Panic Room

{{Short description|2002 film by David Fincher}} {{Other uses}} {{Good article}} {{Use American English|date=January 2021}} {{Use mdy dates|date=July 2020}} {{Infobox film | name = Panic Room | image = Panic Room poster.jpg | caption = Theatrical release poster | alt = The face of a woman on the floor, behind her in the doorway stands a shadowy figure | director = David Fincher | writer = David Koepp | producer = {{Plainlist | * Gavin Polone * Judy Hofflund * David Koepp * Ceán Chaffin }} | starring = {{Plainlist | * Jodie Foster * Forest Whitaker * Dwight Yoakam * Jared Leto * Kristen Stewart }} | cinematography = {{Plainlist | * Conrad W. Hall * Darius Khondji }} | editing = {{Plainlist | * James Haygood * Angus Wall }} | music = Howard Shore | production_companies = {{Plainlist | * Columbia Pictures * Hofflund/Polone * Indelible Pictures }} | distributor = Sony Pictures Releasing | released = {{film date|2002|03|29}} | runtime = 112 minutes<ref name="BOM" /> | country = United States | language = English | budget = {{nowrap|$48 million}}<ref name="BOM" /> | gross = {{nowrap|$197.1 million}}<ref name="BOM">{{cite Box Office Mojo |title=Panic Room |id=0258000 |access-date=January 17, 2021 |archive-date=January 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117211548/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0258000/ |url-status=live }}</ref> }}

'''''Panic Room''''' is a 2002 American thriller film directed by David Fincher. The film stars Jodie Foster and Kristen Stewart as a mother and daughter whose new home is invaded by burglars, played by Forest Whitaker, Jared Leto, and Dwight Yoakam. The script was written by David Koepp, whose screenplay was inspired by news coverage in 2000 about panic rooms.

The film was Fincher's fifth feature film, following ''Fight Club'' (1999). Fincher and Koepp brought together a crew of people with whom each had worked with before. The house and its panic room were built on a Raleigh Studios lot. Nicole Kidman was originally cast as the mother, but she left after aggravating a previous injury. Her departure threatened the completion of the film, but Foster quickly replaced Kidman. The filmmakers used computer-generated imagery to create the illusion of the film camera moving through the house's rooms. Foster became pregnant during the shooting schedule, so filming was suspended until after she gave birth. The film's production cost {{nowrap|$48 million}}.

The film was commercially released in the United States and Canada on {{nowrap|March 29}}, 2002 by Sony Pictures Releasing. The film grossed {{nowrap|$30 million}} on its opening weekend. In the United States and Canada, it grossed {{nowrap|$96.4 million}}. In other territories, it grossed {{nowrap|$100.7 million}} for a worldwide total of {{nowrap|$197.1 million}}. The film was positively reviewed by critics, who commended Fincher's direction and Foster's performance.

==Plot== Recently divorced Meg Altman and her eleven-year-old daughter, Sarah, move into a four-story brownstone in New York City's Upper West Side. The house's previous owner, a reclusive millionaire, had installed a "panic room" to protect himself from intruders. The room is reinforced with concrete and steel and features a thick steel door. It also includes an extensive security system with multiple surveillance cameras and a public address system.

On Meg and Sarah's first night in the house, three men break in: Junior, the previous owner's grandson; Burnham, an employee of the home's security company, who built the panic room; and Raoul, a thug brought along to the break in by Junior, without Burnham's knowledge. They intend to steal bearer bonds locked inside a floor safe in the panic room.

When Meg wakes during the night, she sees the men on the security cameras and rushes to the panic room with Sarah. To force them out, the men pump propane gas into the room's air vents. Meg ignites the gas while she and Sarah cover themselves with fireproof blankets; the ignited propane leaves Junior badly burned. Meg taps into the main telephone line and calls her philandering ex-husband, Stephen. As she tries to explain their situation, the intruders cut the line, ending the call.

When all attempts to breach the room fail, Junior gives up on the robbery but lets slip that there is more money in the safe than he initially disclosed. When he tries to leave, Raoul fatally shoots him and forces Burnham to continue with the robbery. Stephen arrives and is immediately taken hostage. Raoul severely beats him, ensuring that Meg sees it on the security camera. Sarah, a diabetic, suffers a seizure as her glucagon syringes are in her bedroom.

Raoul tricks Meg into thinking it is safe to temporarily leave the panic room. When she leaves to retrieve Sarah's medication, the men enter the room with Sarah inside. Meg throws the med kit in just as Burnham closes the door, inadvertently crushing Raoul's hand. She pleads with the men to give Sarah her medication, which Burnham eventually does. Two police officers arrive at the house, following up on Stephen's earlier 911 call and complaints from the neighbors. To protect Sarah, Meg convinces the officers that everything is fine, and they leave. Meanwhile, Burnham opens the safe and finds $22 million in bearer bonds inside.

As the men prepare to leave with Sarah as a hostage, Meg leads them into an ambush, using a sledgehammer to knock Raoul over a banister and into a stairwell. As Burnham flees, the injured Raoul crawls back up and overpowers Meg, preparing to bludgeon her with the sledgehammer. Hearing Sarah's terrified screams, Burnham rushes back and shoots Raoul, killing him. The police, alerted by Meg's earlier odd behavior, return in force and apprehend Burnham. He drops the bearer bonds, and they scatter into the wind.

A few days later, Meg and Sarah search the newspaper for a new, smaller home, having recovered from their ordeal.

