Archive for December, 2014

The Wolf of Wall Street is the most pirated film of 2014

Monday, December 29th, 2014

The Wolf of Wall Street was the most pirated film of 2014, according to data released by piracy-tracking firm Excipio.

Martin Scorsese’s dramedy, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill and Margot Robbie, was illegally downloaded 30.35 million times between January 1 and December 23, 2014, having been released in December 2013.

Disney’s Frozen was the second-most pirated film of the year, while Alfonso Cuarón’s Oscar-winning Gravity was in third place.

2014’s most pirated TV shows have also been revealed, with Game of Thrones leading for the third year running.

The top 10 most-pirated films of 2014 are as follows:
1. The Wolf of Wall Street
2. Frozen
3. Gravity
4. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
5. Thor: The Dark World
6. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
7. The Legend of Hercules
8. X-Men: Days of Future Past
9. 12 Years a Slave
10. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

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The Hobbit remains top of US box-office

Sunday, December 28th, 2014

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies has retained the top spot at the US box office.

The culmination of Peter Jackson’s second Tolkien trilogy took $41,420,000 over the December 26-28 weekend, bringing its total US gross to $168,522,000 since its December 17 release.

Angelina Jolie’s Unbroken debuts at number 2, while Disney’s musical adaptation Into the Woods spends its first weekend at 3.

Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb drops two spots to 4, as does Annie at 5.

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 is still going strong in its sixth week, at 6, while Mark Wahlberg remake The Gambler has started at 7.

The Imitation Game, Exodus: Gods and Kings and Wild make up the rest of the top ten.

Seth Rogen’s The Interview, meanwhile, charts at 16 with $1,811,000, after Sony Pictures’ about-turn saw the controversial movie get a limited theatrical release at 331 cinemas on Christmas Day.

The US weekend box office top ten for December 26-28 is as follows:
1. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies – $41,420,000
2. Unbroken – $31,748,000
3. Into the Woods – $31,021,000
4. Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb – $20,600,000
5. Annie – $16,600,000
6. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 – $10,000,000
7. The Gambler – $9,300,000
8. The Imitation Game – $7,930,000
9. Exodus: Gods and Kings – $6,750,000
10. Wild – $5,415,000

This box-office news can be discussed here

Transformers is the highest-grossing movie of 2014

Tuesday, December 23rd, 2014

Transformers: Age of Extinction is the biggest box office hit of 2014.

Michael Bay’s fourth instalment in the robot action saga earned more than $1 billion from cinemas worldwide this year, easily securing it the top spot ahead of Marvel blockbuster Guardians of the Galaxy.

Age of Extinction‘s earnings of $245,439,076 in the US makes it the least successful domestic performer in the franchise, however it’s huge foreign gross of $841,965,423 helped power it to the top of the charts.

Elsewhere in 2014, Marvel registered two films in the top ten with the aforementioned Guardians of the Galaxy in second place and Captain America: The Winter Soldier at number five.

Angelina Jolie’s Maleficent and X-Men: Days of Future Past both made it into the top five, while there were also strong showings for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.

The top 20 highest grossing films of 2014 are below as of Tuesday, December 23:
1. Transformers: Age of Extinction – $1,087,404,499
2. Guardians of the Galaxy – $772,257,316
3. Maleficent – $757,752,378
4. X-Men: Days of Future Past – $746,045,700
5. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – $714,083,572
6. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 – $708,982,323
7. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes – $708,279,489
8. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 – $639,856,110
9. Interstellar – $635,535,531
10. How to Train Your Dragon 2 – $618,909,935
11. Godzilla – $524,976,069
12. Rio 2 – $498,781,117
13. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – $477,204,754
14. The Lego Movie – $468,060,692
15. Lucy – $458,863,600
16. Edge of Tomorrow – $369,206,256
17. Noah – $362,637,473
18. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies – $358,131,544
19. Gone Girl – $349,344,822
20. The Maze Runner – $339,543,969

Source: Box Office Mojo

This box-office chart can be discussed here

Justin Lin will direct Star Trek 3

Tuesday, December 23rd, 2014

The Fast & Furious director will succeed Roberto Orci, who will remain as a producer on the movie.

Lin was the only person offered the job although numerous filmmakers were in contention, according to Deadline.

Edgar Wright, Rupert Wyatt and Duncan Jones were among those tipped for the director’s chair on Star Trek 3, along with Morten Tyldum (The Imitation Game) and Daniel Espinosa (Safe House).

Lin’s involvement has been made possible as his planned Bourne Legacy sequel with Jeremy Renner has been delayed following Matt Damon’s return to the spy series.

He is expected to start work on Star Trek 3 after his commitments to season two of True Detective are complete.

JJ Abrams elected not to direct Star Trek 3 in order to focus on Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and will be an executive producer on the sequel to Star Trek Into Darkness.

Chris Pine, Zoe Saldana, Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg, Karl Urban, Anton Yelchin and John Cho are all expected to return for Star Trek 3, which is tipped for release in 2016.

This movie news can be discussed here

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies tops US Box Office

Sunday, December 21st, 2014

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies has topped the US Box Office.

The final instalment in Peter Jackson’s Middle Earth saga claimed $56.22m, knocking Exodus: Gods and Kings off the top spot.

Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb is new at two with $17.3m, while Annie is also new at three with $16.3m.

