Blogger’s Update (10/03): With the announcement that White Bird is only hitting just over 1000 screens, I’m downgrading my prediction from $3.1 million to $1.5 million
Warner Bros hopes Joker: Folie à Deux can approach the gargantuan grosses that its predecessor earned five years ago while Lionsgate has the long delayed Wonder prequel White Bird out this weekend. You can peruse my detailed prediction posts on the newcomers here:
A half decade ago, Joker rode a wave of sizzling buzz to a $96 million debut (the best October start of all time), a $335 eventual domestic gross, and an Oscar statue for Joaquin Phoenix. With Lady Gaga joining the mayhem as Harley Quinn, word-of-mouth is more mixed for part Deux and it likely won’t achieve the hotshot premiere of part un. While my mid 50s forecast easily has it topping the charts, that’s over $40 million less out of the gate.
As for White Bird, I expect it to be another significant under performer for distributor Lionsgate who just saw Megalopolis crash and burn (more on that below). My number for Bird puts it just outside the top five.
As for holdovers, The Wild Robot might see a mid to high 40s decline after its solid beginning while Beetlejuice Beetlejuice and Speak No Evil‘s percentage dips should be smaller. The highest plummet in the top 5 (same as this past frame) should belong to Transformers One.
Here’s how I see it playing out:
1. Joker: Folie à Deux
Predicted Gross: $54.3 million
2. The Wild Robot
Predicted Gross: $19.8 million
3. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
Predicted Gross: $11.6 million
4. Transformers One
Predicted Gross: $4.4 million
5. Speak No Evil
Predicted Gross: $3.2 million
Box Office Results (September 27-29)
DreamWorks Animation’s The Wild Robot, with fresh reviews and an A Cinemascore grade, performed impressively with $35.7 million. That’s just ahead of my $33.8 million take and it should play well throughout the next few weeks.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, after three weeks in 1st, slid to second with $16.2 million. That’s a mere 37% decline and beyond my $14.8 million prediction. The sequel has amassed $250 million in four weeks.
The news was more distressing for Transformers One as it plummeted 63% in its sophomore frame to $9.1 million. I was more generous at $11.5 million as Hasbro’s latest underwhelming franchise entry has taken in $39 million in ten days.
Epic Indian Telugu-language action flick Devara: Part 1 opened in fourth with $5.6 million with the second best per screen average in the top 10. I incorrectly had it outside the high five.
Speak No Evil was fifth with $4.2 million (I said $3.4 million). The thriller sits at $28 million after three weeks.
Finally, Francis Ford Coppola’s self-financed Megalopolis (with a reported $120 million price tag) could not overcome mostly middling reviews and audience ambivalence. It was sixth with $4 million compared to my $4.7 million call. With a D+ Cinemascore, I suspect this falls over 65% in its second weekend. Ouch.
Kiyoshi Kurosawa (no relation to Akira) premiered his latest feature Cloud at the Venice Film Festival and he’s had good luck there before. His 2020 effort Wife of a Spy took the Silver Lion (equivalent to Best Director). This psychological thriller is garnering mostly decent reviews and Japan has selected it as their pick for International Feature Film.
The nation has seen a handful of their selections nominated for the prize in the 21st century. That includes two winners (2008’s Departures, 2021’s Drive My Car) in addition to 2003’s The Twilight Samurai, 2018’s Shoplifters, and Perfect Days from last year.
With 83% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 70 Metacritic score, I’m not confident the acclaim is strong enough for Japan to make the race this time. If Cloud manages to make the shortlist, however, it could sneak in. My Oscar Prediction posts will continue…
When I did my forecast for the 96th Academy Awards around the same late September time frame last year, it yielded nine of the ten eventual Best Picture nominees. The only miss was not having The Zone of Interest in the hopefuls and I had it ranked 11th in other possibilities. It is also worth noting that eventual winner Oppenheimer was ranked #1.
For Best Director, it was four of five with Christopher Nolan correctly atop my chart. Four of five was also the score for Best Actress and Actor and I had victors Emma Stone (Poor Things) and Cillian Murphy (Oppenheimer) in first. For the supporting races, both were 3 out of five. In Supporting Actress, Da’Vine Joy Randolph (The Holdovers) was listed in second while Robert Downey Jr. (Oppenheimer) was projected highest in Supporting Actor. In the Screenplay derbies, it was 3 of 5 in each with Adapted recipient American Fiction and Original top finisher Anatomy of a Fall both listed 4th of 5.
