THE BUTLER IS SERVING YOU # 1 AT THE OFFICE!
Thanks to its strong appeal among neglected adult audiences, Lee Daniels' The Butler easily took first place at the box office this weekend.
The Top 12 earned an estimated $120.5 million, which is off five percent from the same weekend last year when The Expendables 2 ruled the box office.
Playing at 2,933 locations, The Butler opened to just over $25 million. That's on par with The Help ($26 million), which opened in August 2011 and also dealt with the African-American experience during the civil rights movement (The Help did burn off some demand with a Wednesday debut, though). The Butler was also a bit stronger than Eat Pray Love and Julie and Julia, both of which were August releases targeted at adult audiences.
The Butler's success can first-and-foremost be attributed to strong scheduling. August has historically been a great time to release movies like this: after a season filled with CGI spectacle geared at young males, there's a ton of pent-up demand among older women. At the beginning of the Summer, The Weinstein Company recognized that there was nothing to fill this demand, and shrewdly decided to move The Butler up from October. They also did a nice job marketing the movie: ads emphasized the movie's inspirational "based on a true story" qualities, while Oprah Winfrey's relentless publicity tour helped raise awareness among the movie's key demographic.
The movie received an excellent "A" CinemaScore, and without any significant competition it should play well for the next few weeks. If it really hangs on, it could wind up over $100 million, though it would be shocking if it had the kind of long-term playability that got The Help over $160 million.
YES!!!!!
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