Anything Goes

New film Sinners , directed by Black Panther and Creed filmmaker Ryan Coogler, has earnt a rare horror movie record.

The genre-hopping supernatural thriller arrived on wave of hype after extremely positive reviews – and an initial teaser trailer that gave away nothing about the plot.

All that was known about the film, which Coogler wrote, was that it follows a pair of twins, both played by Coogler’s frequent collaborator Michael B Jordan, who return to their hometown to discover “a greater evil”.

A second trailer – not to mention reviews of the film – have given away what that “greater evil” is, but it’s been claimed that Sinners is best enjoyed without knowing what tricks it has up its sleeve.

The world appears to agree: after 246 reviews, the film, which was shot in IMAX and cost an estimated $100m, has an impressive score of 98 per cent on aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes.

This is an impressive score for what is sure to be a blockbuster release for Warner Bros – and is even higher than both Black Panther and Creed, which have scores of 95 per cent. But it’s the film’s CinemaScore that has broken a record.

For 47 years, CinemaScore has measured a film’s appeal by polling early reactions – and Sinners has become the first ever horror film to receive an A rating.

Link:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/news/sinners-earns-horror-movie-record-...

***If you LEAVE politics out of your film, this is what happens, SUCCESS!! Folks just want to go and escape the real world for a couple of hours. Hopefully the industry is learning...

Heading into Easter weekend, the opening projections for Ryan Coogler’s Sinners were all over the place. Warner Bros. stuck to $35 million-$40 million, while tracking services showed the supernatural vampire pic coming in as high as $45 million. Others predicted north of $50 million.

Lost in the conversation was the fact that Sinners is an R-rated period horror movie featuring a mostly Black cast at a time when the Trump administration is punishing companies and institutions that refuse to abandon their commitments to diversity and inclusion. Nonetheless, Sinners more than found salvation at the Easter box office, toppling A Minecraft Movie in an unexpected upset with a $48 million domestic debut, thanks to powerful word of mouth. It’s also another win for embattled Warners movie chiefs Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy (the studio is also home of Minecraft).

Set in 1932, Coogler’s fifth feature stars Michael B. Jordan in dual roles as identical twin entrepreneurs known as Smoke and Stack. Having survived the World War I trenches and Chicago gangland, the brothers return after seven years to their segregated Mississippi Delta hometown, Clarksdale. They are flush with cash and have a truckload of liquor and a plan to open a juke joint. However, they encounter unexpected horrors.

The movie’s much-debated production budget of $90 million before marketing has prompted some in the media to label Sinners a sure money-loser. But one veteran financing source says it’s premature to make such a prediction, and that there could even be a sequel down the road based on the outstanding reaction. (On Monday, Sinners grossed a stellar $7.8 million for a domestic box office cume of $55.8 million. That’s not far behind the $9.9 million earned by Minecraft on its first Monday.)

Says Comscore chief box office analyst Paul Dergarabedian, “Sinners is a case study in how a purposeful marketing and distribution strategy backed up by a world class movie can then be carried forward by the most powerful marketing ambassadors on the planet: the moviegoers themselves.”

He’s right. Not many movies are embraced to the same degree by critics and audiences; Sinners is a notable exception. Here’s why.

‘Sinners’ Breaks the CinemaScore Horror Curse

Link:

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/sinners-box-office-michael-b-jor...

Having completed over two full weeks in theaters, A Minecraft Movie has hit another major milestone at the domestic box office. The video game adaptation has broken into the list of the top 100 movies of all time, having overtaken a string of iconic releases. A Minecraft Movie broke records in its domestic debut, out-performing fellow video game adaptation The Super Mario Bros. Movie and fellow Warner Bros. hit Barbie. Both those titles grossed over $1.3 billion worldwide, and A Minecraft Movie can realistically hit the coveted $1 billion milestone as well, at the rate it's going.

The movie is passing the $350 million mark domestically — a feat that it accomplished in under 20 days. Most recently, it overtook The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers to become one of the 75 highest-grossing films in domestic box office history. On its third Tuesday, it overtook blockbusters such as American Sniper and Transformers: Dark of the Moon. After breaking into the top 100, A Minecraft Movie surpassed the lifetime domestic totals of movies such as Joker, Spider-Man 3, and Oppenheimer.

The ceiling is still unclear, but it's perhaps a given at this point that the movie ultimately passes the $400 million mark, and even the $500 million mark if things work out.

Directed by Jared Hess, who was previously best known for the cult comedy Napoleon Dynamite, the movie stars Jack Black and Jason Momoa in the central roles. With over $720 million worldwide, it's currently the second-biggest video game adaptation of all time, behind only Super Mario Bros. It's also the biggest Hollywood hit of the year, and the second-biggest overall, behind China's Ne Zha 2.

Produced on a reported budget of $150 million, A Minecraft Movie turned things around for W.B. this year, after the back-to-back under-performance of Mickey 17 and The Alto Knights. The studio continued this positive momentum with Ryan Coogler's Sinners, which debuted with a $48 million haul domestically last week.

Link:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/news/a-minecraft-movie-overtakes-the-lo...

This is what happens when you give the audience what they want and not what YOU WANT!