==Cast== {| class="infobox" style="font-size:100%;" |- ! Actor ! class="unsortable" | ! Role  |- | {{sortname|Jodie|Foster}} | ... | {{sortname|Meg|Altman|nolink=1}} |- | {{sortname|Kristen|Stewart}} | ... | {{sortname|Sarah|Altman|nolink=1}} |- | {{sortname|Forest|Whitaker}} | ... | {{sortname||Burnham|nolink=1}} |- | {{sortname|Dwight|Yoakam}} | ... | {{sortname||Raoul|nolink=1}} |- | {{sortname|Jared|Leto}} | ... | {{sortname||Junior|nolink=1}} |- | {{sortname|Patrick|Bauchau}} | ... | {{sortname|Stephen|Altman|nolink=1}} |} Jodie Foster stars as Meg Altman, a recently divorced woman who, with her daughter Sarah, looks for a new home in New York City. Nicole Kidman was originally cast as Meg,<ref name="swallow150" /> but she left the project due to a knee injury.<ref name="swallow152" /> Foster, who almost joined the cast of Fincher's 1997 film ''The Game'', replaced Kidman. Fincher said Kidman's portrayal was "about glamour and physicality", while Foster's portrayal was "more political". Meg was originally written to be helpless, but with Foster's involvement, the character was revised to be stronger.<ref name="swallow153" /> The casting change also led to Meg's character being rewritten to be similar to her daughter, whereas Meg had been different from her before.<ref name="swallow153" /> Foster became pregnant soon after she started filming. She told the filmmakers, and they decided to keep filming her scenes but with a wardrobe that would conceal her pregnancy.<ref name="swallow154" /> Studio executives did not like the dailies and suspended production until Foster gave birth and returned to perform re-shoots.<ref name="swallow156" /> Foster was reportedly paid {{nowrap|$12 million}} for her role.<ref name="swallow153" />

Kristen Stewart stars as Sarah, Meg's diabetic daughter. Hayden Panettiere was originally cast as Sarah,<ref name="swallow150" /> but when she left the project toward the end of 2000, Stewart was cast in the role.<ref name="swallow151" /> ''Panic Room'' was Stewart's second feature film after ''The Safety of Objects'' (2001).<ref name="swallow161" /> When Kidman was cast as Meg, Fincher said Stewart was "to complement [Kidman's portrayal], to be her antithesis, tomboyish, androgynous, dismissive, a teenager at ten years old. It was about the daughter being a parent to her mother."<ref name="swallow151" /> When Foster replaced Kidman, the character Meg was rewritten so she and Sarah would be similar.<ref name="swallow153" />

Forest Whitaker, Jared Leto, and Dwight Yoakam star as the film's burglars, Burnham, Junior, and Raoul, respectively. Whitaker's character Burnham was originally written to be "a slick, technical type" and the designer of the panic room in Meg and Sarah's home. Fincher did not think a designer could be persuaded to break into a home, so he rewrote the character to be a blue-collar worker who installs panic rooms for a living. The director told Whitaker to watch ''Key Largo'' (1948) and to emulate Humphrey Bogart's character. Whitaker said he liked Burnham's "conflicted" nature and preferred it to Raoul's villainy.<ref name="swallow162" /> Raoul was originally written to be "a giant scary hulking guy", but Fincher rewrote him to be "this wiry, mean kind of ex-con white trash guy".<ref name="swallow150" /> In one revised instance, Raoul punches Meg instead of slapping her to be reinforced as "an appalling character".<ref name="swallow168" /> The role of Raoul was originally offered to Maynard James Keenan, whom Fincher had directed in a music video for A Perfect Circle's "Judith". Keenan was too busy as the singer for Tool,<ref name="swallow150" /> so Fincher then offered the role to Yoakam, knowing him from his performance in ''Sling Blade'' (1996). For the role of Junior, Fincher cast Leto, who was in the cast of Fincher's previous film ''Fight Club'' (1999).<ref name="swallow162" /> As part of atypical class division, Junior is "the uptown rich kid", where Burnham is blue-collar, and Raoul is undefinable.<ref name="swallow167" />

Patrick Bauchau had a minor role as Meg's ex-husband Stephen. Kidman, though she left the primary role due to her knee injury, had an uncredited off-screen role as the voice of Stephen's supermodel girlfriend.<ref name="swallow154" /> Screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker, who contributed as writer for several of Fincher's previous films, had a cameo in ''Panic Room'' as a sleepy neighbor.<ref name="swallow163" />

==Crew== ''Panic Room''{{'}}s crew includes:<ref name="swallow146" /> {{Div col|colwidth=25em}} * David Fincher – director * David Koepp – screenwriter, producer * Ceán Chaffin – producer * Judy Hofflund – producer * Gavin Polone – producer * Howard Shore – composer * Conrad W. Hall – cinematographer * Darius Khondji – cinematographer * James Haygood – editor * Angus Wall – editor * Arthur Max – production designer * Keith Neely – art director * James E. Tocci – art director * Jon Danniells – set decorator * Garrett Lewis – set decorator * Michael Kaplan – costume designer {{Div col end}}

==Production== upright|thumb|right|Director David Fincher ''Panic Room'' was directed by David Fincher based on a screenplay written by David Koepp. The film, produced at Columbia Pictures, was Fincher's fifth feature film, following ''Fight Club'' (1999).<ref name="swallow145" /> Koepp was also a producer for ''Panic Room'', and he was joined by Judy Hofflund and Gavin Polone, with whom he collaborated on ''Stir of Echoes'' (1999). Fincher included as producer Ceán Chaffin, with whom he had worked on commercials and music videos. Fincher also included in his initial crew people with whom he had worked before: cinematographer Darius Khondji, production designer Arthur Max, costume designer Michael Kaplan, and editors James Haygood and Angus Wall.<ref name="swallow149" />

