‘The Brutalist’ Builds On Awards Buzz With Strong Limited Opening Buoyed By Letterboxd – Specialty Box Office

Brandy Corbet’s The Brutalist from A24 hammered its way into theaters this weekend with one of the best limited openings of 2024 (no. 3 after Anora and Kinds of Kindness). It sold out nearly 30 showtimes in New York and Los Angeles for a gross of $266.8k on four screens for a per screen opening of $66.7k.

The majority of audiences were under 35 and almost half heard about the film via Letterboxd as the online film-centric social network continues to be a defining force for indie word-of-mouth in the post-Covid era.

Corbet’s third feature centers on Adrien Brody’s László Toth, a Brutalist architect from Hungary attempting to rebuild his life in postwar America. Initially forced to toil in poverty, Toth soon wins a contract that will change the course of the next 30 years of his life.

The sweeping film premiered in Venice where Corbet won Best Director and has built throughout the fall season. Supporting cast includes Guy Pearce and Felicity Jones. It’s racked up numerous Best Film of the Year wins from critics’ groups including the New York Film Critics Circle, where it also won Best Actor for Brody. Nominated for 7 Golden Globes (Best Picture drama, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Supporting Actor).

Opening weekend included exclusive 70mm engagements and Imax preview screenings, the first in decades to be shot in VistaVision. Staying limited in NY and LA over the holidays before expanding nationwide in January. 

Pedro Almodovar’s The Room Next Door from Sony Pictures Classics opened to $107.4k on 6 screens in NY and LA for a per screen average of $17.9k. The Spanish director’s first film in English and winner of the top prize in Venice star Julianne Moore and Tilda Swinton as longtime friends who had lost touch but come together for a fraught reunion.

Los Frikis from Wayward/Range releasing, directed by Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz (The Peanut Butter Falcon), is looking at a $36.3k weekend on two screens in NY and LA for an $18.2k PSA. P&A spend was less than half a million.

Produced by Academy Award winners Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) and based on a true story, the film follows a small group of Cuban punk rockers in the 1990s who did the unimaginable to escape political oppression and poverty, using music and friendship as their lifeline. Stars Adria Arjona (Andor, Father of the Bride), Héctor Medina (Viva) and Eros de la Puente. The creative team includes Oscar-winning composer Steven Price (Gravity) and cinematographer Santiago Gonzalez (Black is King).

The Count Of Monte Cristo from Samuel Goldwyn Films, the extremely well-reviewed, Cannes-premiering French adaptation of the Alexandre Dumas classic that’s grossed close to $75 million internationally, opened on four screens Stateside to $17.5k. Will continue screening in NY and LA through the holidays followed by a limited national expansion on January 3, including special format showtimes in Imax and Dolby. Directed by Matthieu Delaporte and Alexandre de la Patellière and starring Pierre Niney as Edmond Dantes.

Noting Latvian animated Flow from Sideshow/Janus Films, holding in week 5 with an estimated gross of $234.7k on 199 screens and new cume of $1.78 million. This week the film was nominated for 3 Annie Awards: Best Feature-Independent, Best Direction, and Best Writing.