Open Letter To The Fans from Watchmen Screenwriter David Hayter March 11, 2009 7:36 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Movies, News, Warner Brothers.Tags: David Hayter, Watchmen
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Watchmen screenwriter David Hayter has written an open letter to the fans, asking them to go see the film again. Hayter insists his plea isn’t to get beef up the fim’s box office, but instead to ensure that in the future, more films like Watchmen get made. Read a few excerpts from the letter after the jump. (more…)
Watchmen Tops at Box Office With $55.2M Opening March 10, 2009 1:45 am
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Box Office, Movies, News.Tags: Watchmen
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Zack Snyder’s highly anticipated adaptation of the Alan Moore graphic novel Watchmen, opened over the weekend with a solid $55.2 million from 3,611 theaters on 7,500 screens, helping the box office improve a healthy 11% over the same time frame last year. The film opened on Friday with $24.5M before dropping 25% on Saturday to $18.4M and 33% on Sunday to $12.3M.
While still a respectable bow, the picture fell slightly below opening weekend expectations of $60-70M.
The film performed better in IMAX venues. Opening in 124 of the large-screen theaters, Watchmen generated a second-best ever $5.4 million, accounting for nearly 10 percent of its weekend gross on less than three and a half percent of the film’s total theater count. (The Dark Knight holds the record — $6.3 million at 94 sites).
In fact, while Watchmen failed to match Snyder’s last film — March record holder 300 which grossed $70.9M in 2007 — Watchmen’s IMAX gross was significantly above 300 ($3.6M from 62 such venues).
In foreign markets, the film took $27.5 million from 5,097 theaters in 45 territories. Thus far, Watchmen is at $82.7M worldwide, slightly more than its estimated $150M production budget.
Sources: Box Office Mojo and Variety
Watchmen Takes Weekend With Strong Debut March 8, 2009 3:26 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Box Office, Movies, Warner Brothers.Tags: Watchmen
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According to studio estimates, Warner Brothers adaptation of the Alan Moore comic/graphic novel Watchmen pulled in a very respectable $55.7 million this weekend. The film took in $25.14 million on Friday, dropped to $19 million on Saturday and is expected to pull in another $11.52 million through tonight (Sunday).
Now, it’s true that the movie failed to match Snyder’s last, 300 (which grossed a March record $70.9 million in 2007) and WB had reportedly been hoping for $60 million or so, but this performance is still very impressive.
That’s all especially true when you factor in the age and difficulty in adapting the source material to the big screen with care, the fact that this is not a sequel of any kind and most especially the R-Rating and very long length (2 hours and 43 minutes). It’ll be very interesting to see where the movie lands in the coming weeks, but there is no doubt that the long length limited its opening weekend performance even though it played in 3,611 theaters, a record for an R-Rated film. Then again, it’s total screen count of 7,500 is no where near a record–again, this is all due to the film’s long length.
Looking a bit more on the positive angle, while some may feel the movie’s total gross was a little on the disappointing side, there should be no disappointment with the IMAX folks. Playing at 124 IMAX theaters (~3% of its total theater account), Watchmen drew an impressive $5.5 million (~$44,000 per theater average) of its business from the large-screen format, accounting for a hefty 10 or so percent of its overall weekend gross. In fact, it was the second-largest IMAX launch ever behind The Dark Knight which took in $6.3 million at 94 sites (accounting for just a little under 4% of its total gross) and unlike Watchmen had 24-hour showings to help boost its gross:
“This solidifies in our mind that we’re the choice for the fan boys, and we love having them,” said Greg Foster, Chairman and President of Filmed Entertainment for IMAX
Source: Box Office Mojo
Watchmen: $25.1M Opening Day March 7, 2009 11:46 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Box Office, Movies, News, Warner Brothers.Tags: Watchmen
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Watchmen grabbed an estimated $25.14 million on Friday. That figure includes the $4.55 million that the film grossed from midnight Thursday grosses. That’s actually slightly lower than Snyder’s last film, 2007’s 300 which grabbed $28.11 million in its first day ($2.5 million of which from Thursday midnight).