Fincher envisioned ''Panic Room'' as a popcorn movie about survival. His previous film ''Fight Club'' had 400 scenes and 100 locations, so he wanted to simplify the production of ''Panic Room''.<ref name="swallow148" /> To this end, he wanted to focus production on a single set and to plan the scenes and shots thoroughly before the start of filming. Despite the preparation, he experienced difficulty in production with changes in the cast and the crew as well as the inherent inflexibility of his initial planning.<ref name="swallow145" />

===Development=== Screenwriter David Koepp was inspired by news coverage in 2000 about how safe rooms were becoming prevalent among the wealthy living in urban areas. He sold the script to Sony Pictures for {{nowrap|$4 million}}.<ref name="swallow150" /> Before Fincher's involvement, director Ridley Scott was briefly connected to the project,<ref name="swallow149" /> and actor-director Forest Whitaker studied the script before declining the opportunity to direct.<ref name="swallow150" /> Fincher said he was interested in the script's omniscience and that he was reminded of "the specific subjectivity" of ''Rear Window'' (1954).<ref name="swallow149" /> He also saw ''Panic Room'' as a cross between ''Rear Window'' and ''Straw Dogs'' (1971), though he was concerned "a modern audience" would compare ''Panic Room'' more to ''Home Alone'' (1990) than to ''Rear Window''.<ref name="swallow168–169" />

Fincher also saw ''Panic Room'' as a crime thriller similar to ''The Treasure of the Sierra Madre'' (1948), where money is "an object that everyone's after for the wrong reasons".<ref name="swallow150" /> The director was also interested in the story's conciseness of happening in one place and in one night,<ref name="swallow150" /> and how the screenplay was well-laid out to let the director decide a variety of shots and use of set-pieces.<ref name="swallow159" /> Fincher also saw the project as a way to be "in lock-step with the audience" in a change of pace from his previous films.<ref name="swallow149–150" />

Koepp's screenplay emphasized pace over exposition. Koepp and Fincher agreed to streamline the film so the opening would introduce the characters as soon as possible. Fincher also sought to lay out the film so audiences could see characters make plans and thus be ahead of them, calling the tense foresight "a very cinematic notion".<ref name="swallow166" /> He wanted to track the different characters' agendas and to also keep scenes chronological, so he set up "computer-generated motion-control shots" to move the camera around the set. He planned scenes in which parallel scenes could be seen through the panic room's video monitors and also intercut between different characters.<ref name="swallow166–167" /> The final screenplay was similar in outline to the original one; there were minor changes in dialogue and specific moments, especially in the interaction between Meg and Sarah Altman due to Foster replacing Kidman.<ref name="swallow169" /> Explicit mention of Sarah's diabetes, such as the emergency syringe containing glucagon, were removed from the dialogue. Careful beverage intake, refrigerated medicine bottles, and Sarah's glucometer watch were intended as evidence of her diabetes.<ref name="swallow169–170" />

===Pre-production=== The house was built on a soundstage on a Raleigh Studios lot. The set was designed by production designer Arthur Max,<ref name="swallow158" /> and it cost {{nowrap|$6 million}} to build.<ref name="swallow156" /> The panic room was {{convert|6|ft|m}} by {{convert|14|ft|m}}. Three versions of the room were built so Fincher could film scenes from multiple angles.<ref name="swallow159" /> A 3D computer model of the set on the soundstage was designed. Fincher, who had done pre-visualization for ''Fight Club'', used the model to design shots and decide their sequence.<ref name="swallow151" /> The computer model also enabled the camera to have "total freedom to travel" inside the house. Fincher said, "What we were just trying to do with CG was to say, there's no camera operator, there's no crew, there's no track, and the camera can go everywhere."<ref name="swallow158" /> The crew applied photogrammetry—"mapping still images over the surface of computer-generated 'sets'".<ref name="swallow163" /> The filming schedule was also shortened since camera setups could be evaluated and discarded virtually. Fincher had two-thirds of ''Panic Room''{{'}}s shots planned before the start of filming. Director Steven Soderbergh reviewed Fincher's test footage and warned him that excessive planning would make actual production difficult for him and his crew.<ref name="swallow151" />

Fincher sought to light his film less than most other films; he believed darkness contributed to the scare factor. Entering production, he initially planned to film the first half of the film in near-total darkness but decided that it required too much patience from audiences. Instead, he chose a "shadowy ambience" as a backdrop for Meg and Sarah Altman.<ref name="swallow163" />

===Casting and filming=== [[File:Jodie Foster Césars 2011 2 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|upright|Jodie Foster was cast in the lead role after original star Nicole Kidman exited due to injury. Foster learned she was pregnant five weeks into filming her scenes.]] Casting began in 2000, with Nicole Kidman and Hayden Panettiere cast as Meg and Sarah Altman, the film's mother and daughter. Forest Whitaker, Jared Leto, and Dwight Yoakam were also cast as the film's burglars.<ref name="swallow150" /> In December 2000, before the start of filming, Panettiere left the project, and was replaced by Kristen Stewart.<ref name="abcnews.go.com">{{Cite web |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/story?id=110382|title=Kidman Injury Jars Panic Shoot|publisher=ABC News|access-date=June 28, 2020|date=January 26, 2001|archive-date=August 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180815024250/https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/story?id=110382|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="swallow151" /> Filming began in January 2001.<ref name="swallow152" /> Shortly after the start of filming, cinematographer Darius Khondji was fired from the film. Khondji said he was fired after a conflict with a crew member that he did not want to name, but David Fincher said he and Khondji could not agree "on aspects of production".<ref name="swallow156" /> Much of the film was already planned in pre-production, and Khondji could not be given flexibility. Fincher replaced Khondji with Conrad W. Hall, with whom he found "a balance".<ref name="swallow157" /> Khondji said he supported Hall as his replacement.<ref name="swallow156" />

