Dolph is box office king of DTV!! (For now anyway).

[Tom]

Right then folks, the first weeks rental numbers are in. Dolph- a long time out of the top 50 rentals, has not only got inside, he's got an impressive 26th placing and an even more impressive 2.15 million opening in rentals.

Compared with Van Dammes last, Until Death, which didn't chart, so would have got well under a million.

Compared with Seagal's last Urban Justice, which entered at 34 with 1.01million.

Compared with arguably the highest draw of the DTV action guys, Wesley Snipes which though opened at 15, grossed only 1.39m.

Again in recent years Snipes, VD, Seagal at a peak have taken in around 2 million opening week. Dolph had previously been way behind. So not only does this suggest Dolph has bridged the gap, but it also could mean, bigger budgets (along a par with JCVD etc).

I think we all deserve a big round of applause, particularly Jox and his great work on the site. It's no thanks to Sony and their stubborn tight fisted ways. I'd like to think my review helped a little ( ). Dolph's gone out and spread the word, he's put the work in with his interview and he's been rewarded. He's in essence raised money for his next film now, which, given a bigger budget, could well be Dolph's best work.

[Moltisanti]

Even though I wasn't too fond of the film, I'm glad it's doing well. It hopefully will lead to him getting more of his personal projects off the ground. The only thing I worry about is that it might convince Sony to throw DIAMOND DOGS on the market real quick. That would not be good.

It's true that he helps his cause by trying to promote his films as much as possible. It's a real contrast from Seagal and Snipes who couldn't care less about what they appear in. I wonder if we'll see Van Damme do more promotion in the states prior to THE SHEPHERD'S release. Like Lundgren, Van Damme seems to care a bit about his movies yet he doesn't seem to be interviewed much when they're close to release.

[Jox]

Now this is NICE!

I was eagerly awaiting these figures, and I was expecting it to enter the rental chart but not with this much!

And I believe if the rentals are this high the sales might be even better! (and this is only for 5 days, not even a week!)

That means indeed that it will get its cost back quickly by domestic rentals only, so when you add sales and the upcoming worldwide releases the film's gonna be VERY profitable. No wonder Sony is keen to make low budget DTVs...

So yes by all means, DOLPH DESERVES A BUDGET UPGRADE!

[Jox]

PS I like to think that I helped this many people to go rent it but I'm not sure I'm this influential haha!

What I do believe though is also that "The Mechanik" (and "the Defender") had the time to grow in people since its release, airing on TV etc so that made more people interested in checking out what Dolph had next...

[dolphage]

Oh man... The Big Guy is on the move! But he needs to be sooooo careful right now. A few "Diamond Dogs" in a row and he´ll have lost all momentum. Nothing must prevent Dolph "fckng" Lundgren´s rise... TO POWER!!

[Tom]

I hope they hold DD bag a bit longer to be honest. At least until Direct Contact is done and dusted. That one, if they put a little bit of promo behind it (and it'll also need Sony to distribute) could be a good seller. It's an idea that should deliver what Lundgren and DTV fans want. The key will be just how much faith Dolph has in the project and whether he can put some promo into this one. If he goes straight into Icarus after and just leaves the distributers to it, DC will sink without trace. If DC can chart too, I'm pretty sure that can only mean Dolph's next directing gig will be given more cash. From what Dolph's been saying, I'd guess that he'll be producing Direct Contact so will have a vested interest in it.

The ultimate nightmare would be that after the success of MM, Sony decide to rush out DD and snap up Retrograde too. The people who watched MM, many of whom it would have been there first Dolpher in years, might watch both and just think Dolph is pooping out terds all over the place. MM's numbers could be a blessing or a curse. I can't see Dolph going out promoting either of those stinkers though, so they might just breeze by unnoticed. But I've got faith in DC, and hopefully it'll be a success.

[Krom]

yeahhh!!!!!!!! In the not too distant future we might seen a wide theathrical release for Dolph, but his next movies must be at least the same succesfull, hope he'll control the productions with Nu image...

[Nathan]

Wooooooooooohoooooooooooo! Round of applause for Dolph, a kick ass cover and some brilliant promotion by THIS website all contributed!!! Excellent news!

[Tom]

My dream to walk proudly into a high street shop to buy a new Dolph Lundgren film, has been realised! Missionary Man is everywhere! This'll no doubt be the best selling DVD Dolph's had in the UK, probably since old schoolers like Universal Soldier and Red Scorpion- though they never charted. It's just a frickin awesome time to be a Dolph fan!

Dolph's chart positions in High street stores:
Asda- #31
Sainsbury's- #14
Woolworths- #10
WH SMITH- #6

Best price is Asda at £9.76

Any other UK folks done any snooping? I couldn't find the Tesco chart positions or Blockbusters- cause this weeks sales stock hadn't been put out. Though at Blockbusters, a couple of copies of MM had already been rented out- only a couple of hours after opening.

[hansson55]

MM is on the top 10 sale list in the biggest DVD site in Sweden

[Jox]

All excellent news!

which Swedish site are you referring to?

[preacher]

"MM is on the top 10 sale list in the biggest DVD site in Sweden"

Really. Cool.

Seems hard to get a hold of MM over counter in Sweden. I have only seen rental copies so far.
Any fellow swede out there who has found it in regular stores?

[dolphage]

Oh God, I can´t beleive this is happening! I feel like it´s ME that´s climbing the charts. I´m nervous!
I mean, a lot of you guys are "General Action Fans" or "General 80´s Style Action Fans" and you are all over different DTV boards. Me, I´m ALL ABOUT the DL! So this is it for me! My entire well being depends on wheter or not The Big Guys career keeps moving in the right direction...
Ole man Dolph Lundgren, dude! It´s fckng Badass!

[leigh1975]

Just thought people might be interested, I work for a large supermarket chain in the UK called Sainsburys running the entertainment section, and althoughh MM is at No 16 and War is at 3, MM sold out by opening this morning, compared to the much higher profile War, which sold around 3/4 stock. Very impressive. I also understand that MM is at No 6 in the charts in WH Smith, up against heavy hitters like Atonement and Heartbreak Kid, and above high profile titles such as Mr Woodcock. Go Dolph!!!!

[Jox]

All this almost sounds too good to be true, or maybe some of you guys, or Sony (or me?) are working on conspiracy to bring back Dolph into the limelights...!

Actually this really sounds it could be Dolph's best hit since "Blackjack" (which was backed by Woo's name of course) but maybe even since "Johnny Mnemonic" (which was a bomb but was a big release) and mostly "Universal Soldier" (which he shared with VD).

This is too bad I don't have most figures for Dolph's DTV flicks, but seriously, this could be it at last, an undeniable hit for him (and only him), even kicking SS and VD's butts