"We're delighted with this opening weekend on just 47 screens and believe that, coupled with strong reviews, we're very well-positioned for a nationwide release on Friday, August 20," said Ortenberg. "We believe that the authenticity and genuinely gripping terror evoked by this film is striking an unusually visceral and responsive chord in moviegoers. We are proud to be associated with Chris, Laura, Blanchard, Daniel and, of course, the sharks."
Ortenberg noted that the film's box office performance increased from an estimated $342,000 on Friday to an estimated $384,000 on Saturday, with another $309,000 projected for Sunday. Lions Gate will announce its specific nationwide expansion plans for "Open Water" later this week.
Lions Gate also plans a virtually day-and-date international release in key territories for the first time through its Lions Gate Films International division headed by co-Presidents Nick Meyer and Sergei Yershov. The film is poised to frighten up business on more than 200 screens in France on August 11, will splash onto more than 150 screens in Spain on August 13 and will eye approximately 160 screens in Italy on August 19.
Writer-director Chris Kentis and producer Laura Lau took a killer "based on true events" premise - a vacationing couple scuba diving in tropical waters is mistakenly abandoned in the middle of the ocean - and went on to create an ingeniously harrowing, knees-to-your-chest thriller. Shot on weekends and holidays by Kentis and Lau, "Open Water" does not employ a single special effect. Instead, actors Blanchard Ryan and Daniel Travis spent over 120 hours in the water many miles off shore amidst all kinds of sea life, including the real-life, honest-to-God sharks that give the film its chilling authenticity.
Capturing a breathtaking range of ocean light, from hypnotic aquamarine to treacherous blackness, "Open Water" reminds us how much fun it is to be frightened by our most primal fears, namely what we think may lurk just below the surface.
Starring Blanchard Ryan, Daniel Travis, Saul Stein and Estelle Lau, "Open Water" is written, directed and edited by Chris Kentis ("Grind"), produced by Laura Lau, with cinematography by Kentis and Lau.
PRESS RELEASE ISSUED BY LIONS GATE FILMS