Exodus: Gods and Kings is down to four and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 rounds out the Top 5.

Wild is at six, Top Five is at seven and Disney Pixar’s Big Hero 6 is at eight.

Comedy spin-off Penguins Of Madagascar is at nine and PK is new in at 10.

The US weekend box office Top 10 for December 21 is as follows:
1. (-) The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies – $56,220,000
2. (-) Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, Part 1 – $17,300,000
3. (-) Annie – $16,300,000
4. (1) Exodus: Gods and Kings – $8,065,000
5. (2) The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1 – $7,750,000
6. (10) Wild – $4,150,000
7. (4) Top Five – $3,470,000
8. (5) Big Hero 6 – $3,563,000
9. (3) Penguins of Madagascar – $3,525,000
10. (-) P.K – $3,500,000

This box-office news can be discussed here

‘The Interview’ is pulled from cinema release by Sony

Wednesday, December 17th, 2014

Seth Rogen’s The Interview will not be released next week as planned, Sony Pictures Entertainment has confirmed.

Sony’s decision to pull the film comes after six major cinema chains in North America vowed not to show Seth Rogen’s controversial new comedy The Interview in the wake of a terror threat.

Film conglomerate Sony Pictures Entertainment said on Wednesday (December 17): “In light of the decision by the majority of our exhibitors not to show the The Interview, we have decided not to move forward with the planned December 25 theatrical release.

“We respect and understand our partners’ decision and, of course, completely share their paramount interest in the safety of employees and theater-goers.

“Sony Pictures has been the victim of an unprecedented criminal assault against our employees, our customers, and our business. Those who attacked us stole our intellectual property, private emails, and sensitive and proprietary material, and sought to destroy our spirit and our morale – all apparently to thwart the release of a movie they did not like.

“We are deeply saddened at this brazen effort to suppress the distribution of a movie, and in the process do damage to our company, our employees, and the American public. We stand by our filmmakers and their right to free expression and are extremely disappointed by this outcome.”

(more…)

Exodus: Gods and Kings claims US box office top spot

Sunday, December 14th, 2014

Exodus: Gods and Kings has topped the US box office.

The Ridley Scott epic claimed $24.5m to knock The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1 off the top spot.

Mockingjay is down to two with $13.2, while animated spin-off Penguins of Madagascar is at three with $7.3.

Top Five is new at four, while Disney Pixar’s Big Hero 6 is down one place to five.

Interstellar is at six, while comedy sequel Horrible Bosses 2 is at seven.

Dumb and Dumber To is at eight with $2.8m, while The Theory of Everything and Reese Witherspoon’s Wild round out the Top 10.

The US weekend box office Top 10 for December 14 is as follows:
1. (-) Exodus: Gods and Kings – $24,500,000
2. (1) The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1 – $13,200,000
3. (2) Penguins of Madagascar – $7,300,000
4. (-) Top Five – $7,210,000
5. (4) Big Hero 6 – $6,145,000
6. (5) Interstellar – $5,500,000
7. (3) Horrible Bosses 2 – $4,630,000
8. (6) Dumb and Dumber To – $2,757,000
9. (7) The Theory of Everything – $2,525,000
10. (15) Wild – $1,550,000

This box-office news can be discussed here

Mockingjay – Part 1 remains on top of US box office

Sunday, December 7th, 2014

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 remains number one at the US box office for the third week running.

The film took $21m during its third weekend in cinemas, following on from last week’s $56.8m and its $123m opening weekend total.

Children’s comedy Penguins of Madagascar remains at number two, taking $11.1m, while sequel Horrible Bosses 2 takes the third spot with $8.6m.

Last week’s number three, Big Hero 6, falls down one place to number four with $8.1m, as space-spectacular Interstellar takes fifth place with $8m.

Comedy sequel Dumb and Dumber To remains at number six with $4.1m, and The Theory of Everything stays at seven.

Gone Girl takes $1.5m in its 10th weekend and claims number eight, while The Pyramid debuts at number nine with $1.3m.

Birdman rounds off this weekend’s top 10 selling films, taking $1.1m in it’s eighth week of release.

The US weekend box office Top 10 for December 7 is as follows:
1. (1) The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 – $21,600,000
2. (2) Penguins of Madagascar – $11,100,000
3. (5) Horrible Bosses 2 – $8,600,000
4. (3) Big Hero 6 – $8,130,000
5. (4) Interstellar – $8,000,000
6. (6) Dumb and Dumber To – $4,169,000
7. (7) The Theory of Everything – $2,668,000
8. (8) Gone Girl – $1,500,000
9. (-) The Pyramid – $1,350,000
10. (9) Birdman – $1,150,000

This box-office news can be discussed here

Xbox One outsells PS4 on Black Friday in North America

Monday, December 1st, 2014

Xbox One outsold the PS4 on Black Friday in North America, a new report has suggested.

According to analyst firm Infoscout, the Xbox One accounted for 53% of console sales on Black Friday, compared to 31% for the PS4.

The information was based on 180,000 sales receipts from major retailers.

The Xbox One was also the biggest-selling console at Walmart and Target thanks to a recent price cut.

Madden NFL 15 was the best-selling game with 8.4% of total sales, followed by 7.3% for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. Skylanders: Swap Force and Disney Infinity: Marvel Superheroes were the third and fourth biggest-sellers..