Why 'Hidden Figures' nearly caught 'Star Wars' hit film 'Rogue One' at the box office
Historical dramas tend to do well at awards shows but meet lukewarm receptions at the box office. 'Hidden Figures' appears to have broken that mold.
'Hidden Figures' stars Janelle Mon谩e (l.), Taraji P. Henson (c.), and Octavia Spencer (r.).
Hopper Stone/Twentieth Century Fox/AP
The 鈥淪tar Wars鈥� box office hit 鈥淩ogue One鈥� narrowly beat the historical film 鈥淗idden Figures鈥� at the box office this past weekend, showing that historical drama can contend financially with even longstanding action franchises.
鈥淗idden鈥� stars Octavia Spencer, Taraji P. Henson, and Janelle Mon谩e as three women who worked at NASA during the 1960s, doing the calculations needed to launch John Glenn into space despite the racism they faced.聽
The film has been mostly praised by critics and has been nominated for awards including the Screen Actors Guild Award for best cast and the SAG Award for best supporting actress for Ms. Spencer. Spencer was also nominated for a Golden Globe for best supporting actress but lost to Viola Davis of 鈥淔ences.鈥� That level of critical acclaim is common for historical dramas, which frequently score big at awards shows but received lukewarm receptions at the box office.
"Hidden Figures" appears to have broken that mold, with critics and moviegoers turning out for the film.
Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for comScore, that great marketing and a narrative with wide appeal are part of the reason for the success of 鈥淗idden鈥� so far. The marketing for the film is 鈥渁 picture-perfect example of how to build awareness of a story that everyone can get behind,鈥� he said.
also credits the marketing, especially how it appealed to certain moviegoers, and the publicity from prize nominations. 鈥淸The film鈥檚 box office performance] was lifted by strong reviews, an aggressive four-month marketing campaign that included a grass-roots appeal to faith audiences, and attention on Hollywood鈥檚 annual awards circuit,鈥� Mr. Barnes writes.
"Hidden" finished the weekend with $21.8 million in domestic box office sales, just a hair behind "Rogue One" which brought in $21.97 million domestically,聽according to t. 鈥淗idden鈥� had opened in limited release on Dec. 25 and expanded to more theaters on Jan. 6.