Tag: Ego Nwodim

Hoppers Box Office Prediction

On March 6th, Hoppers looks to jumpstart Disney/Pixar’s fortunes after the underwhelming Elio and before the anticipated summer juggernaut Toy Story 5. The animated sci-fi comedy marks the feature-length directorial debut from Daniel Chong. Voiceover contributors include Piper Curda, Bobby Moynihan, Jon Hamm, Kathy Najimy, Dave Franco, Eduardo Franco, Aparna Nancherla, Sam Richardson, Melissa Villaseñor, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Ego Nwodim, Vanessa Bayer, and Meryl Streep.

Two of the last three Pixar big screen offerings failed to reach $30 million in their opening weekends. While 2024’s Inside Out 2 surpassed $150 million in its premiere, original material struggled. 2023’s Elemental kicked off with $29 million though it legged out impressively with $154 million domestically overall. That was not the case with last summer’s Elio. It only earned $20 million initially and $72 million when all was said and done stateside.

Projections for Hoopers are all over the place. Depending on who you read, it could fail to launch in the low 20s or get to $50 million. With decent word-of-mouth, I am forecasting it gets to mid 40s.

Hoppers opening weekend prediction: $43.6 million

For my The Bride! prediction, click here:

The Bride! Box Office Prediction

Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie Box Office Prediction

Based on the popular Netflix kids show that began in 2021, Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie hopes to welcome family audiences beginning September 26th. The fantasy comedy mix of live-action and animation is directed by Ryan Crego with Laila Lockhart Kraner reprising her leading role from the series. Costars include Gloria Estefan, Ego Nwodim, Kyle Mooney, Melissa Villaseñor, Fortune Feimster, and Kristen Wiig (lots of SNL alum). Thomas Lennon and Jason Mantzoukas provide voice work contributions.

Dollhouse could benefit by catering to a young female audience and the lack of competition from kid centric features. The rosiest of projections have this approaching $30 million and that could put it in contention for 1st place over One Battle After Another. I doubt it gets that high and I’ll say high teens low 20s is the likelier scenario.

Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie opening weekend prediction: $20.3 million

For my One Battle After Another prediction, click here:

One Battle After Another Box Office Prediction

For my The Strangers – Chapter 2 prediction, click here:

The Strangers – Chapter 2 Box Office Prediction

The Top 50 SNL Cast Members of All Time: A Prelude

SNL just began its 50th season and a grand televised celebration is anticipated this spring. I have been a huge follower of the iconic sketch comedy show my whole life. That includes devouring books about its history and memoirs from former cast members.

To mark its half century in existence, I have decided to make a list of my top 50 cast members in the show’s history. Let’s establish an important ground rule. This list covers each member’s time on the show only and not what they did before or after. There’s obvious examples of Not Ready for Prime Time Players who had terrific careers following their stints (some of them short-lived) on Saturday Night Live. Robert Downey, Jr. and Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Ben Stiller and Damon Wayans. Chris Rock and Christopher Guest. You won’t find them in my top 50, but they’ve certainly had incredible contributions to film, TV, and stand-up.

I wrote down 70 performers of the 167 total cast members and whittled it down to 50. Not all original members from 1975 made the cut (apologies to Laraine Newman and Garrett Morris). There are current cast members who almost made it like Mikey Day, Ego Nwodim, and James Austin Johnson. In between there were those I struggled to leave off like Beck Bennett, Nora Dunn, Leslie Jones, Chris Kattan, Taran Killam, Tim Meadows, Kyle Mooney, Joe Piscopo, and Rob Schneider. There were a couple that were just never quite my cup of tea… Jim Breuer and Jon Lovitz.

Despite the tough subtractions, the forthcoming list is a treasure trove of talented comedic performers who have kept the show running for half a century. These posts will be a countdown from 50 to 1 (yep, 50 posts) that’ll run through the course of the 50th season. Stay tuned!