Gunpowder & Sky’s The Little Hours debuted this weekend with two standout engagements at the Specialty box office. The medieval nun rom-com easily owned the weekend among the newcomers, grossing $61,650 in a pair of theaters. Rialto bowed a 1960 restoration of Le Trou in an exclusive engagement, taking in $7K. Sony Pictures Classics’ 13 Minutes grossed $12,612 in its initial three theaters, while Neon doc The B-Side snapped just over $12K in three locations. Last weekend’s hit Specialty debut The Big Sick from Amazon Studios/Lionsgate continued to laugh out loud at $1.67M. Focus Features’ The Beguiled also added runs, holding well in its second frame grossing $3.18M. And The Hero starring Sam Elliott grossed over $920K Friday to Sunday, topping out its cume at over $2.11M.
The Little Hours with Alison Brie, Dave Franco, Kate Micucci, Aubrey Plaza and John C. Reilly seduced the Specialty box office in its debut. The Gunpowder & Sky release topped the weekend with a $61,650 gross in its initial two locations, averaging $30,780. The Little Hours is now the year’s fourth-best Specialty debut when calculating per theater average, following last weekend’s The Big Sick ($87K PTA), The Beguiled ($60,136 PTA) and Kedi, which opened in February in a single location grossing $40K.
“It’s our first [traditional] feature theatrical release and it’s the kind of stuff we stand for,” said Janet Brown, head of Distribution at Gunpowder & Sky earlier this week. “We’re trying to go where no one else has gone. We want to do awesome, loud [releases] that make noise. It’s a raunchy story and it’s what we wanted. It is a risk and we’re embracing it.”
The distributor said that The Little Hours “sold out multiple shows this weekend at New York’s Landmark Sunshine and Los Angeles’ Arclight Hollywood.” The title will expand theatrically across the country throughout the summer. The film will be on more than 30 screens next weekend and over 75 theaters in the top 20 markets by July 14.
The Little Hours’ big performance did not permeate other openers, though the restoration roll-out of 1960 French-language film Le Trou grossed $7K over the weekend in its exclusive engagement. SPC opened 13 Minutes in three locations, grossing $12,612 ($4,204 average), while Neon bowed doc The B-Side: Elsa Dorfman’s Photography also in three theaters taking in just over $12K ($4,026 average). The Reagan Show, meanwhile, stood at $5,500 from its two runs ($2,250 average).
Sundance debut The Big Sick guffawed its way to the bank last weekend last weekend in its opening with the highest PTA of the year ($87K first weekend PTA). The Amazon Studios/Lionsgate release jumped 67 additional locations over last weekend, grossing $1.67M in 71 theaters, averaging $23,550. In its opening, The Big Sick took in a whopping $435K in five locations.
“Kumail and Emily’s story continued to make audiences laugh and cry over the holiday weekend,” commented Bob Berney, Head of Marketing & Distribution at Amazon Studios Sunday. “Both positive exit polls and an ‘A’ CinemaScore placed us at number 12, impressive with such a limited screen count. We’re excited for the further expansion of Michael Showalter’s film on July 7.” The Big Sick will go wide July 14.
Sofia Coppola’s The Beguiled also had a sizable expansion and appears to have found its wider audience. The Cannes debut took in $3.18M in 674 theaters, averaging $4,719. Starring Nicole Kidman, Colin Farrell, Kirsten Dunst and Elle Fanning, the feature bowed in four locations last weekend grossing $240,545 ($60,136 average). The Beguiled has cumed just under $3.5M.
Noted Lisa Bunnell, president of Distribution at Focus Features: “We’re extremely happy with the results of the expansion this weekend. It’s an impressive achievement for a limited title to land in the top ten during the summer. Audiences turned out in support of Sofia Coppola and we expect the film will continue to play strongly in the coming weeks.”
Focus Features’ The Book of Henry shed 283 locations in its third frame. In 363 theaters, the title grossed $270,545, averaging $745. In its second weekend, The Book of Henry grossed nearly $937K, averaging $1,450. Henry has cumed $3.87M.
Roadside Attractions/FilmNations’ Beatriz at Dinner added 192 runs in its fourth weekend. It grossed over $1.11M in 683 locations, averaging $1,639. In week 3, it grossed over $1.81M ($3,702 PTA). Beatriz has gone over $4.77M.
SPC almost halved the runs for Paris Can Wait, but the feature starring Diane Lane and Alec Baldwin still played over two hundred runs Friday to Sunday. It grossed over $269K in 214 theaters, averaging $1,259. Last weekend, Paris Can Wait grossed $612K ($1,500 average). The feature has cumed over $4.7M in its eight weeks in theaters.
NEW RELEASES
13 Minutes (Sony Pictures Classics) NEW [3 Theaters] Weekend $12,612, Average $4,204
The B-Side: Elsa Dorfman’s Photography (Neon) NEW [3 Theaters] Weekend $12,078, Average $4,026
Le Trou (1960 restoration) (Rialto Pictures) NEW [1 Theater] Weekend $7,000, Cume $9,694 (Wed. Open)
The Little Hours (Gunpowder & Sky) NEW [2 Theaters] Weekend $61,650, Average $30,780
The Reagan Show (Gravitas Ventures) NEW [2 Theaters] Weekend $5.500, Average $2,250
RETURNING/SECOND WEEKEND
Bad Batch (Neon) Week 2 [46 Theaters] Weekend $27,736, Average $603, Cume $146,810
The Beguiled (Focus Features) Week 2 [674 Theaters] Weekend $3,180,485, Average $4,719, Cume $3,499,933
The Big Sick (Amazon Studios/Lionsgate) Week 2 [71 Theaters] Weekend $1,670,000, Average $23,550, Cume $2,200,000
Food Evolution (Abramorama) Week 2 [2 Theater] Weekend $2,744, Average $1,327, Cume $7,057
HOLDOVERS / THIRD+ WEEKENDS
The Book of Henry (Focus Features) Week 3 [363 Theaters] Weekend $270,545, Average $745, Cume $3,870,452
Hare Krishna: The Mantra, The Movement and The Swami Who Started It All (Abramorama) Week 3 [2 Theaters] Weekend $1,011, Average $506, Cume $43,430
Maudie (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 3 [32 Theaters] Weekend $98,581, Average $3,081, Cume $2,930,841
Beatriz At Dinner (Roadside Attractions/FilmNation) Week 4 [683 Theaters] Weekend $1,119,380, Average $1,639, Cume $4,773,864
Colossal (Neon) Week 4 [4 Theaters] Weekend $1,831, Average $458, Cume $3,027,135
My Cousin Rachel (Fox Searchlight) Week 4 [61 Theaters] Weekend $55,000, Average $902, Cume $2,584,821
The Hero (The Orchard) Week 4 [401 Theaters] Weekend $920,315, Average $2,295, Cume $2,116,916
The Exception (A24/DirecTV) Week 5 [48 Theaters] Weekend $101,904, Average $2,123, Cume $393,054Manifesto (FilmRise) Week 8 [6 Theater] Weekend $3,000, Average $500, Cume $120,369
Paris Can Wait (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 8 [214 Theaters] Weekend $269,498, Average $1,259, Cume $4,710,292
Risk (Neon) Week 9 [2 Theaters] Weekend $756, Average $84, Cume $200,075
The Women’s Balcony (Menemsha Films) Week 18 (non-consecutive) [26 Theaters] Weekend $66,647, Average $2,563, Cume $741,353
Must Read Stories
Subscribe to Deadline Breaking News Alerts and keep your inbox happy.