Beyonce's 'Renaissance' Illuminates Box Office With $5M From Thursday Previews

Beyonce's concert film sensation, Renaissance: A Film by Beyonce, captivated audiences with an impressive $5M in proceeds from Thursday night previews commencing at 7PM. This figure surpasses the Thursday earnings of Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, which amounted to $2.8M, though it's worth noting the Taylor Swift feature had a short announcement lead time of just two days prior to its debut.

Comparisons with the Eras Tour, which holds the record for the largest fall opening at $92.8M, don't quite align due to differing circumstances surrounding Renaissance. With Beyonce's broad appeal, especially among women over the age of 25—who made up 53% of the attendees—an opening weekend grossing between $15M-$20M is anticipated. Distribution insiders, however, have raised eyebrows at the film's release timing, which coincides with the post-Thanksgiving slump.

The mutual decision by AMC and Beyonce's team to release the film during this period, rather than postponing to the following year, has sparked curiosity. Regardless, adoration for Renaissance abounds with critics giving the self-produced, written and directed film by Beyonce a perfect score. Audience reactions echo critical praise, registering at an overwhelming 99% positive reception and 90% definite recommendation rate.

The demographic turnout revealed a 70% female audience, with ethnic representation that included 51% Black, 20% Caucasian, 20% Latino and Hispanic, and 6% Asian moviegoers. Those aged 25-34 formed the largest viewer segment, accounting for 45% of the audience. Renaissance will maintain a similar weekend-only screening schedule as its precedent, Eras Tour, and is set to feature in 5,300 theaters worldwide.

In contrast, Toho International's Godzilla Minus One also made its mark with $2.1M from Wednesday and Thursday previews in over 1,921 locations. The film is expected to collect between high single digits and over $10M for the weekend. Critical and audience acclaim alike hint at the potential for Godzilla Minus One to surpass expectations based on its strong reception and the robust performance in its Japanese release.

On another note, Lionsgate introduced John Woo's Silent Night, marking his first U.S. film launch in two decades, earning $250K from previews. The movie, featuring Joel Kinnaman and embracing a unique no-dialogue format, is projected to land low single-digit millions over the weekend. Although it garnered a moderate 62% approval rating from critics, moviegoers' responses were lukewarm.

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