|
 Steven Spielberg's "The Post," a 20th Century Fox drama about
press freedom, has enjoyed the biggest boost, adding roughly $91
million, or 63 percent of its total, since it was named one of
nine best picture nominees on Jan. 23.
Fantasy romance "The Shape of Water," from Fox arthouse division
Fox Searchlight, follows with $72 million, or 65 percent,
according to data from Box Office Mojo (http://tmsnrt.rs/2E1pwi3)
The Oscar bounce is no accident. Movie studios execute carefully
crafted release strategies and marketing campaigns touting the
nominations, hoping to draw audiences to theaters at a time when
they have plenty of choices to stream at home.
"The Shape of Water" debuted in a limited number of theaters in
early December. The weekend after Oscar nominations were
unveiled, Fox Searchlight more than doubled the locations
showing the film, and the movie scored its highest three-day
tally on its way to $111 million total.
The studio also spent $2.7 million to run TV ads on late-night
talk shows and drama series such as NBC's "This Is Us,"
according to data from analytics firm iSpot.
With three best-picture nominees, Fox leads all studios in
post-nomination grosses with nearly $231 million.
It is unclear how much the Oscar publicity drives ticket sales,
but studio executives say it clearly helps, particularly for
arthouse films that appeal to smaller audiences than
blockbusters like "Jumanji" that were playing at the same time.
"Audiences can only go to see so many films," said Duncan Clark,
president of distribution for Comcast Corp's Universal Pictures
International. "They are going to be steered to the ones with
the highest profile."
[to top of second column] |
Universal planned months ahead to keep historical drama "Darkest
Hour" in theaters during January and February, expecting it would be
an Oscar contender, Clark said. Universal released the movie in
international markets while its Focus Features division distributed
the film domestically.
"Darkest Hour" has garnered about $58 million since the nominations,
and the studio is aiming to add to that total in Japan, where it is
timing the release to the elevated profile of the film's Japanese
makeup artist. Kazuhiro Tsuji, who has been praised by star Gary
Oldman for transforming him into British Prime Minister Winston
Churchill, won a BAFTA for the work and is nominated for an Oscar.
"Darkest Hour" opens in Japan in March and has earned $136 million
so far, just behind the nearly $146 million total for "The Post."
"They've done very well for low-budget films, helping projects that
might often be limited to modest arthouse runs become successful in
the mainstream," Shawn Robbins, chief analyst for BoxOffice.com,
said of the movies still in theaters.
But none has come close to the two highest-grossing nominees. World
War Two drama "Dunkirk" rang up $525 million while horror movie "Get
Out" took in $255 million.
Those movies, however, were released early in 2017 and left theaters
long before the Oscar nominations. They may still benefit from
bigger sales on DVD and streaming video through outlets such as
Amazon.com Inc, which is promoting nominated films to customers this
week.
(Reporting by Lisa Richwine; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Sandra
Maler)
[© 2018 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2018 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content. |
