The Bronze
| Budget: $3.5 million | Financed by: N/A |
|---|---|
| Domestic Gross: $615,816 | Domestic Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics |
| Overseas Gross: $0 | Directed by: Bryan Buckley |
Starring: Melissa Rauch | Produced by: Mark Duplass |
Made for an inexpensive $3.5 million, The Bronze premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival and was scooped up by Relativity for $3 million plus a strong P&A commitment for a US theatrical release. Sony Worldwide Acquisitions acquired worldwide rights before production began. Relativity scheduled The Bronze for an October 2015 release date, but its release was canceled after Relativity began bankruptcy proceedings. Sony quickly ended Relativity’s domestic rights, which freed the film from becoming a frozen asset before they went through Chapter 11.
The Bronze was pushed back to March 18, 2016 and would be released by Sony Pictures Classics and originally scheduled for a limited release in select cities. SPC decided to go moderately wide with the pic, opening The Bronze in 1,167 theaters and with minimal advertising or awareness (and only 267 national TV spots going into release) and hoping Melissa Rauch’s large following would justify the wide release. The pic posted the 4th worst opening for a film playing in over 1,000 theaters with $386,328 and a $331 per screen average for the weekend — placing #25 for the weekend. The low opening record holder is the atrocious spoof Transylmania, which ended in litigation after its run and the Z-grade horror cheapie Creature. The Bronze was pulled out of 834 theaters going into its second frame and in 333 theaters, it grossed a minuscule $28,881 declining 92.5% with an $87 per screen average. Its third weekend cumed all of $510 in 4 theaters and it closed with a total of $615,816.