I’ve never read Twilight or New Moon, and I don’t plan to see either of the movies. But even Twi-haters can’t ignore the massive box office force that the romantic vampire tale has become. According to Variety, New Moon sucked in $140.7 million this weekend, making it the third biggest weekend opening of all time.
Despite my lack of enthusiasm for the film, I am excited about what it means for Hollywood. Usually, studio executives stay far away from movies that will only attract women – or at least won’t spend much on them. But since New Moon’s audience was 80% women and still made a ridiculous amount of money, it proves that these kinds of movies are absolutely worth developing.
Meanwhile, Sandra Bullock’s heartwarming performance in The Blind Side also attracted women to theaters, earning a huge $34.5 million. Together with New Moon, the female-friendly films helped make the weekend the second-highest-grossing weekend ever, trailing only The Dark Knight’s weekend in July 2008. Usually big weekends only take place in the summer, so the movie industry is healthier than ever. (Take that, recession.)
I’m sure every director, producer and studio executive in Hollywood is frantically searching to find the next Twilight. I’d better get writing!
