ROTTEN TOMATOES: Box Office Guru Wrapup: The Simpsons Movie Gobbles Up $72M Opening Comments

Box Office Guru Wrapup: The Simpsons Movie Gobbles Up $72M Opening

by Gitesh Pandya | July 29, 2007

Summary

Moviegoers across North America embraced The Simpsons Movie which beat out all industry expectations for an explosive number one opening this weekend grossing more than the next four biggest hits combined. Back to Article

(1-41 of 41 posts) | Reply

sickofitall writes:
on Jul 29 2007 08:03 PM

woohoo take that gay adam sandler movie

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The Witless Wonder writes:
on Jul 29 2007 08:15 PM

Correct me if i'm wrong, but I think Potter 5 has the largest 19 day cume out of the other films right now. I can see this making the 290 mil that Goblet made. Hopefully more but I think it'll be around 280-290ish at the end.

I'll probably see Simpsons next week sometime, but I can't wait for Bourne!

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Product_of_You writes:
on Jul 29 2007 08:53 PM

Me and my friends seem to be the only ones that thought The Simpsoms' movie was just so-so. It is on par with the television series the last few years. It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't great.

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caryrocks2000 writes:
on Jul 29 2007 09:31 PM

yea...no it was great

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starscream69 writes:
on Jul 29 2007 10:13 PM

WOW, are there THAT many people who have bad taste in movies. The Simpsons movie was HORRIBLE!!!!!! It had numerious plot holes, it wasnt even that funny, and you would expect that after all these years that SOMETHING major would happen in this film, IT DOESNT. Its like a hour and a half episode of the show, personally, i want my money back from this piece of crap excuse for a movie,....ITS NOT A MOVIE, ITS A EXTENDED EPISODE OF THE SHOW!!!!

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jimmers_205 writes:
on Jul 29 2007 10:44 PM

More people should be going to see Hairspray! It is better than I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, Transformers and The Simpsons Movie combined. People are missing out on a great movie, and a tremdenously entertaining film.

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Bloody Mathias writes:
on Jul 29 2007 10:44 PM

Wow, Simpson's have the most loyal fan base other than the Red Sox. $70 is mazaing for such a mediocre film. It guaranteed to hit the $200 mill mark which is something Ratatouille is struggleing to do.

And here I thought Bourne Ultimatum would be more successful. There's no way in hell Jason can top that. I guess i can take comfort in that Ultimatum won't let me down like the Springfielders, 100% tomato meter with an 8.3/10! Woo-hoo!

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aj1127 writes:
on Jul 29 2007 11:12 PM

"More people should be going to see Hairspray! It is better than I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, Transformers and The Simpsons Movie combined. People are missing out on a great movie, and a tremdenously entertaining film."

Thanks but no thanks......I'd rather watch robots kick the holy hell outta each other for 2 hours any day as opposed to watching John Travolta in drag in some lame musical. Sorry I just find Hairspray stupid.

To think I read where many Simpsons fans thought that Simpsons may actually beat Titanic in all-time biggest grossing movie.

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lavatory love machine writes:
on Jul 29 2007 11:18 PM

I really liked the movie and I've every simpsons episodes, most of them 30 or 40 times

it was pretty funny, specially the first act, the alaska part was a little rush but what I liked most about it it's what people seem to like the less: it's not bloated, there's only one celebrity cameo (tom hanks), it's not that diffrent from an episode in the same way that die hard 4 is not that different from 24

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dystopiandweller writes:
on Jul 29 2007 11:39 PM

Ugh, the Sandler garbage shouldn't have even made that much. The shiit the public will see....

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aknddon3 writes:
on Jul 30 2007 12:00 AM

Yes Hairspray is garbage and the Simpsons and Sandler movie was great

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sickofitall writes:
on Jul 30 2007 01:32 AM

In reply to this comment (#988777)
go stick it in an *** a mans ***

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kendrith1975 writes:
on Jul 30 2007 02:39 AM

SIMPSONS may drop by more than 60% next weekend, and don't be surprised if the drop is 70% plus! There is no guarantee it will cross the 200 million mark if there is bad word of mouth from diehard Simpson's fans, but seriously, who would think there will be a lot of new ideas in limited-time movie??!! New ideas may alienate those who are familiar with the show anyway. It is much like the X-FILES movie or any other movies based on television shows.

Adam Sandler posted a not too shabby sophomore weekend drop of 44%, making him the most consistent comedian in this business now, and he managed this feat with each of his films receiving horrible reviews. Way to go Sandler, but I miss your work in PUNCH DRUNK LOVE.

