Bleak Indie Summer Continues: ‘Maiden’ Outpaces Openers as ‘Late Night’ Collapses

Yet another documentary outperforms the narrative entries at the beleaguered specialty box office.

By Tom Brueggemann

Indie Box Office: Maiden Outpaces Openers as Late Night Collapses

Tom Brueggemann

Opening

Maiden (Sony Pictures Classics) – Metacritic: 80; Festivals include: Toronto 2018, Sundance, South by Southwest 2019

$50,715 in 6 theaters; PTA (per theater average): $8,453

Sony Pictures Classics has shown success with two word of mouth documentaries in recent years — the Oscar-winning “Searching for Sugar Man” and “The Eagle Huntress.” “Maiden,” about the first all-women crew crew to round the world, during a major 1989 sailing competition, opened in six New York/Los Angeles theaters. The extra dates slightly brought down the average. The response is similar to “Sugar Man” before it took off to major success (at a time when documentary hits were less frequent).

What comes next: Chicago, San Francisco, and Washington add on this week, with a slow growth over the summer planned.

Three Peaks (Greenwich) – Metacritic: 65; Festivals include: Locarno, Toronto 2017

$4,000 in 1 theater; PTA: $4,000

This German family drama, initially shown at late summer 2017 festivals, opened at New York’s IFC Center to modest results.

What comes next: The NuArt in Los Angeles opens this Friday, which the enterprising Greenwich expecting to hit most top cities over the next few weeks.

Week Two

Wild Rose (Neon)

$64,113 in 16 theaters (+11); PTA: $4,007; Cumulative: $135,403

This top Toronto acquisition about a troubled Scottish singer trying to break into the Nashville scene continues with modest traction in its second weekend top city expansion. It’s still possible it might find more interest in upcoming heartland dates.

Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am (Magnolia)

$54,951 in 28 theaters (+24); PTA: $1,963; Cumulative: $117,012

Though not performing at the same initial level as Magnolia’s earlier writer-centered documentary “I Am Not Your Negro,” this effort on the contemporary novelist expanded to top cities this weekend to some interest.

Ongoing/expanding (Grosses over $50,000)

Late Night (Amazon) Week 4

$1,074,000 in 871 theaters (-1,301); Cumulative: $13,052,000

A massive loss of screens plus truncation of shows at some of the remaining theaters did not aid this film’s cause as its shortfall continues to have ripple effects in the media and within Amazon. It’s a tiny win to credit this with having the biggest Saturday increase of any film in the top 25. That suggests some of its core older audience are responding. Expect this, like “Booksmart,” to find ongoing interest in a smaller number of locations. But its total won’t get much beyond $15 million, below the $20 million earlier week projection that itself was a major disappointment.

Pavarotti (CBS) Week 4

$532,000 in 288 theaters (+152); Cumulative: $1,801,000

If this is indeed the final theatrical release for CBS (transitioning to streaming for future films), it is a successful fade out. Ron Howard’s opera superstar documentary continues to find interest as it expands.

The Dead Don’t Die (Focus) Week 3

$520,000 in 551 theaters (-139); Cumulative: $5,900,000

Jim Jarmusch’s Bill Murray/Adam Driver-led zombie comedy, with a widest release in his career, needs about another $600,000 more to equal the adjusted gross of his early indie hit “Stranger Than Paradise.” Foreign and later streaming viewing interest will enhance its total revenue take.

“The Last Black Man in San Francisco”A24

Last Black Man in San Francisco (A24) Week 4

$482,387 in 155 theaters (+83); Cumulative: $2,033,000

One of the few narrative releases this year to both follow the normal pattern of gradual expansion and succeed in reaching its audience, “Last Black Man,” still fairly narrow, continues to grow with strong per theater averages.

Booksmart (United Artists) Week 6

$(est.) 290,000 in 165 theaters (-62); Cumulative: $(est.) 21,265,000

This South by Southwest-premiered and acclaimed comedy held at about the same average as last weekend in its remaining theaters. Though somewhat disappointing, it will end up about 50% better than its Park City counterpart “Late Night.” (Once again, United Artists oddly passed on giving an estimate, but our guess should be close.)

Echo in the Canyon (Greenwich) Week 6

$253,800 in 141 theaters (+60); Cumulative: $1,502,000

While the 50th anniversary of Woodstock will nab attention all summer, this ode to the LA rock scene around the same period has amassed surprising interest. It expanded wider this weekend, and will keep adding to its total.

The Biggest Little Farm (Neon) Week 8

$132,454 in 122 theaters (-12); Cumulative: $3,525,000

This sleeper documentary on biodiverse farming is late in its run, but still might flirt with an impressive $4 million total. If so, it would be their fourth non-fiction release this year to hit that mark..

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