Though they’ve worked together only once (the animated “Happy Feet”), Australian director George Miller and recent AFI Life Achievement Award winner Nicole Kidman share a distinction this week. Both of their most recent films lead on respective home viewing charts. For Warner Bros.
and Miller, the #1 status for the newly released “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” is positive news after its very disappointing theatrical results ($169 million worldwide, only $67 million U.S./Canada).
But even more than a normal high-return PVOD release, it is available for a $24.99 digital purchase price rather than the standard initial $19.99 rental.
Kidman has provided an eclectic filmography that spans from Jane Campion and Lars von Trier to “Batman Forever” and “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.” Her latest, rom-com “A Family Affair” where she credibly plays at the age of 57 the love interest for Zac Efron, testifies to a star quality along with enduring talent. A Netflix original, it started as #1 this weekend and could be there for a while.
“Furiosa” replaced “IF” (Paramount), the nearly-twice as big domestically family film from John Krasinski after it had one week atop both charts. It currently #2 at Fandango (which lists by revenue) and #3 at iTunes (transaction based). Three other recent releases also found spots on at least one of the top 10s.
“The Watchers” (WB), a weak-performing horror film, was made available only three weeks after it hit theaters. Fandango .