Awards season has reached the box office. Captain Phillips and Gravity are both expected to be top contenders for awards at the Oscars and the two are now competing for audience dollars at the box office this weekend. Gravity is poised to take the top spot again, though, as it continues to make summer-like business in October.
Gravity earned the best October opening in history last weekend and is already up to $73 million. According to The LA Times, analysts predict that it could earn as much as $40 million in weekend number two, meaning that it will have no problem breaking the $100 million mark. It could be the highest grossing film ever released in October soon.
Tom Hanks is in dire need of a box office hit and Phillips could be it. Based on the real-life story of a boat hijacking by Somali pirates, the film is expected to make around $20 million, predicts Entertainment Weekly. The film cost Sony $55 million to make and could earn Hanks a Best Actor nomination, as it is earning rave reviews.
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2 could have another strong weekend since there are no other family films at the box office. Look for it to make around $15 million.
The last big release is Robert Rodriguez’s Machete Kills, the sequel to his 2010 B-movie tribute Machete. That film made Fox $44.1 million worldwide, but Kills is being distributed by Open Road Films. Box Office Mojo’s $8.8 million prediction might be a little on the optimistic side.
You can check out the other films opening this weekend at Trailer Park. Check out our reviews on Gravity here and here.
image: Sony