Anime ‘Belle’ Estimated $2M+ Over Four-Day Frame A Record For Director Mamoru Hosoda – Specialty Box Office

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaWith much of the country bracing for or digging out from a nasty winter storm, two new releases are hoping to provide so much sizzle that moviegoers will brave the ice and snow to hit up their local multiplexes.In one corner: Lionsgate’s “Moonfall,” a disaster epic from Roland Emmerich, one of the most successful purveyors of cinematic destruction. In the other: Paramount’s “Jackass Forever,” the latest entry in the long-running series in which Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O and Wee Man risk life, limb and nether regions in the service of comedy. “Jackass Forever” scored a stronger Thursday previews showing, netting $1.7 million.

Disney Television Animation has promoted longtime Disney exec Sarah Finn to SVP, Production, from her most recent VP role.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief“The Battle at Lake Changjin II” passed the $200 million landmark at the China box office at midday local time on Thursday, the film’s third day of release. Data from Alibaba’s Beacon data tracking service showed the film lying comfortably on top of the mainland Chinese box office chart with RMB166 million (26.1 million) earned on the third morning of the Lunar New Year holidays.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterWill this be the weekend that “Spider-Man: No Way Home” is dethroned at the box office once and for all?Paramount’s go-for-broke action comedy “Jackass Forever” and director Roland Emmerich’s disaster epic “Moonfall” certainly hope that’s the case. After an excruciatingly slow January at the movies, one that let “Spider-Man” tower over the competition for weeks, the two nationwide releases will try their hand at getting audiences to multiplexes.“Jackass Forever,” the fourth installment in the ongoing saga of projectiles to the groin, appears to have the best shot at taking down “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” which has spent six of the last seven weeks at No. 1.

Broadway’s ongoing, twice-annual 2-for-1 ticket special seems to have help stave off what might otherwise have been a more precipitous drop in attendance last week as box office receipts dropped about 9 percent to $15,038,225.

Leo Barraclough International Features EditorMunich-based world sales company Global Screen has closed further deals in major territories for the family entertainment adventure “School of Magical Animals,” the most successful German film at the local box office last year. Global Screen will also be selling the sequel, it announced Tuesday.Deals have been closed for China (A-Quest Culture Media), Japan (Fine Films), Latin America (Discovery), Hungary (ADS), Serbia and Croatia (Investacommerce), and Portugal (NOS).

Cinemas from Philly to New York State and Boston (Coolidge Corner Theatre, you were missed) shuttered all or part of Sat., rattling but not routing the specialty box office. And a shout-out to theaters in NYC proper where all stayed open – sparse by day but picking up in the evening thanks to “younger people not afraid to trudge in the show,” said one distributor.

Refresh for latest…: Sony/Marvel’s Spider-Man: No Way Home scaled fresh heights this session as it reached an amazing new milestone by crossing the $1B mark at the international box office. The offshore cume through Sunday is an estimated $1.003B for a global total of $1.74B.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter“Spider-Man: No Way Home” is the box office juggernaut that can’t be caught.The comic book adventure, starring Tom Holland as Marvel’s favorite teen web-slinger, opened in theaters in December and spent every weekend except one as the top movie at the domestic box office. This weekend proved to be no exception. Now in its seventh weekend of release, “No Way Home” has again secured the No.

Winter Storm Kenan, which meteorologists are describing as a “bomb cyclone,” is dominating the Northeast from as far south as Delaware into New Jersey, up the Eastern seaboard to the top of Maine.

Greenwich Entertainment announced today the acquisition of North American distribution rights to The Revolution Generation directed by Sundance Award Winning eco film team Josh and Rebecca Tickell.

