Soft opening for Sanctum

Despite being heavily advertised as a film presented by executive producer James Cameron and being linked to the two highest grossing films of all time (Avatar and Titanic), Sanctum has opened in second place both in Australia and the US, with $1,595,021 and U$9,447,930 respectively.

The Queensland-shot Australian production, which reportedly cost U$30m to make, also grossed U$3.1m in other territories, according to boxofficemojo.com

In the US, the film was kept from the top spot by the horror movie The Roomate, and was released the same weekend as the Super Bowl. The U$9.2m result would have been reason to celebrate for any other Australian project; however, the Cameron connection meant the expectations for the film were higher. Sanctum will make a profit once it’s released worldwide, but it is unlikely it will be on the same league as other recent 3D films. Reviews have been largely negative, with the film standing at “30 percent fresh” at review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.

Industry insiders such as Variety reporter Peter Caranicas have pointed out the power of Cameron’s name: “When James Cameron talks, people listen.Who else could open an R-rated independent Australian film with unknown actors in 2,787 domestic theaters — many of them IMAX venues? Over the pic’s debut frame on Super Bowl weekend — not the ideal time to release a male-skewing movie — Sanctum” grossed nearly $10 million in the U.S. and another $3 million in the U.K. and Oz.”

In Australia, Sanctum opened behind the Oscar-nominated Black Swan in its third week of release.

The top 10 films in Australia (Feb 3-6) were:

Miguel Gonzalez

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