‘Pillion’, ‘Hamnet’ & Milestones for Bleecker Street & Vertical At The Specialty Box Office

A24’s new limited debut Pillion saw terrific numbers as did Hamnet from Focus Features, which has been out since November, as independent distributors Bleecker Street and Vertical set milestones on an unusual theatrical weekend against the Super Bowl and the Winter Olympics.

Harry Lighton’s Pillion starring Alexander Skarsgård and Harry Melling opened to $241.8k across four screens in New York and Los Angeles for a strong per theater average of $60.2k. The Cannes Un Certain Regard Best Screenplay-winner took Best British Independent Film and Best Debut Screenwriter at the BIFAs and has BAFTA noms for Outstanding British Film and Best Adapted Screenplay. It’s seeing advance sellouts across the country ahead of a rollout starting next weekend.

Charli xcx’s The Moment by Aidan Zamir also from A24 had a solid week 2 expansion, grossing $1.7 million on 581 screens.

Neon’s Oscar-nominated Sirat also opened nicely to $136.3k on four…