“Belfast,” “Dune,” “King Richard,” “No Time to Die” and “The Power of the Dog” have been nominated as the best dramatic film editing of 2021 by the American Cinema Editors, which announced the nominees for the 72nd annual ACE Eddie Awards on Thursday.Those five films will compete in the Best Edited Feature Film (Dramatic) category, while the field in Best Edited Feature Film (Comedy) will consist of “Cruella,” “Don’t Look Up,” “The French Dispatch,” “Licorice Pizza” and “tick, tick…BOOM!”The most surprising omission was probably “West Side Story,” while ACE Eddie voters also bypassed “Nightmare Alley,” “CODA” and “Spider-Man: No Way Home.”Nominations for the editing of animated features went to the same five animated films that have also been nominated by the Cinema Audio Society, Motion Picture Sound Editors, Visual Effects Society and Art Directors Guild: “Encanto,” “Luca,” “The Mitchells vs. the Machines,” “Raya and the Last Dragon” and “Sing 2.”In the television categories, “Kevin Can F**k Himself” received three nominations to sweep the Best Edited Multi-Camera Comedy Series category, while “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Ted Lasso,” “Succession,” “Mare of Easttown” and “The White Lotus” each received two.The nominations were announced on a day that will also see nomination announcements from the Producers Guild, Directors Guild and Writers Guild, capping a wild four-day blitz in which 10 different guilds or professional societies announced their nominations.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans EditorThe American Cinema Editors (ACE) has nominated “Belfast,” “Dune,” “King Richard,” “No Time to Die” and “The Power of the Dog” in the category of feature film drama at the 72nd annual ACE Eddie Awards.In the best edited comedic feature category, “Cruella,” “Don’t Look Up,” “The French Dispatch,” “Licorice Pizza” and “Tick, Tick…Boom!” all received nominations.Among the animated features nominated were “Encanto,” “Luca,” “The Mitchells vs. the Machines,” “Raya and the Last Dragon” and “Sing 2.” The TV nominees include “Succession” and “The White Lotus.”The Eddies are considered a precursor for the best picture and best editing categories at the Oscars.

Paramount/Nickelodeon/Spin Master’s Paw Patrol: The Movie has sauntered across the $100M threshold at the international box office. The Cal Brunker-directed animated action adventure now counts $100.3M to date overseas, and over $140M global.

Broadway continued its winter freeze last week, with box office dropping 11% to a slim $16,494,289 for its meager 21-show roster. Attendance for the week ending Jan. 23 was 152,135, a slip of 6% from the previous week.

Mark Schilling Japan CorrespondentCinema admissions in Japan increased by 8% over 2020, to 115 million. Box office grosses improved by  13% to $1.42 billion in the same period, according to figures released on Wednesday by the Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan (Eiren).But compared to earnings of $2.29 billion on admissions of 195 million in the pre-pandemic era, last year was still way behind.

Critically acclaimed specialty holdovers continued to plant their flags in theaters as awards season advances and Oscar nominations loom — and on a weekend with few new releases, most not reporting grosses today.

Having passed the domestic run of “Black Panther” last weekend, “Spider-Man: No Way Home” now joins the fellow MCU film among the short list of films since the turn of the century to earn at least five No. 1 weekends. Such an achievement has become increasingly rare as the rise of home entertainment has made the box office more frontloaded than in the 80s and 90s.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterIt’s Peter Parker’s world, we’re just living in it.After a brief hiatus to let another movie sell a few tickets, “Spider-Man: No Way Home” has unseated “Scream” and reclaimed the top spot on domestic box office charts. Now in its sixth weekend of release, Sony’s comic book sequel has added another $14.1 million from 3,705 North American venues.It’s rare for any film to secure the No. 1 slot in its sixth outing, though “Spider-Man: No Way Home” didn’t have much in the way of competition.

Sony Pictures Classics has acquired the rights to “A Winter’s Journey,” an animated film from director Alex Helfrecht and the animation team behind “Loving Vincent.” SPC picked up the North American rights to the film as well as those for Latin America, Middle East, Scandinavia, Australia/New Zealand, Turkey, India, South Africa, Southeast Asia, Japan, Thailand, and worldwide airlines. No release date has been set.