Catherine Zeta Jones rarely headlined a box office dud off the gate, and NO RESERVATIONS prove that she still has a certain drawing power despite her low output.

HARRY POTTER 5 continue to dropoff at a high rate, and it becomes clear that this one will not cross the 300 million, meaning a record 5 300-million grossing summer pictures may not happen.

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aknddon3 writes:
on Jul 30 2007 03:10 AM

Wait who actually thinks that Simpsons will have a bad word of mouth? All us real Simpsons fans loved the movie, no real fan hated it. It will drop because of Bourne but 70% are you ****ing retarded?

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kendrith1975 writes:
on Jul 30 2007 03:25 AM

In reply to this comment (#990462)
Dropping 70% is not unheard of, especially when your movie has huge frontload business coming off a huge weekend. Think X-MEN 3! By bad word of mouth, I am only commenting on some of the posters who claimed to be SIMPSON's fans and think the movie was mediocre at best, although I already counter argue that movies based on televsision series cannot have too much departure from the original material source anyway.

Still, you are taking this way too personally when you call me a retard just because I am forecasting a 70% dropoff. I am not here to offend anybody who love the Simpsons, as I am going to see it soon too.

I think your offensive bad tempered behaviour ought to stop now.

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Simsgil writes:
on Jul 30 2007 04:35 AM

Hey, I'm a Simpsons fan, but that movie was no big deal. I'm telling friends not to waste their money; wait for cable.

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Boss Fan writes:
on Jul 30 2007 04:45 AM

It won't drop 70% That is a huge drop in any respext and hardly ever happens. Plus word of mouth has been excellent (no matter what some haters will say) overall. I know older people who have never watched the show other than in bits and pieces over the years, but are avid movie-goers who have seen the good reviews and heard the word of mouth and went based off that despite not being a diehard fan. Yes, I'm sure the grosses were front loaded to some extent and the big fans and crowds came out right away, but the movie will have legs and repeat viewers in the form of younger children who have no other options on the horizon. It'll do fine...

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Bigbrother writes:
on Jul 30 2007 05:03 AM

In reply to this comment (#990535)
Also, I heard that if every fan watched the movie who watched the show last year it would have only grossed a little more than 58 mil. That tells me old time fans and new people turned out for the movie. I thought the movie rocked. Loved every minute of it in fact. Definately not the failure all the haters were predicting, frankly I think there are worse things than being just like the longest running animated show in television history.

P.S. there were actually two celebrity cameo's Hanks and Green Day.

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Gimy writes:
on Jul 30 2007 05:38 AM

not a real shocker, haven't seen the simpsons yet but i will. quite frankly this is just wait-time until a really great movie comes out, Bourne. hopefully it makes a RIDICULOUS amount of money(it will) and Damon is convinced to make one more in the series. doubtful since he's been straight forward for a few years now, its a trilogy...nothing more, but it could happen...

the simpsons COULD drop 70%(ANYTHING's possible!), but it probably won't because a "die hard" simpson fan is a person who STILL thinks the show is funny. basically...delirious. kinda like the Comic Book Guy, doesn't really care if its crap...but he'll watch it because he's OCD. the dude who's seen "every" episode, "most of them 30-40 times"...is exactly the kind of guy i'm talking about. jesus christ...i hope you're exaggeratin' bra...

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smartmoviekid writes:
on Jul 30 2007 06:28 AM

imma see Simpsons this week to ill help out with its 2'nd week gross. by the way i thought "Chuck and Larry" was suprisingly hilarious even thoguh i understand y ppl won't like it ( it does have humor ppl expect, but its still funny nonetheless)

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TheDon1010 writes:
on Jul 30 2007 07:17 AM

If you went to The Simpsons Movie expecting Citizen Kane like screenplay and production values, then you are quite the dumbass. I thought The Simpsons Movie was immensely entertaining. Yeah, it was like an extended episode, but in that respect, it was the funniest and second most entertaining movie experience so far this year. (Second to Grindhouse).

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High School With Money writes:
on Jul 30 2007 07:32 AM

[b]$75 [u]million[/u] budget???[/b] How much of that did Rough Draft Korea get? Yay outsourcing.

Also, if RT continues boasting so many "fifth highest opening during the vernal equinox, under a syzygial event of the Year of the Emu amongst the midseason when Pluto was still not considered a planet by five people" -type records, they're gonna need a spreadsheet and a sliderule next article.

