Transformers: Dark of the Moon Breaks July 4 Record, Hits $116M Over Four-Day Weekend
Michael Bay's juggernaut of a sequel Transformers: Dark of the Moon didn't just spank Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts at the box office; it handily seized the title of the biggest domestic July 4 opener of all time from previous champ Spider-Man 2 and should hit $116.4M over the four-day weekend for a $181.1M domestic take. On top of that, Transformers 3 is performing even better overseas than in the U.S. of A. -- and it has yet to open in Transformers-loving Japan. Bow to our robot overlords!
Your four-day holiday weekend estimates:
1. TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON: $116,400,000 ($181,125,000)
2. CARS 2: $32,072,000 ($123,002,000)
3. BAD TEACHER: $17,600,000 ($63,045,000)
4. LARRY CROWNE: $15,742,000 ($15,742,000)
5. SUPER 8: $9,525,000 ($110,061,000)
[Numbers via Box Office Mojo]
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According to estimates, Transformers made 116.4 million over the four day weekend. Spider-Man 2 made 115.8 million. Even if the estimates hold true, there is no way 0.6 million equates to "handily seiz[ing] the title of the biggest domestic July 4 opener of all time". You also don't point out that Transformers 3 is in 3-D whereas SM2 wasn't. If Spider-Man 2 was adjusted for today's average ticket price, including the $3 bump in price for the 60% of audience members that saw Transformers 3 in 3-D, then Spider-Man 2 would have made 180.1 million over the four day weekend.
When writing for a bunch of entertainment nerds, you might want to choose your words more carefully. I can't imagine anyone agreeing that T3 beat SM2 "handily" by an estimated 0.6 million, especially when no context is given. That's like saying that Larry Crowne easily beat Ghostbusters opening weekend, 15.7 million to 13.6. It's not exactly apples versus oranges, but it is close.
Per Box Office Mojo: Spider-Man 2 made $88.2M over the three-day frame used to rank the Independence Day Weekend record, while Transformers: Dark of the Moon made $97.5M. While you have a point about the 4-day tallies, that's not the figure used here.
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/weekends/july-4th.htm
Is it just me, or is there a definite case of "record-inflation" going on with movies? I mean, every time you turn around, some movie is crowned "Best Performing R-Rated Comedy Featuring Parrots and a Lesbian Ancillary Character!" or something.
This is how you spent your Independence Day?
Well not all of Independence Day. I did take some time to challenge a girl scout about whether or not palm oil is bad for the rain forests, so I spent most of the day in the hospital. Man, girl scouts are vicious fighters!
Hi Jen, you may have been representing Friday-Sunday, but since the only number you gave in relationship to T3 was the 116.4 million estimate, I think it was reasonable for me to assume you were talking about the four-day weekend. 🙂
Yikes! This is not what the Founding Fathers had in mind!
Tommy...who cares? If you want to start adjusting for all that, how about adjusting for a recession? Or for the fact that the much higher ticket prices will make people stay away? Or the fact that when Spiderman 2 came out, elaborate home theater systems in people's homes were still very rare. Nowadays people may opt to wait just 4 months to get it out of their Redbox machine and watch it at home.
The measure is, and has always been the box office gross. Period. And Transformers 3 won. You can whine like a little bitch all you want about Bay, but he gives people what they want and does not give a rat's ass if YOU like his movies. Because in the time it took me to write this comment, he has earned more money just in INTEREST on his fortune that you and your entire family will earn in your entire life. And I type fast!
The "4" day weekend was slightly exaggerated. We saw the movie on Tuesday June 28th @ 9pm PST. By my count— that's 5 1/2 days of revenue. Too bad the press doesn't check facts anymore, they're too busy hyping their next sensational story.
The Transformers movies have been released in America during public holidays. So the reason its making cash is because its school kids who are going to see this. In that context its a 2hr 40 min babysitter whilst the parents can get some "me time".
Michael Bay; Babysitter.
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