TWISTERS blows right by the competition with a smashing opening weekend, debuting with $71 million from 4,151 theatres for Universal Pictures/Warner Bros. It gets 78% on the Tomatometer. By comparison, its 1996 predecessor opened with $41 million from 2,808 theatres.
DESPICABLE ME 4 gets $21.5 million from 4,112 theatres and by the end of the weekend it will have grossed $257 million domestically already over three weekends.
Third is INSIDE OUT 2 with $11 million from 3,625 theatres for Disney, taking it to $594 million.
LONGLEGS is in fourth this weekend with $10.2 million, taking it to a great $43 million over two weekends for NEON and Elevation Pictures.
Rounding things off is A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE with $5.5 million, taking its run to $127 million in North American for Paramount Pictures.
It’s another stellar week for DESPICABLE ME 4, making 2024 a Summer defined by Animated Feature blockbusters! It makes $41 million in its second week, from 4,449 theatres for Universal Pictures, a total $207.4 million grossed over two weeks.
LONGLEGS debuts huge in second with $23 million from 2,510 theatres for NEON/Elevation Pictures. It gets 87% on the Tomatometer, exceptional for a Horror. This is an opening weekend record for American distributor NEON – previous record for them was IMMACULATE, released earlier this year with $5 million in North America.
INSIDE OUT 2 continues to thrive in third with $20 million from 3,815 heatres for Disney, a tally of $571.8 million over five weeks.
Fourth is A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE with $12.1 million, taking it to $116.5 million over three weekends for Paramount Pictures.
FLY ME TO THE MOON gets fifth with $10 million in its debut, from 3,356 theatres for Sony Pictures. This Rom-Com-Dram starring Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum, gets 67% on the Tomatometer.
DESPICABLE ME 4 has a festive July 4th weekend debut, earnjng $72.4 million from 4,428 theaters Friday to Sunday for Universal Pictures. This gets 53% on the Tomatometer. Franchise best opening still goes to 2013’s DESPICABLE ME 2 with $83.5 million.
INSIDE OUT 2 continues it stellar run with $33.1 million from 3,760 theatres for Disney. Its domestic run now is at $536.9 million.
A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE is at $21.3 million in third, playing at 3,688 theaters for Paramount Pictures. This brings its two week run to $94.6 million.
MaXXXine debuts in fourth with $8 million from 2,450 theaters for A24/VVS Films. This finale in Ti West’s X Trilogy, gets 76% on the Tomatometer. This almost doubles X’s 2022 debut at $4.3 million.
BAD BOYS: RIDE OR DIE gets $6.7 million from 2,644 theatres for Sony Pictures, a total $177.5 million over five weeks.
It’s an incredible third week for INSIDE OUT 2, banking a stellar $60 million from 4,440 theatres for Disney. In its domestic run it has made $471 million already.
Debuting in second is A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE with $48.5 million from 3,707 theatres for Paramount Pictures. It gets 84% on the Tomatometer and places a close second behind the first film in the Franchise, which opened with $50 million in 2018.
Kevin Costner‘s HORIZON: AN AMERICAN SAGA CHAPTER 1, lands in third with $12 million from 3,334 theatres for Warner Bros. It gets 40% on the Tomatometer and will be followed by CHAPTER 2 in August.
BAD BOYS: RIDE OR DIE lands in fourth with $11 million, a tally of $163 million over four weeks for Sony Pictures.
At the bottom of the Top Five is KALKI 2898 AD with $6.5 million from 1,049 theatres for Prathyangira Cinemas and AA Creations.
INSIDE OUT 2 continues to turn it up, bringing-in a stellar $90 million in its second weekend out for Disney. This number is a record for best second week ever for an Animated Feature, taking it to $345 million already, domestically.
BAD BOYS: RIDE OR DIE continues to performing fantastically, taking $18 million in its third weekend for Sony Pictures, a tally of $146 million over three weekends.
