Ok update as to whether the total includes the 3D screenings. It does and it turns out it's really bleak for the film.
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Shrek Forever After debuted far, far below the mighty starts of some of its predecessors, grossing an estimated $71.3 million on approximately 9,500 screens at 4,359 locations, which was the broadest launch ever for an animated movie.
Shrek the Third still holRAB the record for highest-grossing animated opening with $121.6 million, followed by Shrek 2 at $108 million and The Simpsons Movie at $74 million. Shrek Forever After ranks fourth on that list, although, in terms of estimated attendance, it would barely make the Top 20.
Audience erosion was to be expected for Shrek Forever After, given the historic difficulty in maintaining attention for a blockbuster franchise over time combined with the mixed reception for Shrek the Third. However, opening 41 percent lower than last movie despite the 3D ticket price boost was alarmingly severe. In terms of attendance, the slip was even more extreme: down 59 percent.
Shrek Forever After played at a record number of 3D sites (2,373), which accounted for 61 percent of business. Included in that was a record IMAX site count (194), and IMAX made up seven percent of the gross. The 3D and IMAX ticket price premiums added around $13 million. That means Forever After may have had the least-attended opening yet for a Shrek movie. Though the first movie's debut was the lowest-grossing at $42.3 million, that was the equivalent of an estimated 7.5 million tickets or more than Forever After's estimate.
Though redubbed "The Final Chapter" by its marketing, Shrek Forever After came off as just another Shrek to moviegoers. Pushing an alternate version of the characters amounted to a fantasia on the franchise, but it didn't appear to move the story forward, appealing mostly to the core audience and few else. The campaign banked on 3D to give the movie extra kick, but 3D is not a draw in and of itself. It's shown to be mostly a revenue enhancer, and the movies themselves are the real attractions. If a movie doesn't seem special like Forever After, the 3D price premium may even be a deterrent.
Distributor Paramount Pictures' exit polling indicated that 59 percent of Shrek Forever After's audience was female and 56 percent was under 25 years old.
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Two things.
The campaign banked on 3D to give the movie extra kick, but 3D is not a draw in and of itself. It's shown to be mostly a revenue enhancer, and the movies themselves are the real attractions. If a movie doesn't seem special like Forever After, the 3D price premium may even be a deterrent.
This is interesting when you think about the hype and buzz around Avatar which was seen as an event in comparrison to how it was recieved when used in Alice in Wonderland.
Yes the people that are fans of it and are techy enough to understand all the processs will now defend it against what i'm going to say but, it's intersting how much negativity there was about the 3D being crap and not worth seeing the film in it opposed to 2D. Is this a case of as they say. The expectation and wanting to see the film wasn't the 3D, but because it's Burton's take on a film that he had been linked to for so long?
People have been negative about the 3D in Clash of the Titans as being crap although the film reviews weren't much better. i wonder how many people actually care that Toy Story 3 is in 3D and are just happy and looking forward to the next one as the others were so good?
Onto the second interesting (IMO) thing.
Distributor Paramount Pictures' exit polling indicated that 59 percent of Shrek Forever After's audience was female and 56 percent was under 25 years old
Is the low turn out because Shrek is basically a chick flick? LOL
When you think of it there isn't a lot of action in these films compared to a lot of animation films. Compared to stuff like G-Force it's a bit lightweight and are almost Disney level films. Not a great deal actually happens in the films. Everything is all a bit "nice" and safe. It's popular because it's animation and pretty much everyone loves animation, but other than that it doesn't have a lot going for it. having seen the trailer a few times i wasn't thinking I must see this film it looks great. I was going to see it anyway.