A Minecraft Moviehas become a massive box office hit for Warner Bros. Despite early criticism when the first trailers dropped, the video game adaptation has easily become one of the most-talked-about films this year due to its historic box office run so far. This includes the best opening weekend for a video game adaptation at $163 million, obliterating the previous record held by The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Even as it nears its third week in theaters, the box office run for A Minecraft Moviehas not been slowing down thanks to the cultural phenomena that have been key to its success.

A key factor to the film's success has been the viral trends behind many scenes in A Minecraft Movie, including the famous "Chicken Jockey!" This has led to explosive reactions from audiences, where attendees are screaming the line, throwing popcorn at the screen, and even bringing real chickens to their screenings. While the phenomenon has caused quite a discord about theater etiquette, it has nevertheless contributed to the movie's success and became a big win for Warner Bros. Now, the latest domestic box office has the adaptation landing on the major box office charts for the studio.

A Minecraft Movie Lands On The Studio's Top 20 Highest-Grossing Charts At The Domestic Box Office

It's Quickly Climbing Up The Ladder

A Minecraft Movie has a budget of $150 million, which was already recovered during its first weekend in theaters thanks to a $300 million global opening. Even though critical reception was mixed, leading to a 45% Rotten Tomatoes score, audiences clearly enjoyed the movie, as evident by the audience score of 87%. That has already helped the film leap to $500 million during its second weekend, which was also the first for any Hollywood movie this year. It's also the second-highest-grossing movie of 2025, behind the record-breaking Chinese movie Ne Zhe 2.

Link:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/news/a-minecraft-movie-domestic-box-off...

Podcasting has exploded into one of the most dynamic and accessible platforms for creators—but that also means the space is crowded. Whether you’ve been dreaming of starting a podcast or just recently got inspired, figuring out where to begin can be overwhelming. This webinar is designed to give you a clear starting point, helping you cut through the noise, understand the market, and take the first actionable steps toward building something truly engaging. Whether you’re a storyteller, educator, entertainer, or all three—this is your entry point into the world of podcasting.

Many aspiring podcasters assume that all it takes is a microphone and a good idea—but without structure, strategy, and a clear understanding of your audience, your podcast can easily get lost in the shuffle. One of the most common missteps is jumping in without a plan, leading to inconsistent episodes, low-quality audio, and poor listener retention. This webinar will walk you through the key steps—from developing your concept and plotting a season, to choosing the right equipment and building a platform strategy that works across TikTok, YouTube, and beyond. Success in podcasting isn’t just about talking—it’s about producing content with intention. Let’s make sure your voice gets heard.

Email edu@stage32.com with any questions!

You'll spend 30 minutes online with Mahtub Zare Mochanloo who is currently a Staff Writer on Season 2 of Netflix's hit comedy series NOBODY WANTS THIS. She is a first-generation Iranian-American born to a single, immigrant mother in Cincinnati, Ohio. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Vanderbilt University where she studied political science and financial economics. Mahtub previously participated in the Disney ABC TV Writing Program and before that, worked at BallenStudios as a Coordinating Producer.

So, what is the best way to pitch your project in a busy and frenetic environment like The Cannes Film Festival? What elements of your story or production should you focus on with such a short amount of time in a pitch? What exactly are producers and investors looking for in a pitch? How can your project stand out from the pack?

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Email edu@stage32.com with any questions! Learn more: https://www.stage32.com/education/products/perfecting-your-5-minute-pitc...

The Big Question is this: Why do they take so long to do sequels? Now that they are much older, the characters are so different looking now. Could this hurt them at the box office? John Wick on the other hand, pumped out their sequels relatively quickly. The Accountant premiered in Los Angeles on October 10, 2016, so, 9 years! Wish them the best. Thoughts?

It may have taken nearly a decade, but Ben Affleck is finally returning as Christian Wolff in "The Accountant 2." Despite the long gap between films, the sheer existence of this sequel suggests that there is money to be made here. 

This time around, it will be Amazon making that money, though, as the sequel shifted hands from Warner Bros. to the tech giant. In any event, the question we're left with is just how much money is there to be made? In a best-case scenario, quite a bit. But whether or not we're looking at a best-case scenario is still something of a coin toss.

As of this writing, "The Accountant 2" is expected to earn somewhere between $17 and $28 million when it opens domestically next weekend, per Box Office Theory. For comparison's sake, the first movie opened to $24.7 million in 2016 en route to $155.5 million globally against a $44 million budget. 

So, for the moment, we're more or less operating in the same ballpark. But we know that tracking can be off in certain cases in recent years. "A Minecraft Movie" recently more than doubled its tracking numbers with a massive $163 million opening, for example.

I'm by no means suggesting this film is going to do "Minecraft" numbers. I am, however, suggesting this could be a "John Wick: Chapter 2" situation. In 2014, the original "John Wick" was a decent hit, bringing in just shy of $88 million worldwide. 

But in 2017, "Chapter 2" opened to $30.4 million, more than double its predecessor, on its way to a $171.5 million global finish. Some version of that could be in the cards here.

Lots of folks caught up with "John Wick" at home on streaming/VOD/DVD, leading to a massive boost for the sequel. "The Accountant" has remained a streaming favorite for years now, topping Netflix's charts in 2024. Audiences have sustained love for this movie. That's the key here. It wasn't some "here today, gone tomorrow" hit. It demonstrated real staying power.

Read more: The 12 Best Navy SEAL Movies, Ranked

Is The Gap Between Movies Going To Help Or Hurt The Accountant 2?

Link:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/news/can-ben-affleck-s-the-accountant-2...