The A24 film averaged $87,833 across New York and Los Angeles venues
The Farewell has beaten the per-theatre average of Avengers: Endgame
Variety reports that The Farewell starring Awkwafina has beaten Avengers: Endgame‘s per-theatre average at the box office.
Before its nationwide release on 2 August, The Farewell opened in four venues: AMC Lincoln Square and the Angelika in New York and ArcLight Cinemas and The Landmark in Los Angeles.
Across these venues, The Farewell averaged $87,833 from each location, setting a new record for 2019 and clearing Avengers: Endgame‘s average of $76,601 per location. The superhero film did however open to a record of 4,662 North American theaters.
The Farewell’s achievement is also commendable considering there was a power outage in New York City on Saturday that caused AMC Lincoln Square to close temporarily.
“To everyone in NYC that is missing ‘The Farewell’ screenings cuz of the power outage, I’m sorry!!!,” The Farewell director Lulu Wang tweeted. “Come over to my house and I’ll screen it. You bring the food, I’ll bring the movie.”
To everyone in NYC that is missing @thefarewell screenings cuz of the power outage, I’m sorry!!! 😭 Come over to my house and I’ll screen it. You bring the food, I’ll bring the movie.
— Lulu Wang (@thumbelulu) July 14, 2019
The Farewell is based on writer-director Lulu Wang’s life experiences. Wang discussed her life in a podcast titled ‘What You Don’t Know’ on radio show ‘This American Life’ in 2017.
Awkwafina stars as a Chinese American woman named Billi who returns to China to visit her grandmother who is suffering from cancer. Billi clashes with her family who decide to keep her grandmother in the dark about her illness. Culture clashes and family are themes deeply explored in this touching tale.
The film received praising reviews for its portrayal of the immigrant life and the mixed culture dynamic.
In related news, A casting call has been issued for Comedy Central’s upcoming TV series titled Awkwafina (obviously starring Awkwafina).