What do Keanu Reeves, Sly Stallone, Robert De Niro and Justin Bieber all have in common?
They all received the box-office equivalent of coal in their stockings from moviegoers over the long Christmas holiday. Their movies – “47 Ronin,” “Grudge Match” and the concert documentary “Believe – all tanked after opening on Dec. 25.
None of the box-office belly-flops were shocking, since none of the films came in with much critical heat or mainstream buzz, and the extremely crowded holiday marketplace only made things worse.
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“Christmas is always crowded, and that’s part of the appeal for moviegoers,” said Fox distribution chief Chris Aronson, “but this year was especially so, and there was bound to be some blood-letting.”