Channing Tatum vs. Ryan Reynolds At Box Office Hitmans Bodyguard Eyes No. UPDATE, Saturday AM Writethru after 1. AM post Two distributors, Bleecker Street and Lionsgate, observed ahead of time that August wasnt going to be dominated by any particular tentpole like last years Suicide Squad. And given how difficult it is to slot low to mid budget fare on the calendar in the teeth of summer, both distributors took advantage of the opportunity to go wide with their star studded fare before the season truly shuts down. Lionsgate. However, the bigger kid on the block, Lionsgate, has bragging rights this weekend with Ryan Reynolds Samuel L. Watch La Lecon De Musique IMDB. Jacksons Midnight Run like comedy The Hitmans Bodyguard hitting No. M opening at 3,3. The Dark Tower 1. M and Atomic Blonde 1. M. Hitman easily zooms ahead of Steven Soderberghs Channing Tatum Daniel Craig ensemble heist movie Logan Lucky which is running out of gas in fourth with 7. M at 3,0. 31 theaters. A wide release like Logan Lucky with a commercial cast, fun vibes and awesome reviews at 9. Logan Luckys estimated 2. M production cost and 2. M P A was largely funded by foreign pre sales plus partners like Amazon who took streaming rights. HZWnZugH54/UfQJL6Ayl8I/AAAAAAAAAAA/gDge82cU3Pk/s1600/ANB_poster.gif' alt='Bodyguard: A New Beginning Full Movie' title='Bodyguard: A New Beginning Full Movie' />Watch Deadlines video review of The Hitmans Bodyguard, which stars Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson in a tired premise that works as time killer. The Praetorian Guard trope as used in popular culture. Whenever a story has an army, theres almost always some kind of elite group that serve as the. Read reviews, watch trailers and clips, find showtimes, view celebrity photos and more on MSN Movies. Weekend box office analysis shows Ryan Reynolds Hitmans Bodyguard is set to top box office with 17 millionplus against Logan Lucky. Soderberghs m. o. The end goal was for the filmmakers and talent to reap the rewards. Typically, with a standard studio release, the studio fat cats recoup their money first. In the run up to Logan Luckys opening, the media has gone wild declaring how this means of making a movie is a game changer, when in fact, its more of a noble pursuit and risk mitigation. Theres absolutely nothing wrong with that, in fact its the type of smart film financing that the pre sales independent world was designed to be, and in Logan Luckys case I hear from insiders that they even raised more than their production cost in foreign sales. Some rivals this morning do not believe that they say its unheard of for a movie to raise more than 7. Logan Lucky will cruise into the red zone. But lets call Logan Lucky for what it is Experiment is an exaggerated word. QxWWOvb.jpg' alt='Bodyguard: A New Beginning Full Movie' title='Bodyguard: A New Beginning Full Movie' />In todays world, a low budget film with a high upside where the director has great creative control, thats essentially called Blumhouse. Actors working for scale in hopes of a bigger payday at the end, those types of deals occurred on Blumhouses 4. M Jennifer Lopez thriller The Boy Next Door which grossed 5. M worldwide. But you have to make money, to make money. Magnolia. Juxtapose Logan Lucky with Soderberghs 2. Bubble, and, yes, the filmmaker can be credited there for starting a distribution revolution with that title. Even though the 1. Directed by Patrick Hughes. With Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, Gary Oldman, Elodie Yung. The worlds top bodyguard gets a new client, a hit man who must testify. M budgeted Bubble didnt send shockwaves out at the domestic B. O. 1. 45. K, it was the pioneer for a day and date simultaneous release strategy where an independent film was available in both theaters and the home on opening weekend. The words experiment, revolution and game changer definitely apply to Soderberghs Bubble because its the business model that many distributors are still using 1. In addition, day and date has enabled independent films to be seen by a wider audience, versus a lumbering theatrical platform where these types of titles are delivered to small towns months later, or worse, never. True, a film director calling the absolute shots on the marketing of his own film is rare, but on the same note, industry players like Michael Bay and Tom Cruise have plenty of weight when it comes to the positioning of their movies in the marketplace. But then theres another side of the coin, and thats where Soderbergh is coming from When studios get sour tracking on their hands, they can leverage that against the film. Theyre not going to throw good money after bad if they see a film is destined to die. Successful movies are made when a studios marketing department is in sync with a filmmakers goals and art read, Warner Bros. Christopher Nolans Dunkirk which will near 1. M by Sunday. Essentially, thats what was going on between Soderbergh and Bleecker Street Being on the same page in regards to Logan Luckys positioning which included a heavy promotion in the NASCAR country of the South and the Midwest. Furthermore, we also hear that Soderbergh agreed with a number of Bleeckers suggestions. Aviron. A bulk of Logan Luckys marketing dollars were spent in the last week, versus at the onset when the film arrived on tracking. Again, nothing radical there. Aviron did this two weeks ago with Kidnap which opened to 1. M and should clear 2. M by Sunday. Their P A during opening weekend was in the teens, just under what was spent here on Logan Lucky. In general to open any title on north of 2,0. M 2. 0M in order to make any kind of presence on the B. O. chart. So if Logan Lucky succeeded with a double digit opening, what would it have revolutionized Not much as theres been plenty of low budget movies with low marketing costs a majority fueled by digital which is cheap before it. And whenever a studio such as Universal knows that theyre sitting on something great like a Get Out, they have to spend more than the average amount of P A for a microbudget release to get to a 3. M opening theyll throw good money after good money. Elections nor No. If Logan Lucky won, would it mean that more filmmakers would get to control their marketing budgetsMaybe a trend would be started where distributors of low budget films give auteurs such power, however, some artists have no patience or time for business. They just want to make their movie, hope its well received, get their next project funded and move on. One thing that was arguably different on Logan Lucky, and which could be the means by which filmmakers and distributors do business going forward, was its rent a system deal with Bleecker Street. The distributor wasnt paid a fixed distribution fee of 8 1. As the film grosses more and hits certain thresholds, the distribution fee becomes higher. If the pic settles at a certain low B. O. level, then they receive a minimum fee. Thats interesting. Tmobile. But in all fairness to Logan Lucky, there was nothing wrong with how the production was financially set up. It was very wise. However, on the next Soderbergh go round like this, perhaps it pays to raise more P A, and, yes, get out there much earlier and potentially position the film better. Lionsgate spent 3. M to launch Hitmans Bodyguard whereas team Soderbergh spent 2. M to open Logan Lucky. Lionsgate screened Hitmans Bodyguard to exhibitors at Cinema.