After two weeks of filming, at the end of January 2001, Kidman was injured on set. An x-ray revealed a hairline fracture underneath one of her knee joints. The fracture was an injury from Kidman's filming of ''Moulin Rouge!'' (2001), and the fracture had never fully healed.<ref name="abcnews.go.com"/> When Kidman left the project, Fincher continued filming scenes that did not include her character. During the same time of Kidman's departure, the Writers Guild of America and the Screen Actors Guild were threatening to strike over contractual disputes, so Fincher was pressured to re-cast the role of Meg Altman before it took place. Since the film was early in production, Fincher was ready to shut down, but the studio wanted to continue production and find a replacement. If the studio had shut down production permanently, it would have collected {{nowrap|$3 million}} from insurance. If production was shut down then restarted, it would cost the studio {{nowrap|$10 million}}, necessitating a quick replacement for Kidman.<ref name="swallow152" /> Rumored actors included Sandra Bullock, Angelina Jolie, and Robin Wright. Jodie Foster was previously occupied with directing duties of ''Flora Plum'' before its star Russell Crowe was injured and left the project, leading to that production's shutdown.<ref name="swallow152" /> To join ''Panic Room'', Foster also stepped down as head of the awards jury at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival.<ref name="swallow152–153" />{{#tag:ref|James Swallow says Cannes festival organizers were reportedly unhappy with Foster's decision to step down and as a result, they removed ''The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys'', which she produced and starred in, from the festival schedule.<ref name="swallow152–153" />|group="nb"}} Foster had a week to prepare for her role before filming resumed.<ref name="swallow153" />

Five weeks after Foster began filming ''Panic Room'', she learned she was pregnant. She informed Fincher and his producer Chaffin of her pregnancy, and they decided to continue filming. Fincher did not want to rush production, so Foster changed her wardrobe from a tank top to a heavy sweater to disguise indications of her pregnancy. For action scenes, stunt double Jill Stokesberry replaced Foster.<ref name="swallow154" />

In the film's progression, the house degrades in quality, so Fincher filmed scenes in continuity as the set changed.<ref name="swallow154" /> He also filmed many sequences twice due to their near-parallel appearance on the panic room's video monitors.<ref name="swallow155" /> Editor Wall said there were {{nowrap|2,073 set-ups}} for the film with most set-ups having two cameras.<ref name="swallow160" /> One repeated take was when Raoul attempts to break into the panic room through the plaster ceiling below it. The plaster took 45 minutes to replace, so combined with repeated takes, a scene that was an eighth of a page in the script took two days to film.<ref name="swallow159" /> Another repeated take was one five-second shot being filmed over a hundred times: Meg being attacked by Raoul and dropping Sarah's medical kit. The shot was repeated so it would look like Meg did not toss the kit but instead lost it. Simultaneously, the kit needed to land in frame and in focus for the audience. Fincher argued for repeated takes so he could combine performances by the actors for "fluid" scenes. He also repeated takes with Stewart to ensure that her acting would be comparable to Foster's veteran performance.<ref name="swallow155" />

The studio planned to release ''Panic Room'' in February 2002, but it determined that production could not be completed by then.<ref name="swallow155" /> Executives reviewed dailies of the film's opening scene and did not like Foster "hiding her stomach under a coat and purse".<ref name="swallow156" /> (Foster was also suffering from a sprained hip from distended ligaments due to her pregnancy.)<ref name="swallow155" /> The studio suspended production until after Foster's childbirth and rescheduled for the film to be released in March 2002. Foster gave birth to her second son in September 2001, and she returned to perform re-shoots, including the opening scene. She also returned two months later for additional filming,<ref name="swallow156" /> which concluded that November.<ref name="swallow170" /> Columbia Pictures screened the film for test audiences, who rated poorly the ending with the SWAT raid and Burnham's capture. By the screening, the set had been deconstructed due to storage costs, and Fincher estimated that it would cost {{nowrap|$3 million}} to rebuild enough of the set to reshoot the ending. Instead, editors Haygood and Wall revisited Burnham's scenes and chose takes in which the character would appear less sympathetic. The final production budget for ''Panic Room'' was {{nowrap|$48 million}}.<ref name="swallow156" />

===Visual and practical effects===  A seamless shot at the beginning of ''Panic Room'' took nine days to film on set but took several months to complete in post-production. The shot was a combination of camera footage and computer-generated effects. Koepp originally wrote the opening scene to be a series of shots that would zero in on the brownstone house, but Fincher instead chose a sequence of landmarks in New York City with credits hovering in front of them before the sequence transited seamlessly to introduce the film's main characters.<ref name="swallow164" /> The opening titles were inspired by those seen in ''The Trouble with Harry'' (1955) and ''North by Northwest'' (1959).<ref name="swallow168–169" /> The scene of Burnham's arrest also used computer-generated effects. Several scenes also involved practical effects: Junior's injuries from a flaming gas burn and Stephen Altman's bloodied, beaten self. A team of puppeteers was used to move Stephen's sticking-out collarbone. Fincher also sent the film reel to be digitally color-corrected as he had done for ''Fight Club'' and ''Seven''.<ref name="swallow165" />

===Music=== The soundtrack was composed, orchestrated, and conducted by Howard Shore and performed by the Hollywood Studio Symphony.

