Arrrgh the ‘Pirates’ numbers rigged?
Walt Disney Co.’s claim that its “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End†is the new global box-office champion doesn’t mean Jack.
At least that’s the position of rival Sony Pictures Entertainment, which Tuesday insisted that its “Spider-Man 3†still wears the crown.
The feud marks a rare public spat over box-office bragging rights. Although Hollywood executives are more than willing to denigrate another studio’s boasts, they nearly always prefer to do so off the record.
But Sony came out swinging, suggesting in a statement “some irregularities†in the way Disney counted the loot in proclaiming that Capt. Jack Sparrow and crew beat Spidey worldwide by grossing $404 million in six days.
Sony, whose “Spider-Man 3†grossed $382 million in its worldwide launch over six days, said Disney was fudging its numbers by including ticket sales from early openings in Italy and France on Tuesday, May 22, instead of starting with Wednesday, May 23’s totals everywhere.
Sony accused Disney of “adding a seventh day of grosses into ‘Pirates’ ‘six-day record.’ â€
“We believe that as more and more ‘day-and-date’ releases enter the marketplace, there should be a consistent standard in international box-office reporting,†Sony spokesman Steve Elzer said.
He noted, “for the record,†that “Spider-Man 3†grossed $418 million in its first seven days of release worldwide.
Sony’s accusations brought squeals of protest from the Mouse House. Mark Zoradi, president of Disney’s motion picture group, said Disney did nothing unusual and would easily have global bragging rights even without including the early overseas sales.
“A limited number of evening previews were held in Italy and France prior to the official opening day in those countries,†Zoradi said, “but the grosses from those previews amounted to only $1.4 million of the total.â€
In international markets, he said, it is “customary and common practice†to include evening previews in the following opening day numbers.
“We are enormously proud of ‘Pirates’ record-breaking worldwide opening gross of $404 million,†Zoradi said. “We look forward to the film’s subsequent openings in China and India.â€
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