Apparently political pollsters aren’t the only forecasters whose predictions can be wrong. With fewer high profile blockbusters than 2015, some in Hollywood believed that the 2016 North American box office could surpass the previous year. However, a number of unexpected hits like “The Jungle Book” and “Deadpool” helped box office climb to a record high of $11.4 billion.
Meanwhile in China, the rapid box office growth that saw a 50% rise in 2015 slowed dramatically. In fact, the country’s box office actually fell in the last half of 2016, causing a modest 3% gain, year-over-year. We’ll explain what caused the Chinese box office to cool off so quickly and why there may be some good news buried in the financials.
Our resident theatre expert Michael Giltz will brief us on all the new productions opening on Broadway this spring. He’ll tell us which shows he would invest in (if he had the money) and which might be headed to a town near you when they go out on tour.
Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment news including this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees, a banner year for cable news networks and how record labels are finally seeing some profits from streaming music revenue.

Relativity Furloughs Employees Over Holiday Break
http://variety.com/2016/film/news/relativity-furloughs-employees-holidays-1201946270/
With Two Top Execs Out, Relativity’s Future Remains Unclear
http://variety.com/2016/film/news/with-two-top-execs-out-relativitys-future-remains-unclear-1201947193/
Miramax CEO Steven Schoch Exiting Company
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/miramax-ceo-steven-schoch-exiting-company-959467
Doug Herzog Out at Viacom
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/doug-herzog-at-viacom-report-958330
Directors and Producers Reach Tentative Agreement on New Contract
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/directors-producers-reach-tentative-agreement-new-contract-959173
comScore Announces Official Worldwide Box Office Results for Weekend of January 1, 2017
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/comscore-announces-official-worldwide-box-office-results-for-weekend-of-january-1-2017-300384453.html
Domestic Box Office Poised for Record Breaking Year
http://variety.com/2016/film/box-office/box-office-finding-dory-rogue-one-1201948470/
2016 Box Office Hits Record $11.4B in North America Despite Angst
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/2016-box-office-hits-record-114b-north-america-angst-960198
Box Office: ‘Rogue One’ Crosses $400 Million, ‘Sing’ Scores Over New Year’s
http://variety.com/2017/film/box-office/rogue-one-sing-box-office-1201950861/
China Box Office Flatlines in 2016