Lee Daniels’ The Butler Takes Number One for Third Consecutive Weekend

Only three Best Picture nominees have ever been number one for 3 consecutive weeks, and no black writer/director is among them. This film should hit $100 million without blinking.  Here is how dominance at the box office has helped a film get a Best Picture nod, at the very least.

Three weeks at number one:
Unforgiven (winner)
Erin Brockovich
The Help
A Few Good Men
Inception
Fellowship of the Ring
Two Towers

Four weeks at number one:
Terms of Endearment (winner)
Platoon (winner)
Apollo 13
Saving Private Ryan
Return of the King (winner)

Five weeks at number one:
The Silence of the Lambs (winner)
The Sixth Sense
Rain Man (winner)

Six weeks at number one:
The Fugitive
E.T.

Seven weeks at number one:
On Golden Pond
Avatar

Eight weeks at number one:
Fatal Attraction

Thirteen weeks at number one:
Tootsie

Fifteen weeks at number one:
Titanic (winner)

If The Butler manages to take a fourth number one slot it could definitely get a boost towards winning the Best Picture Oscar. Many of my colleagues doubt this but the numbers don’t lie.  Let’s see how it plays out.