‘Tenet’ has $20M holiday weekend
In a litmus test for American moviegoing in the pandemic, Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” brought in an estimated $20.2 million through the holiday weekend in U.S. and Canadian theaters.
The result could be greeted as either the rejuvenation of U.S. cinemas — more Americans went to the movies this weekend than they have in nearly six months — or a reflection of drastically lowered standards for Hollywood’s top blockbusters given the circumstances.
About 70% of U.S. movie theaters are open; those in the country’s top markets, Los Angeles and New York, remain closed. Those that are operating are limiting audiences to a maximum of 50% capacity to distance moviegoers from one another. “Tenet” played in 2,810 North American locations, about threefourths of what most major releases typically launch in.
Warner Bros. declined to split up U.S. and Canadian box-office receipts. Theaters in Canada, where COVID-19 cases are much lower than in the U.S., began showing “Tenet” a week earlier.
The film debuted stateside with nightly preview screenings Monday through Wednesday, and the official opening on Thursday. Warner Bros. included all of the above in its estimated gross Sunday, along with expected returns for Monday’s Labor Day.
Internationally, “Tenet” has exceeded expectations. In two weeks of release, its overseas total is $126 million, with a global tally so far of $146.2 million.
Political royalty: The cast of Rob Reiner’s 1987 film “The Princess Bride” is
reuniting for a virtual script reading and fundraiser benefiting the Wisconsin Democratic Party.
Reiner, Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Carol Kane, Chris Sarandon, Mandy Patinkin, Wallace Shawn and Billy Crystal will read the script on Sept. 13, followed by a Q&A with the cast hosted by comedian Patton Oswalt.
Elwes, who portrayed Westley in the film, tweeted out the event on Friday along with the hashtag #Dump Trumperdinck, comparing President Trump to the movie’s villain, Prince Humperdinck.
A plea from Venice:
Spanish director Pedro Almodovar has joined a chorus of voices at the Venice Film Festival urging the reopening of movie theaters and a return to cinema normality after coronavirus lockdowns, saying films are meant to be seen on the big screen, not at home.
Venice organizers went
ahead with the first major COVID-era film festival convinced they needed to chart a path forward for a film industry hard-hit by the lockdowns.
Almodovar, who premiered his short film “The Human Voice” on Thursday, said streaming platforms had played an “essential role” in keeping people entertained during months of virus-required confinement at home.
But he said they had also contributed to the “dangerous” phenomenon of people growing increasingly comfortable living, working and eating at home — a type of “imprisonment” that he said must be resisted.
“And the antidote is the cinema,” he said, describing going out, sitting next to strangers in a movie theater where “you find yourself crying or rejoicing with other people.”
Sept. 7 birthdays: Jazz saxophonist Sonny Rollins is 90. Singer Gloria Gaynor is 77. Singer Chrissie Hynde is 69. Comedian Leslie Jones is 53. Actor Oliver Hudson is 44. Actor Evan Rachel Wood is 33.