Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
"Dear Evan Hansen" may have been a hit on Broadway, but the filmed adaptation of the Tony-winning show is off to a slow start at the box office in its first weekend in theaters. The Universal musical that's playing exclusively in theaters grossed an estimated US$7.5 million from 3,364 locations, according to studio estimates on Sunday.
First place again went to Disney and Marvel's "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings," which added $13.3 million in ticket sales in North America, bringing its domestic total to $196.5 million. The superhero pic has topped the charts for four consecutive weekends and this weekend surpassed "Black Widow" to become the highest domestic earner of the pandemic.
With little in the way of high-profile competition this weekend, "Dear Evan Hansen's" $7.3 million was enough to land it in second place. While critics were less than impressed, audiences that did turn out this weekend were fans and gave it an A- CinemaScore. Women made up an estimated 62% of the audience according to exit polls. Directed by Stephen Chbosky and written by Steven Levenson, "Dear Evan Hansen" is about a high school student with social anxiety disorder.
"We are tremendously proud of `Dear Evan Hansen' and everything about it," said Universal's head of distribution Jim Orr. "With an exceptional film and great audience scores, we think that'll lead to a better than normal run at the domestic box office."
Despite its prestigious pedigree and star-studded cast including Julianne Moore and Amy Adams, "Dear Evan Hansen" has become somewhat of a punching bag on social media since its premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier this month. At the heart of the jokes is the fact that the film has a 27-year-old Ben Platt, who originated the role, playing a teenager.
"Musicals have always had mixed results at the box office," said Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore. "It's really difficult to pin down and project what a musical might earn on opening weekend, especially in this marketplace."
Earlier this year, the adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda's "In the Heights" underwhelmed at the box office despite stellar reviews -- but it was also streaming on HBO Max simultaneously.
The single-digit opening weekend of "Dear Evan Hansen" remindedsome of "Cats" which opened to $6.6 million in December 2019. But "Dear Evan Hansen" cost significantly less -- $28 million vs. $95 million -- in addition to the fact that "Cats" launched to worse reviews in a pre-pandemic environment.
"'Cats' is a completely different movie released in a completely different marketplace. I don't think comparisons are necessarily fair," Dergarabedian said. "It's more about the audience making a choice."
There is also "The Greatest Showman" exception. The Hugh Jackman musical defied all box office logic in 2017 and 2018 when it opened to a deathly $8.8 million but went on to gross over $434.9 million globally. Justin Paul and Benj Pasek were the songwriting duo behind both "The Greatest Showman" and "Dear Evan Hansen."
Aside from "Shang-Chi," September has been slow for most movies. The No. 3 movie this weekend was "Free Guy," which has been in theaters for seven weeks and the sixth place spot went to "Jungle Cruise," in its ninth week. But bigger blockbusters are coming to North American theaters starting in October, with the "Venom" sequel out this upcoming Friday, the James Bond film "No Time to Die" following on Oct. 8 and "Dune" on Oct. 22.
"This is the proverbial calm before the storm. October looks to be perhaps one of the biggest months of the year at the box office," Dergarabedian said. "It's going to be like summer in October in movie theaters."
And "Dune" is already up and running in 32 markets overseas. The adaptation of Frank Herbert's sci-fi novel has grossed $76.5 million in two weeks.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings," $13.3 million.
2. "Dear Evan Hansen," $7.5 million.
3. "Free Guy," $4.1 million.
4. "Candyman," $2.5 million.
5. "Cry Macho," $2.1 million.
6. "Jungle Cruise," $1.7 million.
7. "Malignant," $1.5 million.
8. "Copshop," $1.3 million.
9. "Paw Patrol," $1.1 million.
10. "Love Story," $893,765.
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
The journey to home ownership can be exciting, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew warns about the trappings of becoming 'house poor' -- where an overwhelming portion of your income is devoured by housing costs. Liew offers some practical strategies to maintain better financial health while owning a home.
As the United States sets its first national limits on toxic forever chemicals in drinking water, researchers say Canada is lagging when it comes to regulations.
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
It took years for Vinnie Deluca to collect more than 400 cards worth of free McDonald's McCafe coffee, a collection that now has "zero value" after the company discontinued the program.
U.S. President Joe Biden will accept endorsements from at least 15 members of the Kennedy political family during a campaign stop in Philadelphia on Thursday as he aims to undermine Donald Trump and marginalize the candidacy of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.
New archeological investigations in Guatemala reveal that the ancient Maya people had a ritual of burning royal human remains as a public display of political regime change.
Prince William will return to public duties on Thursday for the first time since his wife Kate revealed she was undergoing preventative chemotherapy for cancer.
When Les Robertson was walking home from the gym in North Vancouver's Lower Lonsdale neighbourhood three weeks ago, he did a double take. Standing near a burrow it had dug in a vacant lot near East 1st Street and St. Georges Avenue was a yellow-bellied marmot.
A moulting seal who was relocated after drawing daily crowds of onlookers in Greater Victoria has made a surprise return, after what officials described as an 'astonishing' six-day journey.
Just steps from Parliament Hill is a barber shop that for the last 100 years has catered to everyone from prime ministers to tourists.
A high score on a Foo Fighters pinball machine has Edmonton player Dave Formenti on a high.
A compound used to treat sour gas that's been linked to fertility issues in cattle has been found throughout groundwater in the Prairies, according to a new study.
While many people choose to keep their medical appointments private, four longtime friends decided to undergo vasectomies as a group in B.C.'s Lower Mainland.
A popular highway in Alberta's Banff National Park now has a 'no stopping zone' to help protect two bears.
B.C. resident Robert Conrad spent thousands of hours on Crown land developing an unusual bond with deer.
A Sudbury woman said her husband was bringing the recycling out to the curb Wednesday night when he had to make a 'mad dash' inside after seeing a bear.