==Theatrical run== Columbia Pictures marketed ''Panic Room'' as being produced by the same director who produced ''Seven'' and ''Fight Club''. Fincher disagreed with the approach because he believed that ''Panic Room'' did not match the tone of his previous two films and that it would not appeal to the same audiences. He believed ''Panic Room'' would appeal more to audiences who saw ''Kiss the Girls'' (1997) and ''The Bone Collector'' (1999). He also disagreed with the studio's marketing materials for ''Panic Room'', which advertised it as "the most terrifying movie ever made". Fincher also argued with the studio about the poster design, which he believed reflected the film's themes, and the studio relented in publishing Fincher's poster.<ref name="swallow171" />

''Panic Room'' had its world premiere on {{nowrap|March 18}}, 2002 in Los Angeles.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/kristen-stewart/27/ | title=2002 – Kristen Stewart (Panic Room Premiere) | date=April 26, 2010 | publisher=CBS News | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210119020804/https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/kristen-stewart/27/ | archive-date=January 19, 2021 | access-date=January 19, 2021 | url-status=live }}</ref> Fincher refused to edit the film to receive a PG-13 rating (parental guidance for children under 13) from the Motion Picture Association of America,<ref name="swallow170" /> so the MPAA gave the film an R rating (restricted to filmgoers at least 17 years old) for violence and language.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.filmratings.com/filmRatings_cara/reports/s10637929.htm | title=Panic Room | work=filmratings.com | publisher=Motion Picture Association of America | access-date=December 14, 2012 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924012909/http://www.filmratings.com/filmRatings_cara/reports/s10637929.htm | archive-date=September 24, 2015 | url-status=dead }}</ref> It was commercially released in the United States and Canada on March 29, 2002. It was screened in {{nowrap|3,053 theaters}} and grossed {{nowrap|$30 million}} on its opening weekend.<ref name="BOM" /> It ranked first at the box office,{{#tag:ref|''Panic Room'' was one of the weekend's four new releases; the others were ''The Rookie'', ''Clockstoppers'', and ''Death to Smoochy''. However, its main competition was ''Ice Age'', which was in its third weekend and ranked second at the box office.<ref name="fuson" />|group="nb"}} and for both actor Jodie Foster and director David Fincher, the opening weekend gross was a personal best to date.<ref name="fuson">{{cite journal | last=Fuson | first=Brian | title=Holiday weekend red-hot, pushes '02 past $2 bil mark | journal=The Hollywood Reporter | date=April 2, 2002 | volume=372 | issue=42 }}</ref> It surpassed ''The Matrix'' (1999) to have the biggest Easter holiday-weekend opening and also had the third biggest opening to date for a non-supernatural thriller film, following ''Hannibal'' (2001) and ''Ransom'' (1996).<ref>{{cite news | last=Gray | first=Brandon | url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=1147&p=.htm | title='Panic Room' Breaks Into the Top Spot, 'Rookie' Hits a Triple | publisher=Box Office Mojo | date=April 2, 2002 | access-date=July 15, 2010 | archive-date=December 15, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215222338/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=1147&p=.htm | url-status=live }}</ref> Audiences polled by CinemaScore, during the opening-weekend, gave ''Panic Room'' a "B" grade on an A+ to F scale.<ref>{{cite magazine | last=Karger | first=David | url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,227000,00.html | title='Crimes' and Ms. Demeanor | magazine=Entertainment Weekly | date=April 5, 2002 | access-date=March 26, 2022 | archive-date=January 9, 2009 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090109033713/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,227000,00.html | url-status=dead }}</ref> The audience demographic was 53% female and 47% male, and 62% of audience members were aged 25 years and older.<ref name="fuson" />

In the film's second weekend (April 5–7) in the United States and Canada, it ranked first again with {{nowrap|$18.2 million}}, competing mainly with the new release ''High Crimes''.<ref>{{cite journal | last=Fuson | first=Brian | title='Panic' leads weekend b.o. as figures keep record pace | journal=The Hollywood Reporter | date=April 9, 2002 | volume=372 | issue=47 }}</ref> The film went on to gross {{nowrap|$96.4 million}} at the US and Canadian box office and {{nowrap|$100 million}} in other territories' box offices for a worldwide total of {{nowrap|$196.4 million}}. (In 2006, the film had a re-release in Hong Kong that grossed {{nowrap|$682 thousand}}, increasing the total to {{nowrap|$197.1 million}}.)<ref name="BOM" /> The film was Fincher's second highest-grossing to date after ''Se7en'',<ref name="swallow170" /> which grossed {{nowrap|$327.3 million}} worldwide.<ref>{{cite Box Office Mojo | id=0114369 | title=Seven | access-date=January 18, 2021 | archive-date=January 18, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210118201640/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0114369/ | url-status=live }}</ref> In the United States and Canada, ''Panic Room'' ranks fifth among David Fincher's films in box office gross. Adjusted for inflation, ''Panic Room'' ranks third. Worldwide, unadjusted for inflation, it ranks fifth.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/people/chart/?view=Director&id=davidfincher.htm | title=David Fincher Movie Box Office Results | publisher=Box Office Mojo | access-date=April 22, 2013 | archive-date=November 11, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111220605/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/name/nm0000399/ | url-access=subscription }}</ref>

