The Box Office Game

At the end of nearly every episode, Griffin and David play a game relating to the film under discussion.

## Background

The game originated because as a child Griffin and his father, Peter Newman, used to go over the past weekend's box office numbers. Mr. Newman bonded with James Newman over sports scores in the same way, and this was Griffin's version. That experience imprinted on him, and now, as he puts it, his "brain is broken."

### Game Summary

David looks up the top five earners at the box office for the first weekend of that film's release, and Griffin attempts to name all five, in order. As the game goes on David provides hints until the title is guessed. The game is a good way to think back on what kinds of movies were big in a given year or era. Until it's unfortunate demise, David used the Box Office Mojo website. Presently he uses The Numbers.

Griffin is a box office savant, and many guests on the show are flabbergasted to watch him in action - pulling correct answers from thin air, naming titles of movies that don't exist.

## Variations

### The Billing Game

An alternate version of the game is sometimes played where they try and guess the billing order of the cast. This is particularly relevant if someone gets the "and" or "with", or if multiple people get those hollow distinctions that result from contract negotiations. They also talk about billing on the posters, paying attention to who is "above the title", indicating that they are some kind of box office draw.

### Other Variations

Whenever they cover a TV movie, they often try to do a TV ratings game. Some more esoteric variations have been played, like in the War Horse episode where they played the Box Office Mojo Category: Horse Game.

## Glossary

When playing the game, #thetwofriends often use industry lingo to describe the box office.

### Boffo at the B.O.

Sometimes just referred to as "boffo B.O." A term coined by *Variety* for when a film does exceedingly well at the box office (B.O.).
### Day and Date

A simultaneous release of a film across multiple platforms, usually theatrical and streaming.
### Domestic

Short for the domestic box office. How much money a film makes in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and Guam.
### International

Short for the international box office. How much money a film makes in all non-domestic countries. For most films, the dominant international market is China.
### Legs

How well a film performs over time. This could be day-to-day or week-to-week. If a film is in and out of theaters, it does not have legs. If it stays in theaters for a long time and continues to hold onto its box office numbers, it's got long legs.
### Multiplier

A film's total box office gross divided by the opening weekend. This indicates how well a film does over time, and what portion of the total box office came from the opening weekend.
### Took A Bath

An idiom meaning to suffer a heavy financial loss. Not specific to box office performance, but often invoked during the game.
### Worldwide

The combined domestic and international box office.
## References

1. ↑ Variety. Slanguage Dictionary. Variety. Retrieved on May 17, 2023.
2. ↑ The Numbers. Glossary: Domestic Box Office. The Numbers. Retrieved on September 10, 2022.
3. ↑ The Numbers. Glossary: International Box Office. The Numbers. Retrieved on September 10, 2022.
4. ↑ The Numbers. Glossary: Legs. The Numbers. Retrieved on September 10, 2022.
5. ↑ The Numbers. Glossary: Multiplier. The Numbers. Retrieved on September 10, 2022.
6. ↑ The Numbers. Glossary: Worldwide Box Office. The Numbers. Retrieved on September 10, 2022.