The Butler Archives

The Butler to Return to Theaters

Riding a wave of Oscar buzz and big earnings at the box office, Lee Daniels’ acclaimed film The Butler will be returned to theaters for a limited on December 6th.

The film stars Forest Whitaker as a White House service-worker named Cecil Gaines who witnesses history alongside presidents like Eisenhower, Kennedy, Nixon and Reagan. His performance in the film, and Oprah Winfrey’s supporting turn as his wife, are earning serious consideration for Academy Awards.

The movie is loosely based on the life of real-life White House butler Eugene Allen and in addition to Winfrey and Whitaker boasts an all-star cast which includes Terrence Howard, Jane Fonda, John Cusack, Robin Williams and Cuba Gooding, Jr.

The Weinstein Company is presumably re-releasing the film to capitalize on the awards season hype but it hardly needs the money

The Butler earned over $115 million during its initial run in theaters.

The Butler Serves It Up At The Box Office

“Lee Daniels’ The Butler” is serving up success at the box office.

Starring Forest Whitaker as a longtime White House butler and Oprah Winfrey as his boozy wife, the Weinstein Co. biopic debuted in the top spot with $25 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. But the weekend’s three other major new releases, including the action romp “Kick-Ass 2,” failed to find traction with fans.

“We expected to do well, but we didn’t expect to do this well,” said Erik Lomis, president of distribution and home entertainment for Weinstein Co., adding that “The Butler” is the company’s first No. 1 debut since 2009’s “Inglourious Basterds.”

Even with a full slate of newcomers, last week’s top movies claimed the second and third spots in the box-office race. The Jason Sudeikis-Jennifer Aniston Warner Bros. comedy, “We’re the Millers,” held onto second place in its second week of release with $17.78 million, while last week’s No. 1, Sony’s “Elysium,” dropped to third with $13.6 million.

“It was tough if you were any other film opening other than ‘The Butler,'” said Paul Dergarabedian of box-office tracker Hollywood.com.