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PEOPLE & ARTSFriday 30 October 2015
After a boffo summer, an autumn of tumult at the box office
JAKE COYLE
AP Film Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — Hol-
lywood came into its fall
season buoyed by a near-
record summer, the com-
fort of having three aces
up its sleeve (James Bond,
“Star Wars” and the final
“Hunger Games” film), plus
a string of studio specta-
cles geared more for adults
than teenagers.
The results, though, have
been mixed for most films
not named “The Martian.”
Last weekend, in particu-
lar, drove home the point,
when five new wide re-
leases — most strikingly the
$30 million awards season
heavyweight “Steve Jobs,”
with a paltry $7.1 million
launch in wide release —
all failed to click.
The streak appears likely to
continue through Hallow-
een weekend, when War-
ner Bros.’ “Our Brand Is Cri-
sis,” a political satire starring It’s been an effective strat-
Sandra Bullock, is unlikely to
add much firepower to the
box office. Salvation won’t
arrive until the following
weekend with the open-
ing of Sony’s “Spectre,” the
24th James Bond film and a
certain blockbuster.
It’s been a humbling few
weeks for some of Hol-
lywood’s best efforts to
enliven multiplexes with
ambitious films, most nota-
bly with the 3-D spectacle
of Robert Zemeckis’ “The
Walk” and the starry stature
of the Aaron Sorkin-scripted
“Steve Jobs.”
The box-office downturn,
too, comes at the same
time new inroads are be-
ing made into the tradi-
tional theatrical release
This photo provided by Universal Pictures shows Molly Ringwald
as Aunt Bailey in a scene from the film, “Jem and the Holo-
grams.”

This photo provided by Universal Pictures shows, Michael Stuhlbarg, from left, as Andy Hertzfeld, which opened last week-
Michael Fassbender as Steve Jobs, and Kate Winslet as Joanna Hoffman, in a scene from the film, end, and “Scout’s Guide to
“Jobs.” the Zombie Apocalypse,”
which debuts Friday, will
Associated Press both head to video-on-
demand and online once
window — developments iegoers. “Bridge of Spies” has pulled they dip below 300 screens.
that could signal coming While 3-D helped drive in $33.6 million domestically Of the major chains, only
change for the industry, the robust grosses for Rid- in two weeks: solid busi- AMC Theaters and Cin-
particularly if it continues ley Scott’s “The Martian” ness for a movie that cost eplex Entertainment went
to struggle to launch such ($167 million domestically, $40 million to make. But it’s along, meaning “The Ghost
movies. No. 1 for three of the last unlikely to match even the Dimension” opened to just
In an interview ahead of four weeks), it didn’t do the gross of Spielberg’s “War $8.2 million on 1,656 screens
the release for “The Walk,” same for “Everest” ($41.9 Horse,” which totaled $79.9 — about 1,000 less than it
Sony chief Tom Rothman million) or “The Walk” ($9.9 million in late 2011 and ear- would have.
called making broad-audi- million), both of which ly 2012. Megan Colligan, head of
ence movies that aren’t se- opened first on IMAX and Spielberg, of course, is distribution for Paramount,
quels or based on a comic large-format screens in synonymous with the big said the film succeeded
book “the dominant issue hopes of selling audiences screen, but even he has where it played, suggest-
in our business.” The last ing the other chains missed
several weeks have proven out, and that the shorter
that Hollywood, despite a window had no effect: “By
year sure to rank as among playing it, they did the most
the highest grossing, isn’t business of any circuit with
closer to figuring out how any movie,” she said.
to do that. Netflix, too, made its first
Many of the fall’s antici- foray into an original film re-
pated releases tried to lease with Cary Fukunaga’s
hook moviegoers with 3-D. child soldier drama “Beasts
of No Nation,” starring Idris
egy in recent years for films Elba. Though few ventured
from “Avatar” to “Gravity,” out to see it in theaters (just
although the novelty wore $87,000 in limited release),
off long ago for many mov- Netflix content chief Ted
Sarandos claimed that the
film was streamed by more
than 3 million people in
North America. For com-
parison, that many viewers
would translate at the box
office into approximately
$24 million in ticket sales.
“It’s a sign of the times. It’s
a massive look at the fu-
ture.” said Elba ahead of
the film’s release. “People
are different and definitely
consuming films in a differ-
ent way.”
Overcrowding could be an
issue. Films like “The Mar-
tian,” ‘’The Walk,” ‘’Bridge
of Spies” and “Steve Jobs”
are anomalies: well-re-
This photo provided by Sony shows, Joseph Gordon-Levitt as viewed studio-distribut-
Philippe Petit and Charolette Le Bon as Annie, in TriStar Pictures’ ed entertainments with
“The Walk.” enough seriousness or
smarts to win over most
Associated Press critics. There might be four
such studio dramas in a
on a higher-priced, premi- felt the industry changes. year, let alone in a month
um experience. The director has said his that also featured Lions-
Others have depended on previous film, “Lincoln,” was gate’s “Sicario,” Warner
the full wrappings of a pres- nearly an HBO movie, and Bros.’ “Black Mass” and Uni-
Associated Press tige picture, including Ste- the director has lamented versal’s “Crimson Peak.”
ven Spielberg’s handsome the ubiquitous rise of the su- “This has to be considered
Cold War thriller “Bridge of perhero film. one of the most crowded
Spies,” with Tom Hanks, and Meanwhile, Paramount movie marketplaces of
the Danny Boyle-directed Pictures is in the midst of the year,” says Paul Der-
“Steve Jobs,” which may an experiment to shrink garabedian, senior media
have been harmed by a the usual 90-day window analyst for box-office data
chorus of criticisms over reserved for theatrical re- firm Rentrak.q
Sorkin’s dramatization of lease. “Paranormal Activ-
the Apple co-founder. ity: The Ghost Dimension,”