That history lesson illustrates that the script for the previous Oscars had largely been written several months before nominations were unveiled. Will the 97th ceremony follow a similar pattern?
It sure doesn’t seem like it. I maintain that there’s no clear frontrunner for BP while Oppenheimer was definitely in that position a year ago. Solid to fair cases could be made for Blitz, The Brutalist, Anora, Emilia Pérez, Sing Sing, or Dune: Part Two to take gold. There’s also no slam dunks thus far in the acting competitions whereas Downey Jr. was kind of a no-brainer at this juncture and Murphy, Stone, and Randolph were in the 1 or 2 positions in their races.
That makes it all the more intriguing as the 2024 season plays out. The big news this week was that TIFF People’s Choice Winner The Life of Chuck will not open until summer 2025. Therefore you’ll see it drop from contention everywhere I had it listed as a possibility below. Last week, I only had Chuck actually being nominated in Adapted Screenplay. It is replaced by Dune.
I considered elevating the unseen Blitz back to first position in BP, but am giving it to The Brutalist still by a hair. It was announced this week that the latter will release on December 20th via A24. There is one change in BP as I’m putting in Jesse Eisenberg’s A Real Pain for its initial top 10 appearance at the expense of The Room Next Door.
This week I’m also shutting the door on Tilda Swinton in Best Actress for The Room Next Door with Nightbitch‘s Amy Adams returning to the quintet. I went back and forth about whether to include Adams or Babygirl‘s Nicole Kidman.
You can all view all the movement below!
Best Picture
Predicted Nominees:
1. The Brutalist (Previous Ranking: 1) (Even)
2. Blitz (PR: 2) (E)
3. Anora (PR: 3) (E)
4. Dune: Part Two (PR: 4) (E)
5. Sing Sing (PR: 5) (E)
6. Emilia Pérez (PR: 6) (E)
7. Conclave (PR: 7) (E)
8. Saturday Night (PR: 9) (+1)
9. Nickel Boys (PR: 8) (-1)
10. A Real Pain (PR: 15) (+5)
Other Possibilities:
11. The Room Next Door (PR: 10) (-1)
12. The Seed of the Sacred Fig (PR: 14) (+2)
13. A Complete Unknown (PR: 12) (-1)
14. September 5 (PR: 13) (-1)
15. Nosferatu (PR: Not Ranked)
Dropped Out:
The Life of Chuck
Best Director
Predicted Nominees:
1. Brady Corbet, The Brutalist (PR: 1) (E)
2. Steve McQueen, Blitz (PR: 2) (E)
3. Denis Villeneuve, Dune: Part Two (PR: 3) (E)
4. Sean Baker, Anora (PR: 4) (E)
5. Jacques Audiard, Emilia Pérez (PR: 5) (E)
Other Possibilities:
6. Mohammad Rasoulof, The Seed of the Sacred Fig (PR: 6) (E)
7. Edward Berger, Conclave (PR: 7) (E)
8. RaMell Ross, Nickel Boys (PR: 8) (E)
9. Greg Kwedar, Sing Sing (PR: 9) (E)
10. Jason Reitman, Saturday Night (PR: Not Ranked)
Dropped Out:
Pedro Almodóvar, The Room Next Door
Best Actress
Predicted Nominees:
1. Mikey Madison, Anora (PR: 1) (E)
2. Angelina Jolie, Maria (PR: 2) (E)
3. Karla Sofia Gascón, Emilia Pérez (PR: 3) (E)
4. Saoirse Ronan, The Outrun (PR: 4) (E)
5. Amy Adams, Nightbitch (PR: 7) (+2)
Other Possibilities:
6. Nicole Kidman, Babygirl (PR: 6) (E)
7. Tilda Swinton, The Room Next Door (PR: 5) (-2)
8. Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Hard Truths (PR: 8) (E)
9. Demi Moore, The Substance (PR: 10) (+1)
10. Fernanda Torres, I’m Still Here (PR: 9) (-1)
Best Actor
Predicted Nominees:
1. Adrien Brody, The Brutalist (PR: 1) (E)
