After the slowest summer season in over a decade, a couple of new films will try to jumpstart the fall box office. Warner Bros. targets the family audience with the PG-rated sequel Dolphin Tale 2 [DLPH2]. The prosthetic-finned Winter returns along witha his human co-stars lead by Morgan Freeman and Ashley Judd. Three years ago, Dolphin Tale opened to $19.2 million. Advance tickets sales for the sequel are outpacing the original. Diving into 3656 theaters, Dolphin Tale 2 should splash to the top with at least $20 million.
Sony Screen Gems counters with the PG-13 thriller No Good Deed [NOGDD] aimed at urban markets. Taraji P. Henson [TPHEN] stars as a mother whose home has been invaded by an escaped convict, played by Idris Elba [IELBA]. Advance tickets sales thus far are ahead of The Call, which debuted to $17.1 million in March of 2013. Playing in 2175 theaters, No Good Deed could earn $18 million.
The R-rated crime drama The Drop [TDROP] opens in 809 theaters. The Fox Searchlight release stars Tom Hardy [THARD] and the late James Gandolfini co-stars in his last on-screen role, which could bring out his fans. Favorable reviews should help The Drop bag around $2.5 million.
That’s the whisper from the virtual trading floor.
Tag(s): DLPH2, NOGDD, TPHEN, IELBA, TDROP, THARD