So what does a movie marketing company do for an encore after helping spread the word about The Passion of the Christ, The Polar Express and The Chronicles of Narnia? Well, after second-tier efforts for United 93 and Rocky Balboa, Motive Entertainment is returning to its Mel Gibson roots with the Ben Stein documentary Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. If anyone can make this contentious bit of non-fiction fly…it’s Motive Entertainment.
Category Archives: Press
“The film exceeded box office expectations.”
– Wikepedia.com
“Rocky Balboa opened in the Number 1 slot.”
– Access Hollywood
“Like its odds-defying character, Rocky Balboa is the biggest surprise of the holiday season.”
– UGO.com
“$146 Million worldwide box office”
– boxofficemojo.com
Rocky Balboa came out swinging on Wednesday, pummeling the competition with a take of $6.4 million in its debut.
Star/creator/director Sylvester Stallone has enlisted [Motive Entertainment’s] Paul Lauer to help spread the word of the sixth in the Rocky series to the faith-and-family market.
A sixth Rocky at 60? Everyone said, you’re kidding me! It’s going to be an embarrassment’. [The box office success] reestablishes him. Don’t count him out just yet. Just like Rocky, Stallone’s still got some power in his punch.
Call it the “Passion effect.” Suddenly, faith and values are hip. [Motive Entertainment’s] Paul Lauer, who marketed The Passion, says: “The phenomenon is real. It’s been on the horizon for years.”
Combining the built-in audience of the Bible and the marketing genius of The Blair Witch Project, the arrival of The Passion of the Christ feels like a milestone in modern culture.
The movie that couldn’t find a distributor a year ago is now poised to become this year’s first surprise hit. “It’s one of the most talked about films since the first Star Wars prequel,” said Exhibitor Relations prez Paul Dergarabedian.
Gibson Film Gets Huge Marketing Effort: The groundswell is stunning considering the once-dismal expectations for the film, which is in Latin, Hebrew and Aramaic with English subtitles and is rated R for violence. It’s set to debut Feb 25 on 2,000 screens — an unusually large release for an independent religious film.
“After weeks of industry debate over whether Universal’s United 93 would have sufficient commercial appeal, moviegoers finally voted at the box office over the weekend. The film wound up with the highest per-theater average as it opened with $11.5 million in 1,795 theaters.”
– Studiobriefing.com