Paramount’s R-rated horror film “Smile” is projected to top the box-office this weekend with a $16-20 million opening – very good for a cost-efficient $17 million horror tale.
That will put it in front of Billy Eichner’s R-rated gay romantic comedy “Bros” which is reportedly tracking for a solid $8-10 million opening. It too carries a modest budget at $22 million.
Both films are being buoyed by strong critical reviews with “Smile” at 84% and “Bros” at 95% on Rotten Tomatoes, but the latter has reportedly already found itself subjected to homophobic review bombing.
They join several films hitting in limited relelase including the Zac Efron-led “The Greatest Beer Run Ever,” whilst in homes Netflix aims to draw eyeballs with its controversial Marilyn Monroe film “Blonde” which has now gone live on the service.
The new films open ahead of David O. Russell’s all-star period heist caper film “Amsterdam” opening next Friday, that movie faces an uphill challenge as early published reviews have been fairly negative.
More concerning to industry analysts is that, when 2020’s pandemic-inflicted numbers are taken away, this month’s box-office has sunk to the lowest levels in a quarter-century with just $275 million grossed in North America to date.
It sits at 20% behind last year’s pace and 52% behind the pace set in 2019. It is also the first September since 2001 that has failed to produce a film with an opening weekend of over $20 million – that’s even with some success stories like “The Woman King” and “Barbarian”.
