<\/p>\n
\n\tTheater owners are preparing for a very merry Christmas season.<\/p>\n
\n\tThis holiday might not be one for the record books, but the lineup of films offers something important \u2014 a range of genres and styles \u2014 as exhibitors brace for what\u2019s usually the busiest stretch of the year. That\u2019s an important distinction in post-COVID times. Since the pandemic, cinema operators have relied on one billion-dollar behemoth (\u201cSpider-Man: No Way Home\u201d in 2021 and \u201cAvatar: The Way of Water\u201d in 2022) or struggled with none at all (\u201cAquaman and the Lost Kingdom\u201d floundered in 2023 and while \u201cMufasa\u201d rebounded after a soft start in 2024, \u201cThe Lion King\u201d prequel couldn\u2019t claw its way to the billion-dollar mark).<\/p>\n
\n\tThis year, \u201cAvatar: Fire and Ash<\/a>\u201d will continue to dominate but James Cameron\u2019s sci-fi threequel won\u2019t be alone in enticing audiences. Over the weekend, a trio of holiday releases \u2014 A24\u2019s R-rated ping-pong adventure \u201cMarty Supreme<\/a>,\u201d the Focus Features musical drama \u201cSong Sung Blue<\/a>\u201d and Sony\u2019s disaster comedy \u201cAnaconda<\/a>\u201d \u2014 hope to cater to moviegoers young, old, or disinterested in returning to the alien planet of Pandora.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cAvatar: Fire and Ash\u201d is aiming for $55 million to $65 million over the traditional weekend and $75 million to $80 million through the four-day holiday frame. Those ticket sales would mark a 30% to 40% decline from its $89 million domestic debut. For context, \u201cAvatar: The Way of Water\u201d dropped by 52% in its sophomore outing after a significantly stronger $134 million debut. Disney and 20th Century\u2019s \u201cAvatar\u201d franchise appears be experiencing diminishing returns, though it\u2019s important to remember these films aren\u2019t known for explosive opening weekends. Instead, \u201cAvatar\u201d installments enjoy exceptional staying power, sticking around at the top of the box office for weeks on end. The first two films, which each ended up grossing over $2 billion globally, were No. 1 for seven consecutive weekends. Barring a surprise, \u201cFire and Ash\u201d should remain atop the charts in North America well into the new year.<\/p>\n \n\tIn terms of new releases, Jack Black and Paul Rudd\u2019s \u201cAnaconda\u201d is expected to lead the pack with $20 million from 3,400 venues between Christmas on Thursday and Sunday. \u201cMarty Supreme\u201d is targeting $12 million to $20 million, while \u201cSong Song Blue\u201d is projected to earn $10 million to $14 million from 2,400 theaters. In general, Christmas releases don\u2019t always deliver huge debuts but tend to play and play on the big screen into January and beyond.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cAnaconda\u201d cost $45 million to produce. A meta-reboot, \u201cAnaconda\u201d follows best friends who travel to the jungle to pursue their childhood dream of remaking their all-time favorite movie (you guessed it!) 1997\u2019s \u201cAnaconda.\u201d The project starts to unravel when life imitates art and a real anaconda begins hunting them down. <\/p>\n \n\t\u201cMarty Supreme\u201d had a rollicking start in limited release<\/a>, breaking into the top 10 with $875,000 while playing on just six screens. Those initial returns are promising ahead of the nationwide expansion, which will test the $70 million-budgeted film\u2019s commercial viability. It helps that Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet, who stars as the fictional table tennis champ Marty Mauser, has been rewriting the rules of movie marketing<\/a>\u00a0in terms of getting out the word for an original film. \u201cMarty Supreme\u201d has generated great reviews and encouraging word of mouth. Now the question is: Will Chalamet\u2019s viral antics translate to ticket sales?<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cSong Sung Blue\u201d carries a modest $30 million production budget. Craig Brewer directed the film, featuring Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson in the true story of two down-on-their luck musicians who form a Neil Diamond tribute band. Variety\u2019s<\/em> chief film critic Owen Gleiberman <\/a>praised \u201cSong Sung Blue\u201d as \u201ca winning pop nostalgia trip with a dark side.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tWith just two weeks to go, overall domestic revenues are hovering at $8.37 billion, just 1.3% ahead of last year and 22.4% behind 2019, according to Comscore. It\u2019s been a wobbly year with several hits (\u201cLilo & Stitch,\u201d \u201cZootopia 2,\u201d \u201cA Minecraft Movie\u201d and \u201cDemon Slayer,\u201d among others) but not enough to offset a number of big-budget flops (\u201cMission: Impossible \u2013 The Final Reckoning\u201d and \u201cSnow White,\u201d to name a few). Projections for 2025 were already revised down to $9 billion, but after a brutal fall season<\/a>, even that milestone feels like a stretch. Will these holiday offerings be able to deliver, or is the box office doomed to fall short of $9 billion for the second consecutive year<\/a>?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source variety.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Theater owners are preparing for a very merry Christmas season. This holiday might not be one for the record books, but the lineup of films offers something important \u2014 a range of genres and styles \u2014 as exhibitors brace for what\u2019s usually the busiest stretch of the year. That\u2019s an important distinction in post-COVID times. 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