Studio Movie Grill (“SMG”) theaters were buzzing this weekend as ladies all over the country came together to see the comedy Girls Trip starring Queen Latifah and Jada Pinkett Smith. This morning, the leader in in-theater dining announced a weekend box office gross of $718,036 with the film, placing it #5 in US Box Office for the weekend. This is one of many top 10 finishes for SMG, and a landmark moment for the quickly growing theater chain, opening three new locations before the end of the year.
Ladies are on a roll in 2017. With Wonder Woman continuing to break records, Girls Trip is now being hailed as another female-centric film to break records. Making over $30 million, Girls Trip, directed by Malcolm D. Lee, landed at #2 right behind Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk, even though it was made for a fraction of the budget. Audiences gave the film a stellar A+ CinemaScore, the industry leader in measuring movie appeal, suggesting the film will have a long and healthy run.
Contributing to the enormous box office success, Studio Movie Grill hosted over 50 private events this weekend throughout their 24 locations with over 2000 women enjoying GIRLS TRIP Girls Night Out Packages through Studio Events. SMG Chatham in Chicago’s south side celebrated a #27 ranking in Girls Trip box office across the country. Says Venisha White-Johnson, Private Events Manager at SMG Chatham, “We had so much fun hosting over 700 ladies and making it all about us girls.” Inspired by the movie’s audacious sense of fun, Studio Movie Grill created a special cocktail – the Peachy Boom Boom – featuring Cîroc Peach Vodka, which was widely promoted by Sean Diddy Combs on social media. SMG sold over 5,000 of the cocktails this weekend, which paired with their exclusive food and beverage packages designed to enhance the Girls Trip parties.
“Universal’s film is further proof of the success and need for female driven movies. For us to rank #5 for the US is a major milestone for SMG. We are definitely on this ride with the rest of country, opening hearts and minds with film, food and fun!” said Brian Schultz, CEO/Founder of Studio Movie Grill.
According to the AP, the Universal film drew in an audience that was 79 percent female and 50 percent under the age of 30. Fifty-nine percent of attendees were estimated to be African-American.