Third goes to a debuting THE BIKERIDERS with $9.5 million from 2,665 theatres for Focus Features/Universal Pictures. This Jeff Nichols film starring Austin Butler and Jodie Comer, gets 82% on the Tomatometer.
In fourth is THE GARFIELD MOVIE with $4 million, taking it to $85 million over five weekends for Sony Pictures.
Rounding things off is THE KINGDOM OF THE PLANET OF THE APES with $3.7 million, a total domestic run of $165 million for 20th Century Studios.
INSIDE OUT 2 turns its competition upside down with a smashing opening of $155 million from 4,440 theatres for Disney. This makes it the second highest opening for an Animated Feature behind the studio’s Incredibles 2 which debuted with $182.6 million. This bests its predecessor from 2015, which opened with $90 million. Critics also agree this is sensational, giving it 92% on the Tomatometer.
Second is BAD BOYS: RIDE OR DIE with a great second weekend of $28 million from 3,885 theatres for Sony Pictures. This brings it to $107 million domestically.
Third up is KINGDOM OF THE PLANET OF THE APES with $4.5 million for 20th Century Studios, a run now of $157 million.
Fourth is THE GARFIELD MOVIE with $4.1 million, a tally of $77.6 million for Sony Pictures.
Rounding it all off is IF with $3.3 million, suprassing $100 million now in its fifth weekend for Paramount Pictures.
The 2024 Inside Out 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival has revealed the Award winners for the 34th edition of the festival, with $22,500 in prizes handed out to 2SLGBTQ+ filmmakers. Top honours went to Laurie Townshend’s A Mother Apart, which received three awards including Best First Feature and Best Canadian Feature juried awards as well as the Audience Award for Best Documentary; while Susie Yankou’s Sisters received the Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature, and Simon Gualtieri’s Friend of a Friend (Ami d’ami) won the Best Canadian Short Film.
The festival is also delighted to announce Andrew Chappelle’s upcoming project, I’m Gonna Kill You, won the annual “Pitch, Please!” contest. The “Pitch, Please!” competition took place in person on June 1 with competitors from across the globe presenting a short, two-minute pitch to a jury and audience. Prizes awarded to the winner include a cash production grant of $5,000 sponsored by Netflix.
The 2024 edition of Inside Out took place in Toronto at TIFF Lightbox from May 24 to June 1 and continues virtually to June 5. The festival showcased 106 films from 25 countries, including 30 feature films and 5 world premieres. This year Inside Out opened with Amazon MGM Studio’s My Old Ass – Megan Park’s sophomore feature, starring Aubrey Plaza, Maisy Stella and Maddie Ziegler, and closed with the Canadian premiere of Karen Knox’s sophomore feature, We Forgot To Break Up, a love letter to Toronto’s indie music scene.
The 2024 award winners are:
CANADIAN JURIED AWARDS
The jurors for the 2024 Canadian jury were Syriah Bailey, Beth Warrian, and Jay Wu.
Emerging Canadian Artist
Hayley Morin – I’ll Tell You When I’m Ready
$5,000 cash prize presented to an early career Canadian filmmaker.
Sponsored by RBC Royal Bank
Best Canadian Feature
A Mother Apart – Laurie Townshend
$3,000 cash award presented to a Canadian artist for their feature-length narrative or documentary film.
Sponsored by DGC National
Best Canadian Short
Friend of a Friend (Ami d’ami) – Simon Gualtieri
$2,000 cash award presented to a Canadian filmmaker for their short-form narrative or documentary film.
Sponsored by Warner Brothers Discovery
INTERNATIONAL JURIED AWARDS
Sponsored by NBC Universal
The jurors for the 2024 International jury were Loveleen Kaur, V.T. Nayani, and Alex Schmider.
Best First Feature
A Mother Apart – Laurie Townshend
$3,000 cash award presented to the International Jury’s selection for best film by a first-time feature director.
AUDIENCE AWARDS
Sponsored by Paramount+
Best Narrative Feature
Sisters – Susie Yankou
$2,500 cash award presented to the audience’s favourite feature-length film.
