Snakes on Top of a Box Office

Posted on August 22, 2006

The promotional blast from the blogosphere was not as big as had been anticipated but it was just enough to push Snakes on a Plane to the number one box office spot for the weekend. Earlier reports indicating Snakes on a Plane had come in at number two had to be revised when the final box office data came in earlier today. Here is some bloggers are saying about Snakes on a Plane.

R-rated films sometimes struggle to make money in theaters. Tinyscreenfuls was going to see the film until it became an R-rated film: "The sad thing about Snakes on a Plane is that I was really looking forward to seeing it. It was originally going to be rated PG-13, but the studio actually went back and did a 5 day reshoot to add more foul language, nudity, and who knows what else, because people were apparently asking for it (beware some foul language on that IMDB page). I don't know what is more dismaying - the fact that they went to the expense of doing a reshoot, or the fact that people were clamoring for it."

Adfreak says SoaP was simply too scary to drum up huge box office numbers. "It's one thing to watch a quick clip, or parody, about snakes on a plane on your computer, which you can click away from at any time. It's another thing to be held hostage by your fear in a movie theater. Snakes on a plane? If the reactions my family witnessed over the years to our sweet little pets was any indication, snakes are just way too scary."

Does Snakes on a Plane mean we have conquered our post-911 fears and put them behind us? A Slate article and New York Times article seem to say yes.

NGO reports that snakes are actually regular airplane travelers. NGO says, "L.A.'s airport is the busiest port for the importation of live animals into the U.S., receiving seven or eight shipments of reptiles every week from Southeast Asia, South America, and Africa. A typical shipment of 30 crates may contain 200 to 300 pythons, 100 to 200 turtles and tortoises, and thousands of small lizards, Osborn says." Just think -- there could be snakes on your next plane.

The Fast Company blog is blaming film geeks for over-hyping the film. "The over-hyping of this particular one wasn't so much the studio's fault as it was the film geek audience that championed it almost purely on the merits (or drawbacks) of its name."

SoaP was the #1 film over the weekend. Here are the updated numbers:

Snakes on a Plane $13,806,311 (not including Thursday)
Talladega Nights $13,755,387