2. Colman Domingo, Sing Sing (PR: 2) (E)
3. Ralph Fiennes, Conclave (PR: 3) (E)
4. Timothée Chalamet, A Complete Unknown (PR: 4) (E)
5. Daniel Craig, Queer (PR: 5) (E)
Other Possibilities:
6. Sebastian Stan, The Apprentice (PR: 6) (E)
7. Glen Powell, Hit Man (PR: 7) (E)
8. Sebastian Stan, A Different Man (PR: 8) (E)
9. Jesse Plemons, Kinds of Kindness (PR: Not Ranked)
10. Joaquin Phoenix, Joker: Folie à Deux (PR: 9) (-1)
Dropped Out:
Paul Mescal, Gladiator II
Best Supporting Actress
Predicted Nominees:
1. Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pérez (PR: 1) (E)
2. Saoirse Ronan, Blitz (PR: 3) (+1)
3. Danielle Deadwyler, The Piano Lesson (PR: 2) (-1)
4. Felicity Jones, The Brutalist (PR: 4) (E)
5. Selena Gomez, Emilia Pérez (PR: 5) (E)
Other Possibilities:
6. Isabella Rossellini, Conclave (PR: 8) (+2)
7. Lady Gaga, Joker: Folie à Deux (PR: 7) (E)
8. Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Nickel Boys (PR: 6) (-2)
9. Natasha Lyonne, His Three Daughters (PR: 9) (E)
10. Joan Chen, Dídi (PR: 10) (E)
Best Supporting Actor
Predicted Nominees:
1. Clarence Maclin, Sing Sing (PR: 1) (E)
2. Guy Pearce, The Brutalist (PR: 2) (E)
3. Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain (PR: 3) (E)
4. Stanley Tucci, Conclave (PR: 4) (E)
5. Jeremy Strong, The Apprentice (PR: 5) (E)
Other Possibilities:
6. Denzel Washington, Gladiator II (PR: 6) (E)
7. Adam Pearson, A Different Man (PR: 8) (+1)
8. Edward Norton, A Complete Unknown (PR: 10) (+2)
9. John Magaro, September 5 (PR: Not Ranked)
10. Drew Starkey, Queer (PR: Not Ranked)
Dropped Out:
Mark Hamill, The Life of Chuck
Samuel L. Jackson, The Piano Lesson
Best Original Screenplay
Predicted Nominees:
1. Anora (PR: 1) (E)
2. A Real Pain (PR: 5) (+3)
3. The Brutalist (PR: 2) (-1)
4. Saturday Night (PR: 4) (E)
5. Blitz (PR: 3) (-2)
Other Possibilities:
6. Emilia Pérez (PR: 6) (E)
7. The Seed of the Sacred Fig (PR: 7) (E)
8. Hard Truths (PR: 9) (+1)
9. September 5 (PR: 10) (+1)
10. The Substance (PR: 8) (-2)
Best Adapted Screenplay
Predicted Nominees:
1. Conclave (PR: 1) (E)
2. Sing Sing (PR: 2) (E)
3. Nickel Boys (PR: 3) (E)
4. The Room Next Door (PR: 4) (E)
5. Dune: Part Two (PR: 6) (+1)
Other Possibilities:
6. Queer (PR: 7) (+1)
7. Hit Man (PR: 8) (+1)
8. A Complete Unknown (PR: 9) (+1)
9. The Piano Lesson (PR: 10) (+1)
10. I’m Still Here (PR: Not Ranked)
Dropped Out:
The Life of Chuck
Best International Feature Film
Predicted Nominees:
1. Emilia Pérez (PR: 1) (E)
2. The Seed of the Sacred Fig (PR: 2) (E)
3. I’m Still Here (PR: 3) (E)
4. Grand Tour (PR: 5) (+1)
5. Vermiglio (PR: Not Ranked)
Other Possibilities:
6. Universal Language (PR: 6) (E)
7. The Girl with the Needle (PR: 7) (E)
8. Kneecap (PR: 10) (+2)
9. Dahomey (PR: Not Ranked)
10. Caught by the Tides (PR: 8) (-2)
Dropped Out:
All We Imagine as Light
Pedro Páramo
Best Animated Feature
Predicted Nominees:
1. Inside Out 2 (PR: 1) (E)
2. The Wild Robot (PR: 2) (E)
3. Flow (PR: 3) (E)
4. Memoir of a Snail (PR: 5) (+1)
5. Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl (PR: 4) (-1)
Other Possibilities:
6. Piece by Piece (PR: 6) (E)
7. Moana 2 (PR: 7) (E)
8. Orion and the Dark (PR: 9) (+1)
9. Savages (PR: 8) (-1)
10. The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim (PR: Not Ranked)
Best Documentary Feature
Predicted Nominees:
1. No Other Land (PR: 1) (E)
2. Daughters (PR: 3) (+1)
