In a show of significant early interest that could suggest a sizeable opening weekend, Knives Out had paid previews over the weekend and the critically-acclaimed whodunit posted stellar numbers from less than 1,000 locations.
The Rian Johnson-directed ensemble film grossed $2 million from 936 major and regional theaters over Friday and Saturday at 7:00 PM shows. These early paid previews indicate serious early interest in a movie more than when a studio screens a film for free and feasibly fills up seats in advance of its opening.
Knives Out has been building interest since it premiered at the Toronto Film Festival where early reviews essentially proclaimed it to be the crowd-pleaser of the year. The film currently sits with a 96% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes and some critics even think it can be an awards contender when it’s all said and done. Knives Out starts previews again on Tuesday and opens Wednesday in 3,300 theaters with box office tracking having it debuting with a $25 million+ launch over the 5-day Thanksgiving stretch. Many think that number will surge due to the positive reviews and an all-star cast which includes Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Christopher Plummer, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, Toni Collette, LaKeith Stanfield, Katherine Langford, and Jaeden Martell.
For comparisons to other paid preview weekends include DreamWorks Animation-Fandango preview of How to Train Your Dragon 3 ($2.6 million) earlier this year, Atom & Amazon’s WB preview of Aquaman ($2.9 million), Atom/Amazon’s previews of Sony’s Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle ($1.8 million) and Hotel Transylvania 3 ($1.3 million) and Warner Bros. 100 Dolby+500 premium Tuesday-Wednesday previews of A Star Is Born, which made $1.35 million before its start
Knives Out revolves around Plummer’s character who is found dead after his 85th birthday. As his heirs swirl his estate, the inquisitive and debonair Detective Benoit Blanc (Craig) tries to find out who killed him.