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arendr writes:
on Jul 30 2007 07:43 AM

I love the Simpsons, but the movie...was bad. A few laughs in the beginning, but after that it was...dare I say it...boring. Even the laughs in the beginning felt like self-parody.

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Bigbrother writes:
on Jul 30 2007 07:58 AM

In reply to this comment (#990698)
Exactly who was the guy who said it had major plot holes? It's the Simpsons it's not like there has to be a flowing narrative all the time. Some of the best moments are completely ridiculous and impossible.

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kendrith1975 writes:
on Jul 30 2007 07:58 AM

My forecast of a 70% falloff is indeed gutsy, but judging from the very mixed reaction to the movie and given the frontloaded demand, a 70% dropoff will still give the 2nd weekend a gross of over $20 million, which isn't really that shabby. Even boxoffice guru originally forecast a 54 million first weekend and huge subsequent dropoffs. So we will see.

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Vitamin M writes:
on Jul 30 2007 09:11 AM

The Simpsons was very funny and yes it was pretty much just a long episode because as others have pointed out, you really can't go breaking the mold on this type of show, but I think they tried to come as close to making it break the mold as they could. There was a lot more drama, action and suspense in the film. It has a very cinematic feel without sacrificing it's roots. And it's the first time I've laughed at a new Simpsons joke in years.
I feel it's worth seeing in the theaters but the casual viewer may not miss much if they wait for video. I see it falling closer to the norm of a 50% drop off even with good word of mouth.
Just glad to see Transformers still kicking Potter's ***.

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unbreakable_samurai writes:
on Jul 30 2007 10:03 AM

I thought The Simpsons Movie was awesome, one of the years best films. Nice to see Die Hard still holding up well.

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Pilgermann writes:
on Jul 30 2007 10:19 AM

I really liked THE SIMPSONS. Considering how the recent years of the show haven't been so hot, I think they did a decent job.

I wish RESCUE DAWN would get a bigger marketing push. It's a great film and I think that the majority of folks who've seen it have liked it.

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Bigbrother writes:
on Jul 30 2007 11:29 AM

In reply to this comment (#991032)
I don't exactly think Transformers is kicking Potters ***. They made 20 mil more than Potter has made at the same point and lets not forget the week headstart transformers had was a week without strong box office from not only Potter, but Hairspray, Chuck and Larry, and the Simpsons. Plus Transformers didn't have a drop-off from people spontaneously wanting to read the last Transformers comic ever in its second week and lastly I don't know this for sure, but those robots and explosions looked a lot more expensive than Potters dialog and broomsticks.

Also Potter is pretty much owning Transformers in the global market. Both are good movies and massive financial successes, lets just leave it at that.

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TheIceGhost writes:
on Jul 30 2007 12:22 PM

I personally thought The Simpsons Movie did the job. It felt pretty darn, "old-school" to me, save Homer, whose still suffering from that stupid-for-the-sake-of-being-so syndrome. I personally blame Family Guy.

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neoes writes:
on Jul 30 2007 02:14 PM

Simpsons really appealed to kids, adults and teens...it played like a four quadrant film. I think it will make $200 million, but jus tbarely. I hope it does...this movie rocked.
This year is very strong...only August and we already have 6 movies that have passed $200 million. And Simpsons might be able to as well.
Bourne, hopefull will make $60 million or more...awesome series and i hope that makes $200 million

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aknddon3 writes:
on Jul 30 2007 02:27 PM

Whoever keeps saying this will have mixed word of mouth has no idea what they are talking about. This movie will have great word of mouth only losers like arendr did not like it but his opinion does not matter because he knows nothing about movies.

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the_don_of_yreka writes:
on Jul 30 2007 03:41 PM

i just like to say anyone who has offensive bad tempered behaviour please leave this site. you are just making yourself look dumb.

as for this weekend's box office, im glad that The Simpsons Movie did well. although i had my moments of when this is gonna end. it was a not so bad movie. i know it had some problems but it was on par with the tv show.

im truly unhappy that Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is not doing as well as i thought. its a good movie but it felt like something was missing. like a lil more plot? i loved the book but i felt the movie could of done a lil better.

and are people still hating on I Now Pronounce You Chuck And Larry? i think its kinda weak that people blast a pro-gay movie. even though the movie's message is mixed, i liked some of the humor. my only reason to see this movie was jessica biel. hot.

on Transformers, im happy that is still pulling in the money. strangely enough, this movie is mr. bay's biggest hit. allthout bay still needs work on his story direction, this a big inporvement from bad boys 2. although i like see someone new in the director's chair for the next chapter, i hope to god that bay can learn from his mistakes from this movie.

yay for Live Free or Die Hard. Bruce Willis is having blast knowing he made one of best Die Hard sequels ever. all i need to know is how much was the first one made? if this sequel makes mores than the first one, someone tell me. my gut feeling is that the cast and crew from this movie maybe looking for one more last ride for a John McClane adventure.