3. Will & Harper (PR: 2) (-1)
4. Black Box Diaries (PR: 5) (+1)
5. Dahomey (PR: Not Ranked)
Other Possibilities:
6. Sugarcane (PR: 4) (-2)
7. Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat (PR: 6) (-1)
8. Union (PR: 7) (-1)
9. Separated (PR: Not Ranked)
10. Apocalypse in the Tropics (PR: 10) (E)
Dropped Out:
The Remarkable Life of Ibelin
Skywalkers: A Love Story
Best Cinematography
Predicted Nominees:
1. The Brutalist (PR: 1) (E)
2. Blitz (PR: 3) (+1)
3. Dune: Part Two (PR: 2) (-1)
4. Nosferatu (PR: 4) (E)
5. Maria (PR: 6) (+1)
Other Possibilities:
6. Emilia Pérez (PR: 5) (-1)
7. Gladiator II (PR: 10) (+3)
8. Joker: Folie à Deux (PR: 9) (+1)
9. Anora (PR: 8) (-1)
10. Nickel Boys (PR: Not Ranked)
Dropped Out:
Conclave
Best Costume Design
Predicted Nominees:
1. Dune: Part Two (PR: 1) (E)
2. Gladiator II (PR: 4) (+2)
3. Nosferatu (PR: 2) (-1)
4. Blitz (PR: 6) (+2)
5. Wicked (PR: 3) (-2)
Other Possibilities:
6. The Brutalist (PR: 9) (+3)
7. Maria (PR: 5) (-2)
8. Joker: Folie à Deux (PR: 8) (E)
9. Saturday Night (PR: 10) (+1)
10. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (PR: Not Ranked)
Dropped Out:
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
Best Film Editing
Predicted Nominees:
1. Dune: Part Two (PR: 3) (+2)
2. Blitz (PR: 1) (-1)
3. Anora (PR: 2) (-1)
4. Emilia Pérez (PR: 6) (+2)
5. Saturday Night (PR: 5) (E)
Other Possibilities:
6. The Brutalist (PR: 4) (-2)
7. Sing Sing (PR: 7) (E)
8. Conclave (PR: 8) (E)
9. Gladiator II (PR: Not Ranked)
10. Challengers (PR: 10) (E)
Dropped Out:
Nickel Boys
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Predicted Nominees:
1. Dune: Part Two (PR: 1) (E)
2. Nosferatu (PR: 2) (E)
3. A Different Man (PR: 3) (E)
4. Wicked (PR: 7) (+3)
5. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (PR: 6) (+1)
Other Possibilities:
6. The Substance (PR: 5) (-1)
7. Maria (PR: 4) (-3)
8. Joker: Folie à Deux (PR: 8) (E)
9. Sasquatch Sunset (PR: 10) (+1)
10. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (PR: 9) (-1)
Best Original Score
Predicted Nominees:
1. The Brutalist (PR: 2) (+1)
2. Dune: Part Two (PR: 1) (-1)
3. Gladiator II (PR: 4) (+1)
4. Sing Sing (PR: 3) (-1)
5. Conclave (PR: 7) (+2)
Other Possibilities:
6. The Wild Robot (PR: 5) (-1)
7. Joker: Folie à Deux (PR: Not Ranked)
8. Emilia Pérez (PR: 6) (-2)
9. Challengers (PR: Not Ranked)
10. Blitz (PR: Not Ranked)
Dropped Out:
Saturday Night
The Room Next Door
The Life of Chuck
Best Original Song
Predicted Nominees:
1. “Mi Camino” from Emilia Pérez (PR: 1) (E)
2. “Like a Bird” from Sing Sing (PR: 2) (E)
3. “Harley and Joker Waltz” from Joker: Folie à Deux (PR: 3) (E)
4. “Harper and Will Go West” from Will & Harper (PR: 6) (+2)
5. “Better Way to Live” from Kneecap (PR: Not Ranked)
Other Possibilities:
6. “Piece by Piece” from Piece by Piece (PR: 4) (-2)
7. “Kiss the Sky” from The Wild Robot (PR: 7) (E)
8. “The Journey” from The Six Triple Eight (PR: Not Ranked)
9. “El Mal” from Emilia Pérez (PR: 10) (+1)
10. “Forbidden Road” from Better Man (PR: 9) (-1)
Dropped Out:
“Relentless” from Diane Warren: Relentless
“We’re Back” from Moana 2
Best Production Design
Predicted Nominees:
1. Dune: Part Two (PR: 1) (E)
2. Blitz (PR: 2) (E)
3. Gladiator II (PR: 3) (E)
4. Nosferatu (PR: 4) (E)
5. The Brutalist (PR: 5) (E)
Other Possibilities:
6. Conclave (PR: 10) (+4)
7. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (PR: 8) (+1)
8. Wicked (PR: 6) (-1)
9. Joker: Folie à Deux (PR: 9) (E)
10. Maria (PR: 7) (-3)
Best Sound
Predicted Nominees:
1. Dune: Part Two (PR: 1) (E)
2. Blitz (PR: 2) (E)
3. Gladiator II (PR: 3) (E)
4. Emilia Pérez (PR: 4) (E)
5. Joker: Folie à Deux (PR: 5) (E)
Other Possibilities:
6. Nosferatu (PR: 6) (E)
7. Wicked (PR: 7) (E)
8. The Brutalist (PR: 10) (+2)
9. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (PR: 8) (-1)
10. Twisters (PR: Not Ranked)
Dropped Out:
Civil War
Best Visual Effects
Predicted Nominees:
1. Dune: Part Two (PR: 1) (E)
2. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (PR: 2) (E)
3. Gladiator II (PR: 3) (E)
4. Here (PR: 5) (+1)
5. Blitz (PR: 6) (+1)
Other Possibilities:
6. Twisters (PR: 4) (-2)
7. Wicked (PR: 7) (E)
8. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (PR: 8) (E)
9. Better Man (PR: 10) (+1)
10. Deadpool & Wolverine (PR: 9) (-1)
And that adds up to these numbers generating these numbers of nominations:
11 Nominations
Dune: Part Two
10 Nominations
Blitz
9 Nominations
The Brutalist, Emilia Pérez
6 Nominations
Sing Sing
5 Nominations
Anora, Conclave, Gladiator II
4 Nominations
Nosferatu
3 Nominations
A Real Pain, Saturday Night
2 Nominations
Joker: Folie à Deux, Maria, Nickel Boys, Wicked, Will & Harper
1 Nomination
The Apprentice, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Black Box Diaries, A Complete Unknown, Dahomey, Daughters, A Different Man, Flow, Grand Tour, Here, I’m Still Here, Inside Out 2, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, Kneecap, Memoir of a Snail, Nightbitch, No Other Land, The Outrun, The Piano Lesson, Queer, The Room Next Door, The Seed of the Sacred Fig, Vermiglio, Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, The Wild Robot
Despite their effortless chemistry, George Clooney and Brad Pitt have yet to find their winning vehicle. I know many of you are now saying what about Ocean’s Eleven?!? Or Thirteen?… though probably not that Jan Brady of a franchise entry Twelve. I found the whole trio a little disappointing actually. The finest Clooney/Pitt collaboration is easily Burn After Reading from the Coen Brothers. However, the duo share mere seconds onscreen together. They are violently hilarious ones.
Wolfs is not funny or action packed enough. It encounters chop simply attempting to coast on the charms of its headliners. They play roles that might only exist in the movies – fixers. Well at least there’s a lot more of them on the silver screen like hitmen. Clooney is known only as Margaret’s Man in the credits. Margaret (Amy Ryan) is running for district attorney when she picks up a much younger man known as Kid (Austin Abrams) at a hotel. Their planned one night stand folds when Kid collapses and is presumed dead. VIPs like Margaret get a special phone number to clean up these messes and Clooney is dispatched to fix it.
So is Pitt and he’s known as Pam’s Man. Pam (voiced by Frances McDormand) runs the hotel and Pitt is their in-house problem solver. Two men whose survival hinges on working solo is disrupted when they both report for duty. Margaret goes back to campaigning as Ryan’s participation is a glorified cameo. Kid, it turns out, is not DOA as the trio must deal with bricks of heroin, Albanian gangsters, safari themed hotel rooms and back problems.
