In January, sharknado was nearing the end of its theatrical run, with only a few cinemas still showing it.
After collecting an additional $13 million, its box office potential was exhausted, and it was estimated to reach a final box office of $115 million.
Since it was released in December, its box office ranking was attributed to 2002, currently placing 18th on the North American annual box office chart, swimming into the top 20 in an unexpected way.
It is expected to earn another two to three tens of millions of dollars when it is released in Europe, Australia, Africa, and other regions in a while.
As for Asia, they are not quite receptive to this type of film yet, so it won't be released there.
At the same time, the Oscar nominations were announced, with films such as Gangs of New York, About Schmidt, the hours, the pianist, chicago, spider-man, and the lord of the rings all receiving nominations.
The announcement of nominations actually no longer affected the box office of most of these films, only influencing subsequent disc sales and copyright sales.
But it wasn't absolute; for example, the hours and chicago were still in wide release and were hoping for a boost in box office after the nominations were announced.
For a film like the hours, which brought together three Oscar-winning actresses – Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore, and Meryl Streep – the cast was undeniably strong, but its opening weekend box office was a paltry $330,000.
You read that right, it was only $330,000, not even breaking a million. Even with subsequent improvements, it was still far from ideal, and its North American box office hasn't even broken $20 million yet. The producers were just waiting for this wave to recoup some losses.
Alongside the announcement of the Oscar nominations, the media reviews for saw were also released, with most critics giving positive reviews and recommending it.
Film Magazine: saw is one of the top three horror films I've seen in recent years. Unlike other horror films, it tells a profound story, and its script's concept is a cut above. I strongly recommend watching it until the end; you'll find a surprise similar to The Others!
chicago Tribune: I must say, saw gave me a surprise. Before walking into the cinema, I didn't have high hopes. Its tagline, 'Want to understand the meaning of life? Want to truly live?', I took as a joke. But when I walked out of the cinema, I must tell you, to understand the meaning of life, you must watch this film carefully.
The Independent: A mediocre plot, saw uses a seemingly profound gimmick to lure audiences into the cinema, but its flaws are simply too many. Perhaps during the first viewing, the gore and thrilling scenes will make you forget to think, but once you come to your senses, you'll realize you've been made a fool of. This is just a mediocre work.
Fox News: This is an amazing work. James Wan and Leigh Whannell, these two young men, have given 2003's horror films a great start. When watching this film, I hope you don't focus too much on the gore and torture devices, but rather think more about its concept. I am very sure that MGM has found a treasure this time, and saw's box office will surely give this lion a feast!
The media's reviews this time were completely opposite to those for sharknado, and not only did traditional media give praise, but the internet was also filled with accolades.
On IMDb, some bold fans have even prematurely crowned saw as the best horror film of 2003.
Good word-of-mouth naturally drove more people into cinemas, and saw's attendance rate increased daily.
Amidst a chorus of praise, saw's opening weekend box office was released, taking in $33 million in 3 days. After deducting the $5 million production cost and $10 million marketing cost, it had almost broken even.
Cooper Family.
Dad, beaming, took out a bottle of red wine. He had been on a roll lately.
First, red dragon had a strong opening at the box office, barbershop also made a profit, and then sharknado gave him a surprise.
Even saw's box office looked like a big hit, plus die another day would also earn a profit.
The money earned was one aspect, but the sense of vindication was another. Continuous success allowed Harry Cooper to hold his head high among his peers.
Gulp, gulp.
Red wine filled the glasses, but it was a shame Joshua wasn't there. Recently, the 49ers' offensive line had been injured and was recovering.
So he became a regular starter, and the training intensity was high, but Joshua had to seize this opportunity and hadn't been home for a while.
"Thank you, Lord, for giving us food and keeping us alive. Amen!"
Closing her eyes and clasping her hands, Mom finished her pre-meal prayer. She was an open-minded believer, never demanding that her family pray with her, and even going to church by herself.
"Eric, where did you dig up this gold called saw? When you asked me to approve $10 million for promotion, honestly, I thought it would be a waste, but it really gave me a big surprise!"
Cutting a tender piece of beef and putting it in his mouth, Eric chewed slowly.
"Dad, you should attend more internal screenings. Chen Xing asked several times, but you're always so busy."
Harry Cooper's tone was somewhat helpless: "Haven't I given you full authority over the film matters? Frankly, I was very worried at first, but now I can completely rest assured."
"One success can be called a coincidence, two as well, but every time, it can only mean you were born for this line of work."
"When we get the box office share in a month or two, it will greatly alleviate MGM's finances."
Eric hadn't really paid much attention to financial matters. They had paid Kirk Kerkorian $2 billion in one go, but they still held $1.1 billion in liquid assets.
The company hadn't launched many projects recently, and the only big one was transformers. Although buying copyrights and such cost a lot, Eric thought they shouldn't be short on cash, but Dad's expression seemed to suggest otherwise.
"Dad, is there a problem with the company's finances?"
"Not at the moment, but aren't we acquiring Hasbro's stock? The stock price has risen quite a bit, and continuing to buy will require more capital. You couldn't find me because I was trying to raise money."
"What's the current stock price?"
"$1 per share. On the day the film's male and female leads were announced, Hasbro's stock price rose another 7%. Of course, I think the bigger reason is Weta Digital."
Eric nodded: "I remember we acquired 5% of the shares some time ago. What about now?"
Harry Cooper held up three fingers: "8%. During this period, I secretly acquired another 3% stake, but the cost was $300 million. Now MGM has $300 million tied up in the stock market."
"And besides MGM, there are clearly others secretly acquiring Hasbro's stock. The stock price has been rising recently, and the financial pressure is high if we want to continue buying!"
"The Hassenfeld family?"
"Certainly the Hassenfelds, after all, only our two families knew the inside information beforehand, but after the news was announced, there might be other participants."
Eric slowly tapped the table. Mom gently patted his hand: "Eric, that's rude!"
"Sorry!"
"Dad, since good news can make Hasbro's stock price rise, how much do you think bad news could make it fall?"
After a moment of contemplation, Eric narrowed his eyes, his tone chilling.
"What?"
"If the market believes the transformers movie will fail, do you think Hasbro's stock price will fall? How much can it fall?"
Dad hesitated for a moment: "It will most likely return to its starting point, but if a selling frenzy forms, it's not impossible for it to continue to fall, but not by much, after all, Hasbro is essentially a toy company."
"Roughly, that's what I think too, Dad. Prepare to sell our shares. It's time to give them a little shock!"