The dust is still settling on last year’s US box-office figures, but one statistic does seem decided: the most successful studio of the year, for the third year running, is redoubtable old Warner Bros.
Glancing at the worldwide top five, you might assume that Walt Disney would take the gold medal. After all, Toy Story 3and Alice in Wonderland,the first and second most lucrative films released in 2010, both took more than $1 billion each throughout the planet. This is the first time any studio has managed two billion- dollar flicks in one year.
When the sums were completed, however, Disney only managed fourth place (though Tron: Legacyis still in cinemas). Warners had big, big hits with Inception and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1. The studio's risible Clash of the Titans also managed to make a fortune. Warners ended up with an 18.3 per cent share of the US box office.
In second place, thanks to Shrek Forever Afterand Iron Man 2, was Paramount. Fox managed third spot, but that was largely down to holdover figures for some films released in 2009 (it had to do with blue aliens). The most disappointing performance among the majors was Universal (biggest hit Despicable Me), which struggled in to sixth place.
With the final Harry Potter film coming our way next year, Warners could well make it four in a row. But watch out for Disney, with Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.