==Critical reception== Critics called ''Panic Room'' "a high-tension narrative". They compared the film to the works of Alfred Hitchcock, both positively and negatively. Several critics thought the film was too mainstream after Fincher's ''Fight Club''.<ref name="swallow172" /> The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, classifying reviews as positive or negative, reported 146 reviews as positive and 45 as negative for a score of 76%. Of the subset of reviews that had scores, the average rating was 6.9/10. Rotten Tomatoes summarized the critics' consensus, "Elevated by David Fincher's directorial talent and Jodie Foster's performance, ''Panic Room'' is a well-crafted, above-average thriller."<ref>{{cite Rotten Tomatoes | id=panic_room | type=movie | title=Panic Room | access-date=April 21, 2025 | archive-date=September 10, 2010 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100910121119/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/panic_room/ | url-status=live }}</ref> Of 36 reviews, Metacritic categorized 23 as positive, 13 as mixed, and 0 as negative, and it gave weighted average score of 65 out of 100, indicating "generally favorable reviews".<ref>{{cite Metacritic | id=panic-room | type=movie | title=Panic Room | access-date=March 12, 2025 | archive-date=October 10, 2007 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071010085640/http://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/panicroom | url-status=live }}</ref>

Joe Morgenstern of ''The Wall Street Journal'' said, "''Seven'' was stylishly gloomy, and ''Fight Club'' was smarmily pretentious, while ''Panic Room'' has been admirably stripped down to atmosphere as a function of architecture, and action as a consequence of character." Morgenstern commended the characters Meg and Sarah as feminist heroines and also called the home invaders "intriguing". He also applauded Foster's performance and the film's cinematography, and he said to Koepp's script as "all worked out too".<ref>{{cite news | date=March 29, 2002 | last=Morgenstern | first=Joe | author-link=Joe Morgenstern | title=A Strong Jodie Foster Gives 'Panic Room' Its Scary Force | work=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB1017351314489516400 |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160607230143/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB1017351314489516400 |archive-date=2016-06-07 | access-date=March 22, 2022 }}</ref> Film critic Roger Ebert gave the film three stars out of four, describing ''Panic Room'' as close to "the ideal of a thriller existing entirely in a world of physical and psychological plausibility." Ebert wrote, "There are moments when I want to shout advice at the screen, but just as often the characters are ahead of me." Ebert also called Fincher "a visual virtuoso", and applauded Foster's performance as "spellbinding".<ref>{{cite news | date=March 29, 2002 | last=Ebert | first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert | url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/panic-room-2002 | title=Panic Room | work=RogerEbert.com | archive-date=April 29, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200429200241/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/panic-room-2002 | url-status=live | access-date=March 25, 2022 }}</ref>

==Home media== ''Panic Room'' was first released on VHS and DVD on September 17, 2002 by Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hettrick |first=Scott |date=August 25, 2002 |title=Col TriStar adds trio of fall vid releases |work=Variety |url=https://variety.com/2002/digital/features/col-tristar-adds-trio-of-fall-vid-releases-1117871844/ |access-date=April 8, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|first=Joan|last=Villa|url=http://www.hive4media.com/news/html/Product_article.cfm?article_id=3380|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020725120702/http://www.hive4media.com/news/html/Product_article.cfm?article_id=3380|title=It's Time to Panic|website=hive4media.com|archive-date=July 25, 2002|date=July 3, 2002|access-date=September 21, 2019}}</ref> The studio produced VHS copies for rental only, believing that owners of DVD players were more likely to buy the film.<ref>{{cite news | last=Ahrens | first=Frank | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/2002/10/07/hollywood-sees-the-big-picture-with-dvds/65f7caf3-4c95-4468-853b-f82dbe4e9874/ | title=Hollywood Sees the Big Picture With DVDs | date=October 7, 2002 | newspaper=The Washington Post | quote=Television commercials urge consumers to 'buy it now on DVD, rent it on video.' That is because Sony made no video copies for sale, guessing that the consumer most likely to buy 'Panic Room' would play it on DVD. | access-date=January 18, 2021 | archive-date=January 19, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210119021625/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/2002/10/07/hollywood-sees-the-big-picture-with-dvds/65f7caf3-4c95-4468-853b-f82dbe4e9874/ | url-status=live }}</ref> The studio used the design from the theatrical release poster for the video cover, where Fincher had wanted a black cover that would differ from the poster. Though previsualization supervisor Ron Frankel wanted to include materials to show storyboard animation, the DVD was released as a single-disc edition with no audio commentary or other features. Fincher also chose not to include on the DVD scenes filmed with Nicole Kidman before she was replaced by Jodie Foster.<ref name="swallow172" /> In its first week, the film ranked second in DVD sales after ''Monsters, Inc.'',<ref>{{cite journal | author=Staff | date=September 22, 2002 | title=Top 10 DVD Sales; For The Week Ending September 22, 2002 | journal=DVD News | volume=6 | issue=33 | page=1 | issn=1098-2523 }}</ref> though it ranked first in DVD rentals.<ref>{{cite journal | author=Staff | date=September 22, 2002 | title=Top 10 DVD Rentals; For the Week Ending September 22, 2002 | journal=DVD News | volume=6 | issue=33 | page=1 | issn=1098-2523 }}</ref> In March 2004, the studio released a special edition DVD, which consisted of three discs, two which provided featurettes of the pre-production, production, and post-production processes for the film.<ref>{{cite news | last=Bovberg | first=Jason | url=https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/9971/panic-room-3-disc-special-edition/ | title=Panic Room: 3-Disc Special Edition | work=DVD Talk | date=March 19, 2004 | access-date=June 8, 2020 | archive-date=June 8, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200608143547/https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/9971/panic-room-3-disc-special-edition/ | url-status=live }} *{{cite magazine | last=Richter | first=Erin | url=https://ew.com/article/2004/04/15/panic-room-director-david-fincher-talks-shop/ | title='Room' to Grow | magazine=Entertainment Weekly | date=April 15, 2004 | access-date=September 14, 2012 | archive-date=July 31, 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130731050524/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,606998,00.html | url-status=live }}</ref> The DVD also had several commentary tracks, including one by the director.<ref>{{cite news | last=Vasquez | first=Josh | url=http://www.slantmagazine.com/dvd/review/panic-room-special-edition/335 | title=Panic Room: Special Edition | work=Slant Magazine | date=April 14, 2004 | access-date=September 14, 2012 | archive-date=November 7, 2011 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111107220804/http://slantmagazine.com/dvd/review/panic-room-special-edition/335 | url-status=dead }}</ref> Author John T. Caldwell cites the special edition DVD of ''Panic Room'' as an example of demonstrating directorial control to "aesthetically elevate" the film.<ref>{{cite book | last=Caldwell | first=John T | year=2008 | chapter=Prefiguring DVD Bonus Tracks | editor1-last=Bennett | editor1-first=James | editor2-last=Brown | editor2-first=Tom | title=Film and Television After DVD | publisher=Routledge | page=164 | isbn=978-0-415-87834-0 }}</ref>

