Record Breaking Box Office For January

According to figures released from Cinema Media, January was a record breaking month for Cinema. For the first weekend of January (Friday 5th – Sunday 7th) the top 15 films grossed a total of £7.2m, with the top three films (Seven, Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls, Babe) together taking more than £5.5m. The weekend total is 73% higher than the same weekend in 1995, and is also 8% higher than the previous record holding weekend of July 1993 when £6.6m was taken on the opening week of ‘Jurassic Park’.

Fiona Macleod of Cinema Media told MediaTel, “What is obviously good news is that the new record does not rely heavily on a single blockbuster, but on the success and appeal of a number of strong film titles. It is also worth remembering that the new record was set over the weekend of the largest National Lottery prize to date.”

Films released later this year that Cinema Media are confident of success include Jumanji starring Robin Williams, John Travolta in Broken Arrow and Get Shorty, Hugh Grant and Emma Thompson in Jane Austin’s Sense and Sensibility and Casino starring Robert De Niro, Sharon Stone and Joe Pesci.