Simon, I couldn't get to Hollywoodreporter.com from your link or elsewhere. There's pretty much the same story at http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=598&ncid=762&e=6&u=/nm/20041031/film_nm/leisure_boxoffice_dcif you want to switch it.

[ edited by dreamlogic on 2004-10-31 21:51 ]

dreamlogic | October 31, 23:38 CET

I also wasn't able to access from the link or even directly going to the Hollywood Reporter website. Anyway, I read another article that stated The Grudge came in first place with Ray close behind at about 20 million. Saw came in third at about 17 million and Nicole Kidman's new movie Birth came in at a lowly 1.7 million.

I'm very happy for SMG to have such a huge hit. Ray will probably do better once Halloween is over. It looks like a great movie and a fabulous performance.

Firefly Flanatic | October 31, 23:46 CET

No idea why the Hollywood Reporter link doesn't work but I've changed to a Zap2it article.

Simon | November 01, 00:05 CET

Excellent run for The Grudge!
Reading Box Office forums, people said 100M is lock :D

Angel TheVampire | November 01, 00:27 CET

Seeing as how according to that new EW article she got $600,000 upfront for the Grudge I hope she is also getting points even if it is small

garda39 | November 01, 00:44 CET

To do that well on it's second weekend must mean a fair amount of positive word of mouth. Hopefully SMG will be able to pick and choose some good projects on the strength of these results, and get a bit more than $600K. If she is getting points as well then she should be laughing as it's done way more than was expected. However, many studios have been screwed over points. A cut in the net is more or less useless as the accounts can be made to show any movie as not yet profitable. 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding' cost $5M and yet even after taking $150M at the box office it was, acording to the studio, still to break even so no one would be getting any cut.

A straight cut in the gross is what you want, and if SMG's got that then good for her.

zz9 | November 01, 01:06 CET

Its also the #4 horror remake of all time.

http://boxofficemojo.com/genres/chart/?id=horrorremake.htm

eddy | November 01, 01:12 CET

Impressive, I expected Saw to be number one, that was awesome watching it here in the uk, but happy for Sarah, haven't seen the Grudge yet.

SeanValen | November 01, 01:34 CET

Impressive, I expected Saw to be number one, that was awesome watching it here in the uk, but happy for Sarah, haven't seen the Grudge yet.


But then reading this I understand:
Another freshman offering for the eerie weekend was Lions Gate's "Saw," which earned $17.4 million. Although its R rating probably couldn't compete completely with "The Grudge's" audience-accessible PG-13 rating, the film's reputation for bloodcurdling gore and unnerving psychological twists brought in curious folks who wanted a bit more edge to their terror.

SeanValen | November 01, 01:40 CET

I went with my wife to see a preview showing of 'The Grudge' this evening. We both agreed that the original has the edge but the SMG version is excellent. It was a full house and the reaction of the audience seemed to be very positive. I'll being going back to see it again next weekend when it is officially released in the UK.

I watched 'Saw' last weekend and thought it was pretty awful, to be honest.

alien lanes | November 01, 02:03 CET

"I watched 'Saw' last weekend and thought it was pretty awful, to be honest."

Haven't seen that yet. We finally saw Emma's 'Darkness Falls' last night and....well I can't really remember when I saw a more amateuristically written and directed movie. I wasn't expected much but this.....pffffff.

Anyway, about 'The Grudge', yeah that is a great run. Probably helps that there are no big name movies out right now as competition. Not to downplay 'The Grudge''s success in any way, I just mean that against a Spiderman/LotR/StarWars/HarryPotter type thing it would get buried no matter what the quality.

I'm hoping 'Serenity' will have a similar release, without much big time competition so like 'The Grudge', it will get a real and honest chance to be seen and be noticed by people that otherwise might skip it.

EdDantes | November 01, 03:23 CET

Wow! I expected Saw to be number one also. This is great news for Sarah and Sony alike. I really enjoyed The Grudge, more so than I did Saw.

Yay! My first post on Whedonesque. I've frequented this site so often and to finally get to post here is great :).

BurkleFreak | November 01, 03:44 CET

"I'm hoping 'Serenity' will have a similar release, without much big time competition so like 'The Grudge', it will get a real and honest chance to be seen and be noticed by people that otherwise might skip it."

This is a really good point. 'The Grudge' definitely benefited from the lack of serious competition, although had it been an uninteresting premise or a complete turkey it probably wouldn't have taken the kind of money it has done. 'Serenity' will rely on a favourable release date. As EdDantes says, let's hope it gets an honest chance. If Joss can get estabished as a film writer/director who knows what he might come up with? I find this prospect more exciting than rehashes of Buffy/Angel, as much as I love the shows.

alien lanes | November 01, 13:45 CET

i havent seen the grudge yet but i want to. i went to see "saw" this weekend and i really enjoyed it. yes it is pretty gory and is full of twists but thats definately what i like. most of the people who i know that have seen it like it. i didnt expect it to win the box office like was said above, it was rated R so only the few young adults who wanted a little bit more on halloween went. still i dont think 17 million is to bad. as for the grudge, im very glad to see it make 70 million already. good for SMG.

norman | November 01, 16:44 CET

I feel a bit guilty about my throwaway dismissal of 'Saw', so let me explain. The first weekend opening in America is a great result for the film, on top of the $8 million it has already taken elsewhere. By all accounts, it was made on a tiny budget, so it's a big success all the way.

The film is quite gory. I don't have a problem with this, but it does nothing for me. In truth, I find it quite boring. I'm just not a 'blood and guts' kind of a guy. I see enough of that in real life (I work for the NHS).

I do have to say that I thought the general standard of acting was quite poor. I was surprised by Danny Glover's performance because I think he is a perfectly decent actor. Maybe it's just because it was a first-time director and the film probably had a very short shooting schedule. Mind you, I know nothing about the art of acting so I might just be talking out of my arse!

Don't get me wrong, this is not the worst film I've ever seen. I wasn't particularly impressed and I can't imagine that I'll ever watch it again, but that's just my personal thing and I'm sure that a lot of people will love it.

alien lanes | November 01, 17:33 CET

This is probably the only weekend it'll top from here on out. The Incredibles premieres next week.

BlindHawkeyes | November 02, 03:22 CET