We have a story gap to fill, yet all that seems to go for movie news these days either comes from a comic book or a planned sequel! So to give a bit of respite for the film geeks out there who don’t wear Marvel undies and get tucked under their DC bedsheets, here is a completely random look at just how the year is going for movies, using Boxofficemojo and worldwide earnings….
- JLaw has the Skills
Last year the first chapter of The Hunger Games‘ Mockingjay movies took a big chunk of movie meat, earning over $750 million. This year the fifth spot was a sequel, Tak3n, taking in a not-so-bad $325 million for the third movie in an already ailing series.
- Fairy beats King
Kingsman: The Secret Service was a welcome, high-octane surprise for the year and did reasonably well: just shy of $400 million globally. But it was a lukewarm hit, earning a third above its budget in the U.S. In comparison last year’s Maleficent was a runaway cargo train, grubbing nearly $760 million worldwide.
- Cinderella Rising
After the success of Maleficent, Disney must have been gagging for more live-action adaptations of its classic animated movies. Cinderella won’t quench that thirst – it has surpassed the $500 million mark. But that is still short of the $700 million Guardians of the Galaxy earned in 2014.
- Hobbits over Spankings
Thus far the movies of 2015 have fallen short of their 2014 peers. The number two spot isn’t looking much better. That is occupied by Fifty Shades of Grey, which made a healthy $500 million – perhaps the best showing for a pseudo erotic movie in the mainstream. Not really, but it comes close: when adjusted for inflation Basic Instinct just ekes ahead. 2014’s number two, the third Hobbit film, did considerably better with $955 million. And yet it was the worst-performing in its series.
- Nobody Beats The Furious
Ah, but there is one shining light. Fast & Furious 7 not only left tyre tracks on everyone at the box office, but even last year is eating its dust. Having earned $1.1 billion worldwide, it outperformed 2014’s king, Transformers: Age of Extinction and its mere $1 billion in earnings. That also means this will be a hell of a hard movie to beat. Avengers: Age of Ultron and the new James bond film Spectre stand a chance: their previous outings earned $1.5 billion and $1.1 billion respectively in 2012.
Last Updated: April 21, 2015