Columbia Pictures sold the television rights for ''Panic Room'' to Turner Broadcasting and CBS, who shared the rights over five years. In September 2004, Turner aired the film on channels TBS and TNT for 12 months, and afterward, CBS aired the film three times in an 18-month span. Turner resumed airing ''Panic Room'' for 30 months after CBS's turn.<ref>{{cite journal | last=Andreeva | first=Nellie | title='Panic' ensues at Turner, CBS | journal=The Hollywood Reporter | date=April 16, 2002 | volume=373 | issue=2 }}</ref>

In 2014, ''The A.V. Club'' listed ''Panic Room'' as one of 15 films which (at the time) notably lacked a Blu-ray release.<ref>{{cite news | last=Harlow | first=Casimir | url=https://www.avforums.com/article/15-films-that-should-be-out-on-blu-ray-by-now.10515 | title=15 Films That Should Be Out On Blu-ray By Now | work=The A.V. Club | date=July 19, 2014 | access-date=December 22, 2014 | archive-date=October 23, 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141023024012/https://www.avforums.com/article/15-films-that-should-be-out-on-blu-ray-by-now.10515 | url-status=live }}</ref> A decade later, Fincher would go on to supervise a 4K remaster of the film, which Sony would ultimately release on Ultra HD Blu-ray on {{nowrap|February 18}}, 2025, in a special Steelbook edition also containing a standard Blu-ray disc and including the special features originally produced for DVD, marking its official debut on both formats.<ref>{{cite news | author=Staff | url=https://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/announcement/david-finchers-panic-room-finally-escapes-sd-for-a-4k-uhd-bluray-steelbook-release-on-february-18th/50225 | title=David Fincher's 'Panic Room' Finally Escapes SD for a 4K UHD Blu-ray SteelBook Release on February 18th | work=High Def Digest | publisher=Internet Brands | date=December 11, 2024 | accessdate=December 11, 2024 }}</ref>

==Accolades== Howard Shore won from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers an ASCAP Award in the Top Box Office Film music category for his scores for ''Panic Room'' and ''The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers''.<ref>{{cite news | author=Staff | url=http://www.ascap.com/playback/2003/fall/filmtvaward.aspx | title=ASCAP Honors Top Film and Television Composers and Songwriters at 18th Annual Gala | work=ascap.com | publisher=American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers | date=April 30, 2003 | access-date=June 12, 2013 | archive-date=November 3, 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131103134301/http://www.ascap.com/playback/2003/fall/filmtvaward.aspx | url-status=live }}</ref> The Art Directors Guild nominated ''Panic Room'' for the Excellence in Production Design for a Contemporary Film Award.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.adg.org/?art=2002_award | title=7th Annual Excellence in Production Design Awards | work=adg.org | publisher=Art Directors Guild | access-date=June 12, 2013 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005205005/http://www.adg.org/?art=2002_award | archive-date=October 5, 2011}}</ref> The Online Film Critics Society Award nominated ''Panic Room'' for Best Editing.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.ofcs.org/awards/2002-awards-6th-annual/ | title=2002 Awards (6th Annual) | work=ofcs.org | date=January 3, 2012 | publisher=Online Film Critics Society | access-date=June 12, 2013 | archive-date=April 18, 2016 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160418171204/http://www.ofcs.org/awards/2002-awards-6th-annual/ | url-status=live }}</ref> ''Panic Room'' won an award at the 3rd Golden Trailer Awards for having the Best Horror/Thriller film trailer, beating fellow nominees ''Signs'', ''Brotherhood of the Wolf'', ''Jurassic Park III'', and ''No Such Thing''.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.goldentrailer.com/awards.gta3.php | title=Winners and Nominees for the 3rd Annual Golden Trailer Awards | work=goldentrailer.com | publisher=Golden Trailers Award | access-date=June 12, 2013 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120307155929/http://www.goldentrailer.com/awards.gta3.php | archive-date=March 7, 2012}}</ref> For her performance in the film, Jodie Foster was nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Actress.<ref>{{cite web |last=Bose |first=Swapnil Dhruv |url=https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/jodie-foster-10-best-films/ | title=From Martin Scorsese to Robert Zemeckis: Jodie Foster's 10 best film performances | work=Far Out | date=November 19, 2020 | access-date=January 18, 2021 | archive-date=November 25, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201125162855/https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/jodie-foster-10-best-films/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