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knowingtoast85 writes:
on Jul 30 2007 05:52 PM

I thought The Simpsons Movie was a lot of fun! The only bad word-of-mouth I'm hearing is coming from this site -- which, no offense, is just a tad predictable. I can see how someone with relatively high expectations could be let down, certainly, but overall it served as one of the more entertaining films I've seen this summer.

I definitely am waiting for Bourne, though.

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arendr writes:
on Jul 30 2007 06:13 PM

In reply to this comment (#992179)
Thanks for the kind words, aknddon3. You truly are a gentleman and a scholar.

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kendrith1975 writes:
on Jul 30 2007 09:54 PM

In reply to this comment (#992460)
Here is a poster who likes variety of movies, and want everyone to co-exist and succeed in harmony. Kudos to your post!

Having said that, you ask a good question of why nobody give an adequate coverage of DIE HARD 4's success. Some boxoffice site already comment that DIE HARD 4 is on track to sell more tickets than the original DIE HARD, which made a little under 90 million back in 1988. DIE HARD 4 as of now has already outgrossed all its 3 predecessors, very impressive for a franchise that was left dormant for 12 years.

The success of DIE HARD 4 is almost as likeable as ROCKY BALBOA meant to that respective franchise: aging stars trying to make a comeback or make a closure to their series with a good movie.

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Mr. Kong writes:
on Jul 31 2007 12:23 PM

I have to agree with aknddon; I thought The Simpsons was great.

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Bigbrother writes:
on Jul 31 2007 01:52 PM

"and are people still hating on I Now Pronounce You Chuck And Larry? i think its kinda weak that people blast a pro-gay movie."

Now far be it for me to bag on someone trying to spread the piece and love on this site. God knows we need it, but are you actually saying we can't bag on a crappy movie just because it's pro-gay? What's that about? Don't get me wrong I'm not saying Chuck and Larry is a bad movie. it's actually not even out here, but blindly supporting a movie just because it backs one particular stance is silly to me. I've seen crappy movie's about war heroes, the holocaust, even little fuzzy kittens and I've seen great films about terrorism, skinheads and slavery. Just because a movie supports one agenda or another has no bearing on it's quality. Crap is crap and genius is genius no matter what your subject matter.

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Bigbrother writes:
on Jul 31 2007 01:55 PM

In reply to this comment (#995229)
Wow, how surreal was that? It's like watching Batman shake hands with the Joker. Does this mean you two aren't arch-nemesises...nemesi...what's the plural on that? (Rolls his eyes)...Nemesis'

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arendr writes:
on Jul 31 2007 04:05 PM

Come on people...Grand Theft Walrus? President Schwarzenegger? Maggie's first word is "sequel"? Ima Weiner? This was an incredibly dumbed down edition of The Simpsons. I'm not the world's most obsessive Simpsons fan, but I know that Reneir Wolfcastle is a parody of Arnold and that Maggie's first word was not "sequel".

It seems to me that The Simpsons hasn't just run out of good writers. It's completely lost its mojo. I'm afraid that if the keep it going, the number of bad seasons will be more than the number of good ones.

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Derbeste writes:
on Aug 01 2007 09:44 AM

Regardless of whether you like cartoons, robots, wizards, or light hearted homophobia......

Two things happened this week that restored my faith in the movie going community.

1. People did NOT respond to the ignorant, racist, despicable throw back that was "Who's Your Caddy?" I'm embarrased for anyone involved in that film. I'm embarrased for anyone that waisted their money to see it. I'm proud of the public for not endorsing that kind of trash.

2. Hopefully after her last monumental FLOP, the extremely overrated Lindsay Lohan is done. They should rename the movie "I Know Who killed my Career". Here's a tip Lindsay. If you wanna be a crack whore, at least watch how Jamie Lee Curtis did it and have a heart of gold.

I'm glad the Simpson did well. I hope to help it have strongs legs this weekend as well as Harry Potter and Transformers. (yes....I have some catching up to do. Damn finances anyway.)

All in all, I'm very happy with this summer movie season. Very happy indeed.

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