Best Documentary Feature
A Mother Apart – Laurie Townshend
$2,500 cash award presented to the audience’s favourite feature-length documentary film.
Best Short
The History of the Carabiner – Gianna Mazzeo
$1,000 cash award presented to the audience’s favourite film within a shorts program.
LEADERSHIP CIRCLE PRIZE FOR OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE
Lou Goossens – Young Hearts
$1,000 cash award presented by the Leadership Circle for the most outstanding performance by an actor in a feature-length narrative film.
PITCH, PLEASE!
Sponsored by Netflix
The jurors for the 2024 jury were Sarah Barzak, Lindsay Blair Goeldner, and Dylan Mitro.
I’m Gonna Kill You – Andrew Chappelle
$5,000 production grant presented to the filmmaker with the best two-minute pitch at the Pitch, Please! competition.
The INSIDE OUT 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival is back on now till June 1, 2024 at TIFF Lightbox and online! Now in its 34th edition, the Festival boasts 106 films from 25 countries this year, including several exciting titles like opening night selection MY OLD ASS, starring Aubrey Plaza which just premiered at Sundance to raves; SPARK starring The Polititian‘s Theo Germaine and decorated Olympian-turned-Actor Danell Levya; CORA BORA starring Hacks’ Megan Stalter; Series STORIES FROM MY GAY GRANDPARENTS; and a pair of Best Friend Comedies in SISTERS and EXTREMELY UNIQUE DYNAMIC. WE FORGOT TO BREAK UP is the closing night selection, centering on a band setting out to ignite a musical revolution.
It was a pure delight seeing some of the incredible talent behind some of this year’s titles at the Festival on the colourful carpet last night at TIFF Lightbox, as part of Opening Night celebrations.
We chat with the following about their bonding experiences and what they hope audiences will take away from their productions:
•Theo Germaine and Danell Levya of SPARK
•Harrison Xu and Ivan Leung of EXTREMELY UNIQUE DYNAMIC
•Sarah Khasrovi and Kausar Mohammed of SISTERS
•Scott Farley, Jane Moffatt, James Kall, Alexander Nunez and Tricia Black of STORIES FROM MY GAY GRANDPARENTS
More on tickets and showtimes here.
(Photo/video credit: Mr. Will Wong)
The 34th edition of the INSIDE OUT 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival is ready to kick-off May 24, 2024, running through June 1, 2024 at TIFF Bell Lightbox and online in Ontario as well! The Festival boasts innovative work from 2SLGBTQ+ filmmakers from across the globe, showcasing 106 films from 25 countries, including 30 feature films and 5 world premieres.
The opening night selection at the Festival this year is Toronto’s Megan Park‘s MY OLD ASS which premiered to raves at SXSW ’24. The Film centering on a young woman who’s visited by a future version of herself, warning her not to fall in love, stars Aubrey Plaza, Maisy Stella and Maddie Ziegler, who wowed us with this year’s BLOODY HELL.
Closing off the Festival is WE FORGOT TO BREAK UP which is about a band of misfits who ditch their small town to chase their dreams as indie rock gods in the big city. Lane Webber, Daniel Gravell, June Laporte, Hallea Jones and Jordan Dawson star in this latest from Director Karen Knox.
Harrison Xu (Shameless, American Horror Stories), Ivan Leung (The Tender Bar) and Katherine Dudas co-write and co-direct this meta Stoner Buddy Comedy which is set around a pair of childhood friends, Xu and Leung, playing fictionalized versions of themselves. Their friendship reaches a crossroads as Xu is ready to move back to Canada from L.A. and some unresolved issues in their friendship rise to the surface. Leung has hidden his sexuality from Xu all along and in a way to confront the matter, he plays out his “coming out” in a meta film they are making about their own lives and friendship.
As their filming picks up momentum, the complex emotions arise until the duo have to confront the deeper underlying issue in their friendship – that Leung never felt safe to be his true authentic self in their friendship, and Xu coming to the realization his own best friend didn’t feel safe doing this. From here, the Comedy transcends its Stoner Comedy premise and becomes something more meaningful. Certainly entertaining enough in its innovative storytelling.
