As expected, September was a very boring month (and not just for me personally...) Even though 2012 had the second highest grossing September of all time with a domestic total of $571 million, it still lagged behind July (2012's highest grossing month) by a staggering $745 million.
Ironically, in the final weekend of the month Hotel Transylvania set a new record for the highest grossing opening weekend in September, beating former champ Sweet Home Alabama by almost $7 million.
What worked:
Hotel Transylvania
Though only in theaters for the last three days of September, Adam Sandler's Dracula and his merry band of ghouls earned $42.5 million domestically. Not only did that break the record mentioned above, it also made Hotel the highest grossing film of the month. It's even currently tracking ahead of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs which earned a domestic gross of $125 million back in 2009, though I doubt Hotel will hold out that well. Look for this to finish up around $90 - $100 million domestically, which more than covers its $85 million production budget.
The Possession
Sam Raimi's most recent horror flick, though he only produced it, lurked into theaters on the last day of August and still managed to claim second place for September with $41 million domestically ($47.5 million including its opening day.) That isn't much compared to the perennial Paranormal Activity franchise, but it is still quite an accomplishment for a $14 million film.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
The coming-of-age tale featuring Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, and Ezra Miller opened in four theaters to an impressive per-theater average of $57,090 (fifth highest of the year.) In its second weekend, Wallflower expanded to 102 theaters and grossed just over $1 million. Considering its popular cast, universal appeal, and positive reception from critics and audiences, Wallflower should continue to expand in the coming weeks and could end up around $30 million domestically.
What didn't:
Won't Back Down
Hotel Transylvania wasn't the only film to set an opening weekend record this month. With a domestic opening weekend gross of $2.6 million, Won't Back Down claimed the title of lowest grossing opening weekend of all time for a film released in more than 2500 theaters.
Dredd
Hollywood's second attempt to turn the popular British graphic novel into a successful franchise seems to have stalled on the first floor. With Karl Urban's masked superhero only confiscating $11 million domestically for the month, I don't expect it to reach its $50 million production budget or a final gross high enough for Lionsgate to greenlight a sequel.
Honorable Mentions:
Most of this month's releases were neither blockbusters nor flops. Finding Nemo 3D ended the month in fourth place with $36 million domestically, but is tracking behind the rest of this year's 3D re-releases. End of Watch, House at the End of the Street, and Looper all earned modest domestic grosses between $20 and $25 million. The Master opened to $736,311 in limited release to claim the highest per theater average of the year, but stalled in its nationwide release and ended the month just short of $10 million.
October is definitely going to fare better than September, with likely blockbusters Taken 2, Argo, and Paranormal Activity 4. What do you think will be the highest grossing film of the month?
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