"Gran Turismo" Narrowly Beats "Barbie" for #1 Spot during Cinema Day Weekend - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

JamesG · 08-28-2023, 05:13 PM

Box Office Battle: Barbie and Gran Turismo Feud over Who Won the Weekend
by Brent Lang
August 28, 2023

Barbie and Gran Turismo are both claiming victory at the box office in a showdown that has a lot to do with movie accounting and shifting definitions of the meaning of an opening weekend.

Warner Bros., which backed Barbie, is claiming that the film won the weekend for the fifth time, earning $15.1 million over last Friday, Saturday and Sunday. However, Sony, which produced Gran Turismo, is claiming that its film topped box office charts with $17.4 million.

At issue, is the fact that Gran Turismo’s opening figure includes both the $1.4 million it earned in Thursday previews and the $3.9 million it generated in weeks of special pre-show screenings.

Studios routinely fold Thursday preview grosses into their opening weekend results — Warner Bros. doesn’t dispute that. However, Sony does seem to be applying a pretty liberal idea of what constitutes an opening weekend by including its weeks of other screenings.

Without the preview screenings, Gran Turismo would have opened in second place with $13.4 million, Warner Bros. claims. Ultimately, it may not make much difference who comes out on top.

Barbie is one of the biggest films of this or any year, having earned $1.34 billion. Gran Turismo, which has made $53.8 million globally, still has a lot of ground to make up if it wants to turn a profit. The racing adventure cost $60 million to produce and millions more to market.

On Sunday, Warner Bros. projected that Barbie would earn $17.1 million over the weekend, but those estimates were revised downward on Monday.

https://variety.com/2023/film/news/b...sh-1235706049/

August 25-27, 2023: Weekend Studio Estimates

1. Gran Turismo $17,300,000
2. Barbie $17,100,000 / $594,801,000
3. Blue Beetle $12,765,000 / $46,308,690
4. Oppenheimer $9,000,000 / $300,024,260
5. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem $6,100,000 / $98,143,134
6. Meg 2: The Trench $5,100,000 / $74,432,805
7. Strays $4,650,000 / $16,126,230
8. Retribution $3,348,530
9. The Hill $2,515,000
10. Haunted Mansion $2,100,000 / $62,256,861

08-28-2023, 05:13 PM	#1
JamesG Freakshow Moderator Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 01, 2008 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 57,136	"Gran Turismo" Narrowly Beats "Barbie" for #1 Spot during Cinema Day Weekend *Box Office Battle: Barbie* and Gran Turismo Feud over Who Won the Weekend** by Brent Lang August 28, 2023 Barbie and Gran Turismo are both claiming victory at the box office in a showdown that has a lot to do with movie accounting and shifting definitions of the meaning of an opening weekend. Warner Bros., which backed Barbie, is claiming that the film won the weekend for the fifth time, earning $15.1 million over last Friday, Saturday and Sunday. However, Sony, which produced Gran Turismo, is claiming that its film topped box office charts with $17.4 million. At issue, is the fact that Gran Turismo’s opening figure includes both the $1.4 million it earned in Thursday previews and the $3.9 million it generated in weeks of special pre-show screenings. Studios routinely fold Thursday preview grosses into their opening weekend results — Warner Bros. doesn’t dispute that. However, Sony does seem to be applying a pretty liberal idea of what constitutes an opening weekend by including its weeks of other screenings. Without the preview screenings, Gran Turismo would have opened in second place with $13.4 million, Warner Bros. claims. Ultimately, it may not make much difference who comes out on top. Barbie is one of the biggest films of this or any year, having earned $1.34 billion. Gran Turismo, which has made $53.8 million globally, still has a lot of ground to make up if it wants to turn a profit. The racing adventure cost $60 million to produce and millions more to market. On Sunday, Warner Bros. projected that Barbie would earn $17.1 million over the weekend, but those estimates were revised downward on Monday. https://variety.com/2023/film/news/b...sh-1235706049/ August 25-27, 2023: Weekend Studio Estimates 1. Gran Turismo $17,300,000 2. Barbie $17,100,000 / $594,801,000 3. Blue Beetle $12,765,000 / $46,308,690 4. Oppenheimer $9,000,000 / $300,024,260 5. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem $6,100,000 / $98,143,134 6. Meg 2: The Trench $5,100,000 / $74,432,805 7. Strays $4,650,000 / $16,126,230 8. Retribution $3,348,530 9. The Hill $2,515,000 10. Haunted Mansion $2,100,000 / $62,256,861