1. PG IS THE NEW PG-13
The prevailing wisdom is that older kids will avoid a PG movie, animated or otherwise, hence the rush for a PG-13. But in 2016, four of the top 10 films worldwide — and three of the top five in North America — were PG and lured demos of all ages, not just families.
2. HALF FULL, HALF EMPTY
Felicity Jones starred in the biggest hit of the holidays, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. But the same weekend Rogue One topped all rivals, her other film, A Monster Calls, flopped.
3. SEQUELITIS
More reboots and sequels — including Ghostbusters, Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising and Star Trek Beyond — trailed their predecessors. (One exception was Universal and Blumhouse’s The Purge: Election Year, which earned $118 million compared with $111 million for 2014’s Anarchy). That’s troubling because 2017 is packed with more sequels (Vin Diesel’s XXX: The Return of Xander Cage, Cars 3) and reboots (Baywatch, Jumanji).
4. SINGING IN SOUTH KOREA
Oscar hopeful La La Land isn’t just a phenomenon in the U.S., where it has earned $37 million as of Jan. 2 from only 750 theaters. Overseas, it has earned $27.8 million — led by a surprising $17.7 million in South Korea thanks to the K-pop industry. La La Land already has beaten Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice there ($16.5 million).
5. EUROPE LOVES BRIDGET
Bridget Jones’s Baby bombed in the U.S. with $24 million. But it grossed $188 million internation– ally, including a massive $61 million in the U.K., where it was the No. 2 title of 2016 behind The Jungle Book ($66 million), and $11.5 million in the Netherlands, where it was No. 1 for the year.
This story first appeared in the Jan. 13 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.
