This week, the sci-fi drama “Arrival” will finally hit the $100 million mark at the U.S. Box Office. It took more than three months for the film to get there, and while it doesn’t seem like a monumental accomplishment, here’s why it’s significant:
- “Arrival” becomes the 29th movie released in 2016 to gross more than $100M in the U.S., which ties the results in 2015, when 29 films also reached that mark.
- Following strong reviews and an impressive opening weekend in November, Paramount expanded the film for the next four weekends. After a few declines, a theater increase occurred again over New Year’s.
- Once “Arrival” received 8 Oscar nominations, that weekend saw a 1,000-screen jump. The studio hoped “Arrival” would get to $100M with that, but it only ended-up at $98M. A small theater increase this past President’s Day weekend finally helped put it over the top.
- “Arrival” has been out on Digital since Jan. 31 and DVD since this past Tuesday, Feb. 14, but some audiences still wanted to see it in a theater.
- With “Arrival”‘s new total, it becomes the second 2016 Paramount release to cross $100M – the other was “Star Trek Beyond”. 2016 was one of the worst years ever for the studio. In 2012, only two of their films also made $100M+ and both were animated features: “Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted” and “Rise of the Guardians”. Paramount no longer distributes DreamWorks Animation films. The only other time this has happened in the last dozen years was 2005, with “War of the Worlds” and “The Longest Yard” as the only $100M+ Paramount movies.
- Three of this year’s nine Best Picture Oscar nominees will now have grossed more than $100M, as “Arrival” joins “Hidden Figures” and “La La Land”.
“Arrival”‘s star, Amy Adams, was snubbed in this year’s Best Actress Oscars category – stunning many who expected her to receive her career 6th Academy Award nomination, and potentially win. Adams will still get to go The Oscars next Sunday – she has been confirmed as a presenter. Her other noteworthy 2016 drama, “Nocturnal Animals”, opened a week later than “Arrival” (Nov. 18) and left theaters much sooner, on Jan. 26, with a $10.6 million total. “Animals” co-star Michael Shannon is an Oscars Best Supporting Actor nominee.