{"id":187668,"date":"2023-01-16T00:37:59","date_gmt":"2023-01-16T00:37:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/how-tom-hanks-a-man-called-otto-beat-the-box-office-odds\/"},"modified":"2023-01-16T00:37:59","modified_gmt":"2023-01-16T00:37:59","slug":"how-tom-hanks-a-man-called-otto-beat-the-box-office-odds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/how-tom-hanks-a-man-called-otto-beat-the-box-office-odds\/","title":{"rendered":"How Tom Hanks’ ‘A Man Called Otto’ Beat the Box Office Odds"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\tWho says adults aren’t going to the movies? <\/p>\n

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\tWell, the numbers don’t exactly lie: Movies aimed at older audiences have majorly struggled at the box office in COVID times. For the most part, they aren’t<\/em> going to the movies. But Sony’s \u201cA Man Called Otto,\u201d a heartfelt drama starring Tom Hanks as a cranky widower, has seemingly defied the odds with its $12.6 million debut from 3,802 North American theaters. It’s expected to reach $15 million through the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday frame, bringing its domestic tally to $21.2 million after playing in limited release for two weeks. That’s a better-than-expected result, at least in the pandemic era.<\/p>\n

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\tWill the $50 million-budgeted \u201cOtto\u201d remain a theatrical draw throughout the rest of winter? That’s far from a forgone conclusion. But already, box office watchers are feeling optimistic about the latest big-screen adventure from Hanks.<\/p>\n

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\tDavid A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research, categorized the opening weekend as \u201cabove average\u201d for the genre. \u201cThis is a very good opening for a character-driven comedy drama, with an excellent turnout by older moviegoers,\u201d he says. \u201cWhen these kinds of movies connect, they can go on a run \u2014 and that’s starting to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\tOnly a handful of adult-driven films, such as \u201cWhere the Crawdads Sing\u201d ($17 million in its debut), \u201cElvis\u201d ($31 million in its debut), \u201cThe Woman King\u201d ($19 million in its debut) and \u201c Don’t Worry Darling\u201d ($19.3 million in its debut), have connected at the box office since March 2020.<\/p>\n

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\tThat reality has resulted in a lower bar for success than Hanks is used to reaching at the box office. In another era, the actor’s name \u2014 in movies ranging from wars stories like \u201cSaving Private Ryan\u201d and \u201cBridge of Spies,\u201d touching dramas like \u201cForrest Gump\u201d and \u201cPhiladelphia,\u201d romantic comedies including \u201cSleepless in Seattle\u201d and \u201cYou ‘ve Got Mail,\u201d the animated \u201cToy Story\u201d franchise and dozens of other memorable films in between \u2014 meant hundreds of millions in global box office returns. Today, it’s hard to imagine a studio greenlighting a quirkier adventure like \u201cForrest Gump,\u201d much less watching its ticket sales climb to $678 million globally. Indeed, times and tastes have changed dramatically. <\/p>\n

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\tSo, given the constraints facing a movie like \u201cOtto,\u201d Exhibitor Relations analyst Jeff Bock believes it \u201cwon the adult-skewing lotto.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\t\u201cLooking back, Sony probably left money on the table. With ‘Babylon’ bombing, there was certainly room for an adult-skewing dramedy over the holiday frame,\u201d says Bock, referring to Paramount’s big-budget Hollywood epic that flailed spectacularly at Christmastime, earning just $14 million to date. \u201cThat said, audiences will usually show up when a well received movie \u2014 especially in a genre that has been overlooked for far too long \u2014 opens in a sluggish marketplace.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\tSony initially planned to release \u201cA Man Called Otto\u201d nationwide around Christmas, which is traditionally a prime slot for feel-good films. But the studio changed its mind a few times, moving its debut up to Dec. 14 before scrapping the nationwide start entirely. Instead, \u201cOtto\u201d opened in select theaters on Dec. 30 before expanding its footprint across the country on Jan. 13. By waiting until January, a slower time at the box office, the movie avoided getting lost in the crush of holiday releases. <\/p>\n

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\tWith its platform release, \u201cOtto\u201d became one of the rare pandemic-era films aimed at sustaining adult audiences to effectively sustain momentum. Despite positive reviews and potential Oscar glory, Steven Spielberg’s coming-of-age story \u201cThe Fabelmans,\u201d the Cate Blanchett-led psychodrama \u201cT\u00e1r\u201d and Sarah Polley’s timely parable \u201cWomen Talking\u201d \u2014 none of which grossed more than $15 million at the domestic box office \u2014 were some recent movies that failed to bring older audiences (or any at all) to theaters.<\/p>\n

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\tSony took a non-traditional approach to the crowd-pleasing \u201cOtto,\u201d which is more mainstream and less of a prestige arthouse play. The studio still opened the film in the traditional four venues in New York City and Los Angeles, which is customary for platform releases. But in its second weekend, Sony heavily concentrated on cinemas in the heartland as it brought the film to 637 venues, believing the heartfelt story would resonate deeply across the country, not just on the coasts. By that Sunday, \u201cOtto\u201d had earned $3.76 million and placed fourth on domestic box office charts despite playing in significantly fewer theaters than its competitors. Ticket sales were especially strong in Dallas, Chicago, Phoenix, Salt Like City, as well as Columbus, Minneapolis, Nashville and Milwaukee. <\/p>\n

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\t\u201cIt played throughout the country, a reflection of how universally appealing Tom Hanks is as a star,\u201d says Comscore analyst Paul Dergarabedian. \u201cAnd the tone of the movie has great appeal for audiences across the board.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\tAudiences were fonder of the movie compared to reviewers, resulting in an \u201cA\u201d CinemaScore from ticket buyers and a 68% average from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. <\/p>\n

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\tMarc Forster directed \u201cA Man Called Otto,\u201d the second adaptation of Fredrik Backman’s 2012 novel \u201cA Man Called Ove\u201d following the 2015 Swedish film of the same name. Hanks plays Otto Anderson, a grump who falls into a depression after his wife dies. But his attitude begins to turn around after he strikes up an unlikely and life-changing friendship with a young family that moves in next door. SF Studios and TSG co-financed the film.<\/p>\n

\n\tVariety’s<\/em> chief film critic Owen Gleiberman wasn’t sold on \u201cA Man Called Otto,\u201d though he praised the casting of Hanks. \u201cWe’ve seen this sort of get-off-my-lawn curmudgeon many times before,\u201d he wrote. \u201cBut with the right actor and the right script, it’s a formula [\u2026] that audiences never get tired of \u2014 and Hanks, make no mistake, is the right actor for this role.\u201d <\/p>\n

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\tNow, cinema owners hope he’s still the right actor to fill seats.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n