While 300’s March opening weekend record of $70.89 million isn’t out of reach, many analysts expect the film to drop off and fall short of that tally, instead finishing the weekend at around $55-60 million.
Make no mistake, that’s still impressive. The issue here seems to be the film’s long run time. At 2 hours and 43 minutes, it’s a full 46 minutes longer than Snyder’s 300. In addition to the fatigue concern, there’s the simple fact that it won’t be able to be played in as many screens as most other, shorter, blockbusters.
Look for further updates on the film’s gross throughout the weekend.
Midnight Watchmen Screenings Take In $4.6M March 6, 2009 1:58 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Box Office, Movies, News, Warner Brothers.Tags: Watchmen
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Watchmen grossed $4.6 million from Thursday midnight runs. That’s nearly double the midnight gross for Snyder’s previous film 300, which took in $2.5M in March 2006. The film played in more than 1,595 theaters across the country and did so well in IMAX that the exhibtor sold out all 124 showings and added 3am showings. IMAX adds that much of the weekend is already sold out.
Watchmen opens wide today in a record — for an R-rated film — 3,611 theaters. Most analysts expect the film to gross somewhere in the neighborhood of $60-70 million, more than likely near the higher end of those projections, meaning it may beat the weekend gross of Snyder’s 300, which holds a March record of $70.9 million in its opening weekend.
Source: Variety
Watchmen Character Profiles: The Comedian, Silk Spectre II and Nite Owl II March 5, 2009 11:21 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Movies, Video Clips.Tags: Watchmen
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The final three exclusive Watchmen character profiles — for The Comedian, Silk Spectre II and Nite Owl II — have gone live on NBC.com/Watchmen. Click the link, or the above image, to watch the three spots (when you reach the site, just click the character name on the lower right hand side to watch the appropriate profile).
And for any and all checking out Watchmen at one of the 1,600 or so theaters across the nation at midnight: enjoy yourselves!
Watchmen Character Profile: Ozymandias March 4, 2009 10:36 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Movies, News, Video Clips, Warner Brothers.Tags: Watchmen
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The third of six exclusive Watchmen character profile’s (discussed in this post), this one focusing on Ozymandias, has aired on SCI FI during the network’s telecast of Ghost Hunters International and is now available to watch online at http://www.nbc.com/watchmen/.
OZYMANDIAS
Adrian Veidt, acclaimed as “The World’s Smartest Man,” was inspired by the life of Alexander the Great to take on the costumed identity of Ozymandias. Having trained his body to athletic perfection, he operated for only a few years before retiring, revealing his secret identity publicly, and building a financial empire based around his past as a costumed hero. Determined to do true good in the world, he is one of the few vigilantes apparently free from psychological scars from his years fighting crime.
Click the image below to watch the character profile clip.
Watchmen Has Already Broken a Record + New Uncensored Clip March 4, 2009 10:13 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Movies, Video Clips, Warner Brothers.Tags: Watchmen
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It hasn’t theaters yet, but Watchmen is already breaking records. The Zack Snyder-directed comic book adaptation will play in 3,611 theaters, the most ever for an R-rated film. Before going wide on Friday, the film will play at 1,600 locations on Thursday night. That’s substantially above Snyder’s last film, 300, which played 656 midnight shows, helping pull in $28 million for its first day of its $71 million opening weekend in March 2007.
That first day number for 300 was the second-highest ever for an R-rated film,below the $42.5 million tally that Warners The Matrix Reloaded took in in its first day back in 2003. ‘Reloaded’ is the previous widest release for an R-rated film with 3,603 theaters. It took in $91.8 million for its first weekend.
There’s also a brand new Watchmen uncensored scene and interview that aired on Cinemax HD which you can check out after the jump. (more…)
Watchmen: 10-Minute Interactive Trailer March 2, 2009 11:22 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Movies, Video Clips.Tags: Watchmen
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Warner Bros. has debuted a new website, 6MinutesToMidnight.com, and released a new 10-minute interactive trailer for Watchmen. Just visit the site (click the image above), enter your name and decipher the Rorschach ink blots to unlock and watch trailer.