Written and directed by Jon Watts (whose become best known for the three Tom Holland Spider-Man flicks), Wolfs is not afraid to point out that its hunky leads are getting up in years. We’ve certainly seen the aging criminal story before and this struggles to find any new angles.
There’s limited pleasures. The Kid flirts with being a delightfully bizarre character here and there. I did appreciate how you’re not sure for awhile whether he’s smarter than he lets on or truly as dumb as Clooney and Pitt suspect. Or for that matter, if he’s mortal. No one makes faces of befuddled bemusement better than Pitt.
The leading men, though, still haven’t made their Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid or The Sting no matter how hard Ocean’s and Wolfs try. Finally, there’s the matter of cinematic “fixers”. My favorite is Harvey Keitel in Pulp Fiction. He basically showed up to tell Samuel L. Jackson and John Travolta to clean up the car after the latter had accidentally blown Marvin’s head off. There was no real fixing needed and Quentin Tarantino seemed in on the joke. Clooney and Pitt’s rapport doesn’t need a fix, but Wolfs is ripe for plenty of improvement.
Blogger’s Update (10/03): With the announcement that White Bird is only hitting just over 1000 screens, I’m downgrading my prediction from $3.1 million to $1.5 million
White Bird at last flies into theaters after significant delays on October 4th. The period drama is a prequel to 2017’sblockbuster Wonder. Like that hit, it’s based on source material from R.J. Palacio. Marc Forster directs and the cast includes Ariella Glaser, Orlando Schwerdt, Bryce Gheisar, Gillian Anderson, and Helen Mirren.
Lionsgate originally was slated to release Bird in September 2022 and then in summer 2023 before finally landing on this date. The distributor has seemingly been conducting a yard sale of flops over the past several weeks such as Borderlands, The Crow, The Killer’s Game, Never Let Go, and Megalopolis.
I don’t see White Bird reversing the trend. Wonder was seven years ago, but a bigger problem might be that audiences aren’t aware of the prequel’s existence. Like the aforementioned features, hitting $5 million out of the gate might be a challenge.
White Bird opening weekend prediction: $1.5 million
For my Joker: Folie à Deux prediction, click here:
Luis Ortega’s Kill the Jockey is out in its native country of Argentina today after premiering at the Venice Film Festival and screening in Toronto. The sports dramedy stars Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, Úrsula Corberó, and Daniel Giménez Cacho.
Every review on Rotten Tomatoes is fresh at 100% but the degree of praise varies. Argentina has picked it as their horse for International Feature Film at the 97th Academy Awards. In the 21st century, the country has seen one victor in that category (2009’s The Secret in their Eyes). Other nominees are Son of the Bride (2001), Wild Tales (2014), and Argentina, 1985 (2022).
Jockey might make the shortlist, but I’ve yet to even list it in the top 10 candidates for a nod. It could be a sneaky pick and I wouldn’t totally discount it. It certainly won’t win and I’m skeptical it places or shows. My Oscar Prediction posts will continue…
Vermiglio premiered in its native country at the Venice Film Festival before making it to North America at Toronto’s fest. Written and directed by Maura Delpero, the drama stars Guiseppe De Domenico, Tommaso Ragno, Martina Scrinzi, and Roberta Rovelli.
The period piece has been announced at Italy’s hopeful for International Feature Film as they hope it’s their fifth pic to make the final five in the 21st century. The only winner in that time frame is 2013’s The Great Beauty while 2005’s The Beast in the Heart, 2021’s The Hand of God, and 2023’s lo capitano also vied for the prize.
With two nods in the three years, Vermiglio‘s chances are decent but far from assured. The Rotten Tomatoes score is 90% with 77 on Metacritic. Right now it seems like there will be plenty of pics fighting for the fourth and fifth spots in IFF behind Emilia Pérez, The Seed of the Sacred Fig, and I’m Still Here (though I should note this branch can be unpredictable). My Oscar Prediction posts will continue…
Arriving five years to the day behind its billion plus grossing predecessor, Joker: Folie à Deux dances into multiplexes on October 4th. Todd Phillips is back in the director’s chair with Joaquin Phoenix reprising his Oscar-winning role as Arthur Fleck. Lady Gaga’s Harley Quinn joins the musical mayhem alongside Catherine Keener, Brendan Gleeson, Zazie Beetz, Harry Lawtey, and Steve Coogan.