EXTREMELY UNIQUE DYNAMIC gets its international Premiere at 2024 Inside Out 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival on Saturday, May 25, 2024 7 PM at TIFF Lightbox.
I love, love, love Megan Stalter (Hacks) and what a treat it was seeing her latest Short at INSIDE OUT ’24 as part of the SHORTS: SHOW STOPPER lineup. The Funnywoman plays Siobhan, embody all the confidence and slay of a Gen-Xer. She’s looking for a job and with the help of her friend Gary (Kanoa Goo) she’s referred over to his boss (heard only, played by Rainn Wilson). Her anxiety gets the best of her and she leaves him a rambling, winded, inappropriate voice message which could effectively sabotage her. Until she sneaks into his office to try to delete the voice message!
A Comedy of errors in the best way. Love seeing Stalter doing what she does best, clumsy, awkward Comedy. Fun! ILY, BYE is one of eight Shorts playing May 26, 2024 4:30 pm at TIFF Lightbox 3.
Justin Waldman (@DubsReviews) also shares his thoughts on a couple key titles at the Festival!
Family is a complicated thing, and it gets even more complicated when it comes to chosen family and family one never knew they had. With Susie Yankou’s directorial debut capturing the very essence of this dilemma beautifully with their Feature, Sisters. Equal parts hilarious, heartwarming, and upsetting, Sisters takes the dynamic of Broad City to new heights and gives audiences something they can get behind, regardless of their biological or chosen family situation.
The Movie focuses on Lou (Susie Yankou) and Esther (Sarah Khasrovi), as they’re best friends. They are chosen sisters, and do practically everything together, and could be argued that they share a brain, that is how close they are. Their relationship with their parents is uneasy at best, but when their father passes away, they discover he had another daughter with another woman, named Priya (Kausar Mohammed) which creates a riff between Lou and Esther. Trying to navigate their new biological sister and their chosen sister as old and new relationships get tested and their limits get pushed. Sisters is a wonderfully charming tale about family, whether they’re blood or not and how we must remember the ones who’ve always been there for us.
Sisters works so well because Susie Yankou manages to beautifully craft the story and act so effortlessly in the story they wrote, directed, and star in. With the juxtaposition of Sarah Khasrovi, whose character never sees the wrong they’re doing until its nearly too late perfectly captures the blindness people suffer when humans face tragedy, despite their relationships. As well Kausar Mohammed brings together this trifecta of brilliance in the performances which is sure to capture the audience and resonate with them long past the credits. Sisters is equally hilarious as it is heartwarming.
Sisters screens at the 2024 Inside Out 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival on May 25th at 6:45 pm at the TIFF Lightbox.
Nicholas Giurichich is a name that should be watched out for in the near future, in his feature directorial debut there is tons of promise that gets mostly delivered on as he tackles both pen and paper and the camera in his first feature. Doing a time lapse movie is always a dangerous choice, as there are so many classic films that deal with time travel and time loops, or time manipulation in general that are well regarded and the comparisons are inevitable. While Giurichich brings his own take on the story, it is one that focuses on love and the complications that come with the territory – including the games people play when it comes to love.
The Movie focuses on Aaron (Theo Germaine) who is a hopeless romantic, as they have a meet and greet with a mysterious stranger, Trevor (Danell Leyva) and things get off to a hot and steamy start. It appears to be a hot game of cat and mouse scavenger hunt essentially, and one thing leads to another and a streamy sexual encounter is the catalyst of this Groundhog Day-esque hopelessly Romantic Comedy. However, it is not as simple as hoping to break the circle of repeat may not entirely be Aaron’s decision as Dani (Vico Ortiz) tries to convince Aaron this is not healthy, and should break things off instead of continuing this vicious cycle, even if their motive is not the well-intentioned.
