$100 million in domestic box office gross used to be the benchmark of success that separated giant hits from lesser films. Nielsen’s Gold Reel Awards celebrated films that reached that magic mark, but 2007 seems to be the last year the awards were given. Perhaps they saw the writing on the wall. These days a $100 million grosser isn’t what it used to be. A combination of rising ticket prices (including 3D movie prices), attendance patterns and other factors has long since made the $100 million barrier passé. Nowadays a film isn’t truly deserving of being considered a giant hit and pop culture phenom unless it grosses more than $200 million in domestic box office. A quick glance at films currently in release tells the story. Here’s domestic box office for films currently in release that have grossed more than $100 million as of Sunday March 14, 2010 (rounded to nearest million):
The $200 Million Club
$730 million – Avatar
$296 million – The Twilight Saga: New Moon
$253 million – The Blind Side
$218 million – Alvin And The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel
$209 million – Alice In Wonderland
$207 million – Sherlock Holmes
The $100 Million Club
$112 million – It’s Complicated
$109 million – Valentine’s Day
$108 million – Shutter Island
Alice In Wonderland still has legs and could make $300 million plus. As for the $100 million scragglers , they just don’t cut it anymore.
We’re living in a new age. Until recently it was rare for any movie to pass the $200 million mark. Not anymore. $100 million grosses have been left in the dust. A $200 million gross now separates the men from the boys. Don’t ask me what Alvin And The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel is doing in the $200 million club, but otherwise the list above matches the movies that seem to have captured the public’s imagination and become pop culture icons (Dear John aside).
Welcome to the new age of movie box office!
