Box office analysts eagerly anticipated the release of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour concert film, predicting blockbuster-level numbers for its opening weekend. Taylor Swift didn’t disappoint.
While the pop sensation fell just short of the coveted $100 million benchmark, her domestic ticket sales soared to over $95 million, as confirmed by AMC Entertainment, the film’s distributor.
AMC Entertainment provided a range of $95 million to $97 million for the film’s opening weekend, and an official figure is expected to be released on Monday after all ticket sales have been tallied.
Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at BoxOffice.com, commented on the film’s debut, saying, “The film’s debut is an undeniable tentpole-level success despite the challenges of predicting what it might achieve. Swift, her fans, and theatrical exhibition should all be celebrating the results.”
Swift’s concert film has already broken records, making it the highest-grossing concert film release domestically. It surpassed Justin Bieber’s “Never Say Never,” which brought in $73 million during its theatrical run in 2011, all in a single weekend. It also easily outperformed Miley Cyrus’s “Best of Both Worlds,” which had an opening of $31.1 million back in 2008.
What’s more, Swift’s Eras Tour film holds the distinction of being the widest-released concert film in history, premiering in over 3,850 domestic locations during its debut.
Monday’s official tally will reveal if Taylor Swift managed to achieve the highest October opening, currently held by 2019’s “The Joker” ($96.2 million), and whether it ranks as the sixth or seventh-highest opening of 2023. Disney’s “The Little Mermaid” achieved $95.6 million when it opened in May.
There is also the possibility that positive word of mouth and Swift’s dedicated fan base could drive more moviegoers to theaters on Sunday, inching closer to the $100 million mark.
As Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore, pointed out, “Swift’s excitement-inducing reputation and the unprecedented nature of the release led to a massive outpouring of interest in the film, certainly contributing to some overblown expectations of a $100 million plus weekend. But that should not detract from the enormity of this box office achievement.”
Data from EntTelligence revealed that a remarkable 60% of tickets for the weekend were purchased in advance, one of the highest rates the movie data firm has ever recorded. Typically, major tentpole releases see 40% of tickets sold in advance.
Over the weekend, an estimated 4.8 million people attended the film, with an average ticket price of $20.75. Nearly 80% of the audience was female.
While international box office figures were not immediately available on Sunday, the strong domestic opening has raised expectations for the film to potentially surpass the $262.5 million global earnings of “Michael Jackson’s This Is It” during its limited theater run.
Swift’s film has weekend-only showings in theaters, making comparisons to other releases challenging in the coming weeks, but weekend-to-weekend figures will offer valuable insights.
Dergarabedian concluded, “The question now is what the Swift film will do for an encore in the coming days and weeks. Reports of a spectacular in-theater experience bode well for the long-term success of the film and virtually guarantee it will easily cross the $100 million mark in the domestic market.”
Disclaimer: The views, suggestions, and opinions expressed here are the sole responsibility of the experts. No Nook Explorer journalist was involved in the writing and production of this article.