Spark works because the performances from all three actors, of Theo Germaine, Danell Leyva and Vico Ortiz are all exceptional. They create such an engaging feel in the Film and a world to get sucked into for the audience to fall in love with and have their hearts broken over. Nicholas Giuricich crafts such a unique story that transcends emotion and makes the audience examine loss, grief, love, and lust in a new perspective.
Spark screens at the 2024 Inside Out 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival on May 24th at 9:30 pm at the TIFF Lightbox.
I don’t think anyone will be questioning the star status of Megan Stalter after her terrific performance in Hannah Pearl Utt’s Cora Bora where she plays the titular character. While the Movie itself needs a little more umph from the rest of the Cast (not their performances but more in their development and creation of characters) Megan is truly the glue that holds the Film together and realizes not everything is as it seems. The Movie is truly a masterclass in realizing ones self, and exploration on how to fix ourselves even if we don’t see it as a necessity. Cora Bora asks the hard questions, and ends with hilarious results.
Cora (Megan Statler) is in a long distance open relationship with her girlfriend, Justine (Jojo T Gibbs) but they haven’t seen each other in years. Love can withstand all, but an open long distance relationship is clearly a lot to overcome, and when Cora doesn’t seem too keen to return to their home for Justine’s graduation until she realizes she needs Justine, she is in for a rude awakening. Refusing to believe that Riley (Ayden Mayeri) is Justine’s new girlfriend, and despite seemingly moving on from Cora, there are still lingering feelings and some chaotic antics ensue.
With a Supporting Cast behind Megan Stalter, she shines throughout the chaos and insanity that unfolds in Cora Bora, but unfortunately she is the only one who seems to have fleshed out her character enough to create a character for the audience to get behind. However, her humour and presence carries the film and the audience feels for Cora and feels for her overall journey, even though she is the cause and effect of most of the chaos that is created overall. Cora Bora shines because of its star and creates an unholy whirlwind of madness, that only Megan Stalter can truly deliver on.
Cora Bora screens at 2024 Inside Out 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival on May 31st at TIFF Lightbox at 6:45 pm.
More here on schedule and tickets.
Walt Disney Studios Canada x Mr. Will are thrilled to give readres a chance to win passes to an Advance Screening of Disney & Pixar‘s INSIDE OUT 2!
Screening Details
Toronto
Wednesday, June 12
7:00pm
Cineplex Cinemas Queensway
1025 The Queensway, Etobicoke, ON M8Z 6C7
Vancouver
Wednesday, June 12
7:00pm
Scotiabank Theatre
900 Burrard St, Vancouver, BC V6Z 3G5
Calgary
Wednesday, June 12
7:00pm
Scotiabank Theatre Chinook
6455 Macleod Trail SW, Calgary, AB T2H 0K4, Canada
Edmonton
Wednesday, June 12
7:00pm
Scotiabank Theatre Edmonton
8882 170 St NW #3030, Edmonton, AB T5T 4M2, Canada
Montreal (ENG)
Wednesday, June 12
7:00pm
Cinéma Cineplex Forum
2313 Saint-Catherine St W #101, Montreal, Quebec H3H 1N2
SYNOPSIS:
Disney and Pixar’s “Inside Out 2” returns to the mind of newly minted teenager Riley just as Headquarters is undergoing a sudden demolition to make room for something entirely unexpected: new Emotions. Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust, who’ve long been running a successful operation by all accounts, aren’t sure how to feel when Anxiety, Envy, Ennui and Embarrassment show up. “Inside Out 2” releases only in theatres June 14, 2024.
To enter for a chance to win, click “like” on this Post on MR. WILL ON FACEBOOK, IG or X! Indicate in the comments your city and tag a friend in the comments who you’d like to bring. Enter as many times as you like.
Rules and regulations here.
Walt Disney Studios Canada release Disney & Pixar’s INSIDE OUT 2 in theatres Friday, June 14, 2024.
(Photo/video credit: Walt Disney Studios Canada)
For advertising opportunites please contact mrwill@mrwillwong.com