Case 39

  • Case 39 box office
    Rate Movie
    [Total: 7 Average: 2]
  • Directed By: Christian Alvart
  • Written By: Ray Wright
  • Release Date: October 1, 2010
  • Domestic Distributor: Paramount
  • Cast: Renée Zellweger, Jodelle Ferland, Bradley Cooper

Box Office Info:
Budget: $27 million Financed by: Paramount
Domestic Box Office: $13,261,851 Overseas Box Office: $15,511,976


In March 2004, Morgan Creek announced that they had acquired the Case 39 screenplay, but the project never materialized at the company.  It moved over to Paramount in 2006, which financed this turkey under Brad Weston, who was president of production for Paramount.  The budget for Case 39 was $27 million and after it was completed, the picture rotted on the shelf for over 3 years until 2010 — two executives later.

While the domestic release was delayed, Paramount released the movie in most overseas markets in 2009.  The film pulled in $15.5 million offshore and did moderately well in spanish speaking countries, so Paramount decided to release the movie in the US with a marketing campaign targeting hispanic auds.  It was dumped straight to video in Italy and France.

The stateside release was finally dated for October 1, 2010 and it bowed against The Social Network and another horror film Let Me In.  The two horror entries cannibalized each other at the box office.  Paramount did not screen this stinker for critics and both Renée Zellweger and Bradley Cooper (filmed before he was bankable) refused to do any publicity.

Case 39 opened with $5,350,570 — placing #7 for the frame led by The Social Network.  The horror market was further saturated the following weekend when My Soul To Take was released and Case 39 fell 49.9% to $2,680,305.  It then sank 55% to $1,206,817 in its third session and the domestic run closed with just $13,261,851.

The worldwide cume was $28.7M and Paramount would see returned about $15.7M after theaters take their percentage of the gross — which would not cover P&A expenses or any of the budget.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *