Wildwood, Laika's stop-motion adaptation of Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis's 2011 novel, was one of the best-reviewed films in theaters this weekend and finished third. The Numbers lists $11.0 million from 2,942 theaters, about $3,739 per theater, behind Clayface and You Can See Everything.
The numbers describe a film that audiences and critics like, and that not many people have bought tickets for yet.
The Box Office
Per The Numbers' daily chart:
- Friday: $4.29 million.
- Saturday: $4.20 million, a 2% dip.
- Sunday: $2.51 million.
- Thursday previews: $1.33 million, listed separately from the $11.0 million weekend total.
Counting previews, Wikipedia shows about $12 million as of Sunday. Domestic distribution is handled by Fathom Entertainment, with FilmNation Entertainment handling international sales.
Pre-release tracking was cautious. Box Office Pro forecast $10 to $15 million, and other trackers pointed to $5 to $10 million. At $11.0 million, it landed inside the more optimistic range and above the lower ones.
The cost side is less clear. Outlets, including Comic Basics, estimate the budget at about $100 million. We could not find a figure confirmed by Laika, so treat that as an estimate. If it is close, $11 million is a modest start for a film that needs a long run.
The Reviews
Per Wikipedia:
- Rotten Tomatoes: 100% from 117 reviews, an average of 8.8 out of 10.
- Metacritic: 87 from 36 critics, "universal acclaim."
- CinemaScore: A.
A perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes does not predict a big opening. It tells you the audience that goes will mostly be happy. The A from opening-night audiences backs that up.
Travis Knight directed, from a screenplay by Chris Butler. It premiered at the BFI London Film Festival on October 11 and opened in North America on October 23.
What the Second Weekend Will Show
Three things to watch:
- The size of the drop. A strong grade can help a film fall less. For reference, Street Fighter fell 72% this weekend, and Verity fell 63% in its second weekend with a C+ from audiences.
- Weekday numbers. A family film's Monday to Thursday tells you more than the weekend does.
- The competition. Clayface is rated R, so the two are not aimed at the same viewers, but two new releases arrive on November 6.
In our own data, Wildwood's TMDb popularity score was 17.5 for several days and jumped to 140.2 in the first snapshot after release. That is partly a refresh catching up, not a sudden surge of interest.
Editorial Take: Wildwood is the clearest example this month of the gap between how good a film is rated and how many people have seen it. A 100% score and an A grade are an asset that can only pay off if people hear about it. Whether $11 million turns into a long run depends on word of mouth over the next two or three weekends, not on the opening number. If we were tracking one drop to judge it, it would be the second Friday.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much did Wildwood make opening weekend? $11.0 million from 2,942 theaters, per The Numbers, in third place. Wikipedia shows about $12 million including Thursday previews.
What are the Wildwood reviews? 100% on Rotten Tomatoes from 117 reviews and 87 on Metacritic from 36 critics, per Wikipedia. Both can change.
What is Wildwood's CinemaScore? A, per Wikipedia.
Who made Wildwood? Laika, the studio behind Kubo and the Two Strings. Travis Knight directed and Chris Butler wrote the screenplay.
Is Wildwood based on a book? Yes, the 2011 novel Wildwood by Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis.
How much did Wildwood cost? Outlets estimate about $100 million. We could not find a studio-confirmed figure.
Box office and review figures come from the sources linked above and can change. Popularity figures are Incoming's snapshots of TMDb's score. Tracking what arrives next across movies, TV, games, music and books at incoming.to.