A half decade ago, Joker decimated expectations and set records with a $96 million opening on its way to $335 million domestically. Worldwide it amassed a haul of just over one billion bucks and garnered 11 Academy Awards nominations including Phoenix’s victory.
Like the original, Deux was first seen at the Venice Film Festival where reaction was decidedly mixed. The Rotten Tomatoes meter is at 63% with 54 on Metacritic. Tracking suggests the sequel might not be the phenomenon of what we witnessed in 2019.
This is not expected to top the starting number of Joker. The question is how far it falls under. I suspect the so-so buzz could mean mid 50s and that’s a far cry from its predecessor.
Joker: Folie à Deux opening weekend prediction: $54.3 million
The nation of India has seen only one of their features (2001’s Lagaan) nominated for Best International Feature Film in the 21st century. Prior to that, you have to go back to 1988 and Salaam Bombay! Some prognosticators (including this one) thought they had a great shot at inclusion this year via All We Imagine as Light. Payal Kapadia’s acclaimed drama has a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, 93 on Metacritic, and took the Grand Prix (essentially first runner-up) at the Cannes Film Festival behind Anora. There was some suspicion, however, that India might not go with it as their pick due to controversial subject matter.
That was proven correct today as the selection body went with Laapataa Ladies. From Kiran Rao, the dramedy originally was seen at the 2023 Toronto Film Festival. It came out in April on Netflix. The cast includes Nitanshi Goel, Pratibha Ranta, Sparsh Shrivastava, Chhaya Kadam, and Ravi Kishan.
Like Light, the Ladies Tomato meter is also perfect. While certainly positive, the reviews are not near as effusive. Last year, France was seen as dropping the ball by choosing The Taste of Things instead of Anatomy of a Fall. If India’s pick ends up making the shortlist, I’ll be singing a different tune. This does potentially appear to be their unforced error for the 97th Academy Awards. It is reminiscent of the 95th ceremony when India inexplicably decided against RRR and it probably would have made the nominated quintet. My Oscar Prediction posts will continue…
While Hasbro’s Transformers One fell short of expectations this past weekend, DreamWorks Animation looks to bring families out in force with The Wild Robot this Friday. We also have Francis Ford Coppola’s long in the works sci-fi epic Megalopolis premiering. You can peruse my detailed prediction posts on the newcomers here:
I projected a mid 30s start for Transformers and came to regret it (more on that below). I’m estimating the same for The Wild Robot which is generating stronger reviews and comes from a studio whose animated works usually perform well.
As for Megalopolis, it might be a megaflop. Coppola’s passion project premiered at Cannes to plenty of negative reaction. This might do decent business on the coasts, but I don’t expect much interest in between. A mid single digits gross could mean fourth place.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will drop to second after three weeks on top with a percentage dip in the low to mid 40s. Despite an A Cinemascore grade, Transformers will likely suffer with a low to mid 50s decline due to the Robot competition. Speak No Evil should round out the top five.
Here’s how I see it playing out:
1. The Wild Robot
Predicted Gross: $33.8 million
2. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
Predicted Gross: $14.8 million
3. Transformers One
Predicted Gross: $11.5 million
4. Megalopolis
Predicted Gross: $4.7 million
5. Speak No Evil
Predicted Gross: $3.4 million
Box Office Results (September 20-22)
In an upset, moviegoers made Tim Burton’s sequel the champion three times in a row as Beetlejuice Beetlejuice took in $25.9 million. That’s right on target with my $26.7 million forecast as its total has reached $226 million.
Transformers One couldn’t catch on in the runner-up position with $24.6 million. That’s well under my $35.4 million take and it’s another underwhelming result for the franchise behind last year’s Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.
Speak No Evil was third at $5.7 million, a bit shy of my $6.5 million call. The thriller has grossed $21 million after two weeks in multiplexes.
Halle Berry’s survival thriller was another yawner for Lionsgate in fourth with $4.4 million, on pace with my $4.7 million prediction.
Deadpool & Wolverine rounded out the top five with $3.8 million (I said $3.9 million). In nine outings, 2024’s second largest domestic earner has amassed $627 million.
Finally, I didn’t do a projection for Demi Moore’s critically hailed The Substance. It opened in sixth with a fairly respectable $3.2 million.
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