million earner domestically, but this will not be determined until after the weekend at the soonest.
Now is the time in the discussion where we mention what Hairspray has done. The answer is that another $3,619,397 gives it a grand total of $43,757,397. And yes, for those of you who read yesterday's column (and if you didn't, I hope you get a scorching case of heartburn after dinner tonight), this does mean Hairspray has passed Yentl on the list of most financially successful musicals. In fact, it also has surpassed Cabaret as well as West Side Story for 15th place all-time. Of course, if we adjust for inflation, West Side Story would have made approximately a billion dollars in terms of current movie pricing. Okay, that's a slight exaggeration, but West Side Story would be somewhere in the neighborhood of $350 million. So, Hairspray has a ways to go yet to pass that. It will also need every scientologist in America to spend the entirety of their fortune in order to get to that point.
Overall box office for the top ten is weak today, totaling only $17,437,813. Despite the presence of a couple of new titles last weekend, this week has seen a market correction as older titles have faded into oblivion while newer ones have been lackluster.
| 1 |
I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry |
Universal |
$3,827,025 |
- 7.6% |
N/A |
$52,547,115 |
| 2 |
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix |
Warner Bros. |
$3,715,000 |
- 5.1% |
- 51.2% |
$224,714,000 |
| 3 |
Hairspray |
New Line Cinema |
$3,619,397 |
- 2.2% |
N/A |
$43,757,397 |
| 4 |
Transformers |
DreamWorks |
$2,312,491 |
+ 0.3% |
- 45.7% |
$273,034,005 |
| 5 |
Ratatouille |
Walt Disney Pictures |
$1,645,685 |
+ 1.1% |
- 44.6% |
$172,448,802 |
| 6 |
Live Free or Die Hard |
Twentieth Century Fox |
$828,861 |
- 1.0% |
- 42.8% |
$119,777,661 |
| 7 |
License to Wed |
Warner Bros. |
$475,000 |
+ 1.8% |
- 59.1% |
$40,422,000 |
| 8 |
Evan Almighty |
Universal |
$401,025 |
+ 0.2% |
- 52.8% |
$95,186,730 |
| 9 |
1408 |
Dimension Films |
$310,344 |
- 2.9% |
- 57.3% |
$68,787,205 |
| 10 |
Knocked Up |
Universal |
$302,985 |
+ 2.3% |
- 44.6% |
$143,935,350 |
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Box office data supplied by Exhibitor Relations
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