'Hail, Caesar!': Will the Coen brothers' latest movie survive Super Bowl weekend?
Loading...
The newest movie by the Coen brothers, 鈥淗ail, Caesar!,鈥 comes to theaters on Feb. 5.聽
鈥淐aesar!鈥 takes place in Hollywood, where a 鈥渇ixer鈥 (Josh Brolin) works to solve problems for a studio. He soon encounters a big one when one of the stars (George Clooney) is kidnapped.聽
The film is the newest by Joel and Ethan Coen, who often co-write and co-direct their films.
As we head into Super Bowl weekend, how will the movie perform at the box office? How do movies by the Coen siblings usually do?
Holidays or events that are celebrated by most of the nation, such as the Fourth of July or the Super Bowl, can dent a movie鈥檚 opening weekend. Films like 鈥淭erminator Genisys鈥 did not do well when they opened over the Fourth of July weekend last year, and some of that performance could be attributed to poor reviews for, for example, 鈥淕enisys,鈥 but box office watchers also pointed to the Fourth of July falling on a Saturday, keeping potential moviegoers outside at barbecues.聽
With the Super Bowl, studios know they鈥檒l most likely be losing potential Sunday profits if they release a movie on Super Bowl weekend, because the public will most likely be at home.
Therefore box office analysts are predicting a quiet weekend for new movies like 鈥淐aesar,鈥 鈥淧ride and Prejudice and Zombies,鈥 and the Nicholas Sparks adaptation 鈥淭he Choice.鈥 When studios know movies won鈥檛 be on the public鈥檚 mind, they open lower-profile films.聽
鈥淪uper Bowl always makes the playing field tough at the box office,鈥 notes. agrees, writing, 鈥淎 few brave movies try to hold off Super Bowl mania 鈥 Football鈥檚 starriest weekend is traditionally a fallow period for movie-going.鈥澛
The big game may mean that 鈥淐aesar鈥 has a modest opening, but how do movies directed by the Coen brothers usually do at the box office?聽
The big hit by the siblings remains 鈥淭rue Grit,鈥 which opened in the winter of 2010 during the traditional end-of-the-year Oscar contenders time. The film became a smash hit after opening in December.聽
The end of the year seems to be a positive time for the team within the past several years. The second-highest-grossing movie directed by the duo, 鈥淣o Country for Old Men,鈥 opened in November 2007.聽
There was a recent exception to this, however. The Coens鈥 film 鈥淚nside Llewyn Davis鈥 opened in December when it came out in 2013 but was one of the lowest-grossing films of their career.聽
What made, for example, 鈥淭rue鈥 succeed but 鈥淒avis鈥 falter?聽
When 鈥淭rue鈥 performed so well, Rob Moore, vice chairman of Paramount Pictures, pointed out how well the movie performed in areas like Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas.
鈥淐learly you鈥檙e getting that middle-American, heartland audience that helped make 鈥楾he Blind Side,鈥 鈥 , referencing the 2009 box office hit.
Moore also noted the movie鈥檚 PG-13 rating (in contrast to the R-rating such Coen brothers movies as 鈥淎 Serious Man鈥 received), which allowed families to attend.聽
鈥淒avis鈥 had a good debut but had trouble afterwards, with writing of the film, 鈥淚ts $32m worldwide gross puts squarely in the category of鈥 well, not terrible per se.鈥
Why did 鈥淒avis鈥 have trouble finding an audience? Unlike 鈥淭rue,鈥 it was rated R, and 鈥淭rue鈥 did have the name recognition of being a remake. Perhaps 鈥淒avis鈥 just got lost in the busy holiday season.
noted at the time of the Golden Globes, where 鈥淒avis鈥 was nominated for several awards, 鈥淎 win in any category would help make 鈥業nside Llewyn Davis鈥 top-of-mind again for moviegoers.鈥 But that didn鈥檛 happen, with the movie losing in such categories as best comedy or musical and best actor in a comedy or musical for Oscar Isaac.