'Sully' opens its Oscar campaign with a big box office debut
Box office success doesn't always equate to Oscar-worthiness, but Sully's estimated $35.5 million debut doesn't hurt.
It was enough for the based-on-truth drama to nab a dominant first place finish at the domestic box office this weekend. Nothing unexpected for a film directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Tom Hanks that chronicles real-life pilot Thomas "Sully" Sullenberger's life-saving "miracle on the Hudson" landing.
The big Sully box office was aided by IMAX sales, since the movie was custom-made for that large-screen format. Sully is actually the first film to be shot using only IMAX cameras.
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Psychological thriller and fellow newcomer When the Bough Breaks also showed well, finishing at #2 with an estimated $15 million. It has virtually no shot at surpassing Sully, but it's also not likely to be unseated -- it's ahead of Don't Breathe, at #3, which pulled in an estimated $8.2 million.
When the Bough Breaks looks to be on the same track as Don't Breathe, a modestly budgeted thriller that soared past its $10 million budget in just one weekend. Bough, too, is already a money-maker and both films are Sony releases, which the studio has to be happy about.
The summer blockbuster season is officially over, with Sully's release marking the start of the annual awards race. Snowden opens next week, with Queen of Katwe, Deepwater Horizon and Birth of a Nation following in subsequent weeks.
Topics Film
Adam Rosenberg is a Senior Games Reporter for Mashable, where he plays all the games. Every single one. From AAA blockbusters to indie darlings to mobile favorites and browser-based oddities, he consumes as much as he can, whenever he can.Adam brings more than a decade of experience working in the space to the Mashable Games team. He previously headed up all games coverage at Digital Trends, and prior to that was a long-time, full-time freelancer, writing for a diverse lineup of outlets that includes Rolling Stone, MTV, G4, Joystiq, IGN, Official Xbox Magazine, EGM, 1UP, UGO and others.Born and raised in the beautiful suburbs of New York, Adam has spent his life in and around the city. He's a New York University graduate with a double major in Journalism and Cinema Studios. He's also a certified audio engineer. Currently, Adam resides in Crown Heights with his dog and his partner's two cats. He's a lover of fine food, adorable animals, video games, all things geeky and shiny gadgets.
