Will Good Newwz extend Akshay Kumar's stupendous run at box-office?

'Good Newwz' film poster (Image: Twitter/@akshaykumar)

After Salman Khan's Dabangg 3, all eyes are on Akshay Kumar's latest offering - Good Newwz.

The actor is riding a crest this year with his movies (Kesari, Housefull 4 and Mission Mangal) striking gold at the box office.

" The trade is expecting a good start for Good Newwz as there is a buzz surrounding the movie. Although it is not a massy film like Dabangg 3, it is expected to appeal to multiplex audience. The movie is a comical take on the goof-up of IVF clinics. Also, it has got backing by Dharma. So, it is poised for a good start," trade analyst Girish Johar told Moneycontrol.

In that case, Akshay is all set to enhance his equity at the box office. The actor's movies have already pocketed around Rs 565 crore so far this year and Good Newwz is expected to further bolster his standing.

Kumar’s box office performance year-on-year is seeing an uptick which has contributed to his overall earnings. According to Forbes 2019 celebrity list, in 2019 the actor saw a 58 percent growth in his income from Rs 185 crore in 2018 to Rs 293 crore this year.

"He is the highest contributor to the box office this year. Earlier, his openings would be in the Rs 10-15 cr range. Now, his movies garner openings of over Rs 20 crore," said Johar.

In 2018, Kumar had three releases - Padman, Gold and 2.0 with Rajinikanth. If only the Hindi collections of 2.0 are taken into consideration, then the overall box office contribution of Akshay's movies last year was to the tune of Rs 370 crore.

The number was lower in 2017 at Rs 239 crore with films like Jolly LLB 2 and Toilet: Ek Prem Katha. But 2016 was better with three successful ventures like Airlift, Housefull 3 and Rustom, all adding Rs 355 crore to the box office.

So, what is the secret behind Akshay's dream run?

According to Johar, Akshay is neither sticking to one genre nor a particular type of role.

"He is doing a mix of films. He is ensuring that the audience is not getting tired. His films are different. It (the films) caters to different audiences. He is ensuring that he is not doing back to back two historicals. And he is spacing his films well - with a gap two to three months," he added.

While there are other actors too who are treading the same path, not all have been as successful in 2019 as Akshay.

It is Hrithik Roshan who comes close to Akshay with his two films performing well at the box office—Super 30 and War, generating a combined revenue of Rs 464 crore. Following Roshan are actors like Ayushamann Khurrana with Rs 323 crore and Ajay Devgn with Rs 257 crore.

Salman Khan could pose competition to Akshay Kumar only if Dabangg 3 rakes in over Rs 300 crore. This seems to be a difficult feat to achieve as the film's business has been hit by the ongoing protests.

“If the protests continue during that weekend (Good Newwz to hit theatres on December 27) as well, a dent of 15-20 percent will be there. The impact will be higher because the film (Good Newwz) is targeting multiplex audiences and when you are targeting family as an audience they do tend to stay away from theatres in a situation like we aer witnessing," Johar said.

Akshay already has a strong line-up for next year with movies like Sooryavanshi, Laxmmi Bomb, Prithviraj and Bachchan Pandey.