All in all, it’s been a rough summer for movie theaters. According to The Hollywood Reporter, this season’s box office is “pacing 12.4 percent behind last year” and it’s predicted that it may be the “first time since 2007 [that box office numbers don’t] clear the $4 billion threshold.” Despite these overall dismal projections, one thing has consistently continued to shine and sell: female-centric films.
“Wonder Woman” is, without a doubt, the most successful film of the summer. As we’ve previously reported, Patty Jenkins’ superheroine film has surpassed the domestic $400 million mark and continues to reign over both summer blockbusters “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” and “Spider-Man: Homecoming.” Its international takeaway of over $800 million has designated Jenkins as the top-grossing solo female director of all time.
Though an exciting anomaly in its own right, “Wonder Woman” is not the only female-centric winner of the summer. In fact, films released as early as May arguably established this trend. Stella Meghie’s teen romance “Everything, Everything” broke even — and then some — during its opening weekend. According to Box Office Mojo, this $10 million film has now grossed just over $34 million.
“Everything, Everything” was recently surpassed by “Girls Trip” as the highest grossing domestic film about women of color this year. A $19 million comedy written by Tracy Oliver and Kenya Barris, “Girls Trip” follows four best friends (Regina Hall, Queen Latifah, Tiffany Haddish, and Jada Pinkett Smith) on a weekend trip to New Orleans. Per Variety, it had the “largest opening of any live-action comedy this year,” and it has now grossed almost $104 million.
This seasons’s shark survival thriller, “47 Meters Down,” has also enjoyed drastically successful returns. As Variety reports, the Mandy Moore and Claire Holt-starrer was originally slated for a DVD release. For a multitude of reasons, distributor Fyzz Facility decided to give the $5.5 million film a theatrical route, and it more than paid off. So far, the film has earned over $43 million at the domestic box office. That’s over $4 million more than Guy Ritchie’s “King Arthur: Legend of the Sword,” which cost $175 million to make.
Summer’s other thriller, “Annabelle: Creation” took first place during its opening weekend. The fourth installment in the “Conjuring” series beat Christopher Nolan’s war drama “Dunkirk” by over $25 million despite a similar theater count. It has now grossed over $64 million domestically.
The indie circuit has been no different. According to Deadline, Sofia Coppola’s “The Beguiled” — which earned her Best Director at Cannes — just surpassed $10 million domestically. This makes it “one of the only summer specialities to reach the eight-figure threshold.” July’s rom-com “The Big Sick,” which is co-written by Emily V. Gordon, has also reached this milestone.
As the summer comes to a close, female-led summer specialties continue to dominate. “Ingrid Goes West,” a hyper-millennial dramedy starring Aubrey Plaza (“Parks and Recreation”) and Elizabeth Olsen (“Captain America: Civil War”), opened with “$141,216 from just three screens.” It has now grossed roughly $438,700 across 26 theaters.
“Patti Cake$” — the second-highest movie buy at this year’s Sundance Film Festival — had “the highest absolute gross among new specialities this weekend,” Deadline reports. This drama following a female rapper is expected to draw even more crowds as its theatrical run expands over the coming weeks.
The box office numbers speak for themselves. Even in the roughest of summers, female-led content continues to prove its worth where others fall short. This can only mean one thing: audiences like what they’re seeing onscreen and demand more of it. It’s no accident that this year’s box office leaders — “Beauty and the Beast” at $504 million and “Wonder Woman following close behind — are female-led.
The industry itself therefore needs to catch up and accept these clues at face value. Take it from us: If you bet on women, you’ll win every time.