WonderCon 2009: Watchmen Panel March 1, 2009 8:38 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Movies, News.Tags: Watchmen, WonderCon 2009
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Here are a few highlights from the WonderCon 2009 Watchmen panel courtesy AICN and io9. The panel discussion included director Zack Snyder, illustrator Dave Gibbons and stars Malin Akerman (Silk Spectre II), Billy Crudu0p (Dr. Manhattan), Jackie Earle Haley (Rorschach), Jeffrey Dean Morgan (The Comedian) and Patrick Wilson (Nite Owl II).
- The studio originally had an idea of doing an Ocean’s Eleven type cast, comprised of huge movie stars, but that ended up not happening. Snyder talked to Tom Cruise for a while, but he was busy with Valkyrie, and Snyder was never sure what role Cruise would play.
- Snyder said he would not be doing a sequel: “No. Not with me, anyway.”
- Snyder called the movie Depression-era cinema… It’s like a regular movie with 40 more minutes at no extra cost!
- Patrick Wilson was the first person cast, Billy Crudup the last.
- The movie’s “director’s cut” is three hours and ten minutes, and will hopefully have a theatrically run in July.
- Included in the cut will be extra violence, more blue nudity, Hollis Mason’s death, and some other “bits and bobs.”
- The original script that the studio gave Snyder, when he first agreed to do the movie, ended with Nite Owl killing Ozymandias by crashing the Owl-ship into him via remote control. Nite Owl even says a cool catch phrase immediately afterwards.
Watchmen Character Profiles To Premiere on NBC Networks February 27, 2009 5:12 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Movies, NBC Universal, News, Television, Warner Brothers.Tags: NBC, Sci Fi, USA Network, Watchmen
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NBC Universal has announced that video profiles for six characters (Dr. Manhattan, Rorschach, Ozymandias, Nite Owl, Silk Spectre II and The Comedian) from Zack Snyder’s Watchmen will air during the programming of shows on NBC, USA and SCI FI, gearing up for the film’s theatrical release on March 6, 2009.
NBC has released a short preview clip on NBC.com giving us a taste of what’s the come (watch the clip embedded below):
Vodpod videos no longer available.
Here’s the schedule of what’s planned:
March 1: Clip montage featuring Dr. Manhattan airs exclusively during National Treasure on USA Network.
March 2: Clip montage featuring Rorschach airs exclusively during Heroes on NBC.
March 4: Clip montage featuring Ozymandias airs exclusively during Ghost Hunters International on SCI FI.
March 5: Clip montage featuring Nite Owl airs exclusively during Battlestar Galactica on SCI FI.
March 5: Clip montage featuring Silk Spectre II airs exclusively during Burn Notice on USA Network.
March 5: Clip montage featuring The Comedian airs exclusively during 30 Rock on NBC.
Following their network airings, the clips will be available for viewing on nbc.com/watchmen.
Extended Watchmen Rorschach Clips February 25, 2009 2:30 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Movies, Video Clips.Tags: Watchmen
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Two extended clips from Zack Snyder’s upcoming graphic novel adaptation of Watchmen are now online. The two clips feature Rorschach (played by Jackie Earle Haley) and are introduced by Snyder. Words cannot accurately express how psyched I am to check out this movie. Early reviews are coming in strong and its currently sitting at a very solid 89% on Rotten Tomatoes. Watch the two-clip video after the jump. (more…)
10+ Watchmen Clips February 23, 2009 8:12 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Movies, Video Clips, Warner Brothers.Tags: Malin Akerman, Patrick Wilson, Watchmen, Zack Snyder
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Warner Brothers has been relentless of late promoting Watchmen with new clips. Instead of individual posts for each clip, I figured it’d be best to just link directly to all the clips here.
The most recent clip seen was aired during MTV’s “Spoilers” and features Silk Spectre (Malin Akerman) and Nite Owl (Patrick Wilson) putting down a prison riot. Watch it below.
Vodpod videos no longer available.
You can check out 10 more clips at Yahoo! Movies.
Watchmen hits theaters on March 6, 2009.
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