==Remake== In December 2024, Sony Pictures began development of a Brazilian remake with Ísis Valverde attached to the lead role.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lang |first=Jaime |date=2024-12-23 |title=David Fincher’s ‘Panic Room’ Getting Brazilian Remake |url=https://variety.com/2024/film/global/panic-room-remake-brazil-floresta-sony-pictures-television-1236257719/ |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=Variety |language=en}}</ref>

==See also== {{Portal|Film}} {{Div col|colwidth=30em}} * List of films featuring home invasions * List of films featuring surveillance * List of films featuring diabetes * List of thriller films of the 2000s * List of American films of 2002 * Cinema of the United States {{Div col end}}

==Notes== {{reflist|group="nb"}}

==References==

===Footnotes=== {{Reflist|30em|refs= <ref name="swallow145">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=145}}</ref> <ref name="swallow146">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=146}}</ref>  <ref name="swallow148">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=148}}</ref> <ref name="swallow149">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=149}}</ref> <ref name="swallow149–150">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|pp=149–150}}</ref> <ref name="swallow150">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=150}}</ref> <ref name="swallow151">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=151}}</ref> <ref name="swallow152">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=152}}</ref> <ref name="swallow152–153">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|pp=152–153}}</ref> <ref name="swallow153">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=153}}</ref> <ref name="swallow154">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=154}}</ref> <ref name="swallow155">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=155}}</ref> <ref name="swallow156">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=156}}</ref> <ref name="swallow157">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=157}}</ref> <ref name="swallow158">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=158}}</ref> <ref name="swallow159">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=159}}</ref> <ref name="swallow160">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=160}}</ref> <ref name="swallow161">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=161}}</ref> <ref name="swallow162">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=162}}</ref> <ref name="swallow163">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=163}}</ref> <ref name="swallow164">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=164}}</ref> <ref name="swallow165">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=165}}</ref>  <ref name="swallow166">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=166}}</ref> <ref name="swallow166–167">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|pp=166–167}}</ref> <ref name="swallow167">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=167}}</ref> <ref name="swallow168">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=168}}</ref> <ref name="swallow168–169">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|pp=168–169}}</ref> <ref name="swallow169">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=169}}</ref> <ref name="swallow169–170">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|pp=169–170}}</ref> <ref name="swallow170">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=170}}</ref> <ref name="swallow171">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=171}}</ref> <ref name="swallow172">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Swallow|2007|p=172}}</ref>  }}

===Bibliography===

* {{cite book | last=Swallow | first=James | year=2007 | chapter=House Arrest | title=Dark Eye: The Films of David Fincher | publisher=Reynolds & Hearn | isbn=978-1-905287-30-7 | pages=145–173 }}

==Further reading==

* {{cite book | last=Browning | first=Mark | year=2010 | chapter=Woman in Peril or Final Girl? ''Alien 3'' and ''Panic Room'' | title=David Fincher: Films That Scar | publisher=Praeger | isbn=978-0-313-37772-3 }} * {{cite book | last=Ellison | first=James | year=2002 | title=Panic Room | publisher=Robert Hale Publishing | isbn=978-0-7090-7288-1 }} (Novelization based on the screenplay written by David Koepp.) * {{cite journal | last=Ferguson | first=Kevin L. |date=September 2010 | title=The Cinema of Control: On Diabetic Excess and Illness in Film | journal=Journal of Medical Humanities | volume=31 | issue=3 | pages=183–204 | issn=1041-3545 | doi=10.1007/s10912-010-9110-8 | pmid=20376543 | s2cid=27743573 | url=https://academicworks.cuny.edu/qc_pubs/204 | url-access=subscription }} * {{cite journal | last=Kammerer | first=Dietmar | year=2003 | url=http://www.surveillance-and-society.org/articles2%282%29/movies.pdf | title=Video Surveillance in Hollywood Movies | journal=Surveillance & Society | volume=2 | issue=2/3 | pages=464–473 | issn=1477-7487 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120417044528/http://www.surveillance-and-society.org/articles2(2)/movies.pdf | archive-date=April 17, 2012}} * {{cite journal | last=Kapur | first=Jyotsna | year=2008 | url=https://siu.academia.edu/JyotsnaKapur/Papers/428669/Fear_on_the_Footsteps_of_Comedy_Childhood_and_Paranoia_In_Contemporary_American_Cinema | title=Fear on the Footsteps of Comedy: Childhood and Paranoia in Contemporary American Cinema | journal=Visual Anthropology | volume=22 | issue=1 | pages=44–51 | issn=0894-9468 | doi=10.1080/08949460802529027 | s2cid=144697505 }} * {{cite journal | last=King | first=Peter | year=2004 | title=The Room to Panic: An Example of Film Criticism and Housing Research | journal=Housing, Theory and Society | volume=21 | pages=27–35 | issn=1403-6096 }} * {{cite journal | last=Kitterman | first=John |date=June 2003 | title=Home(land) Invasion: Poe, Panic Rooms, and 9/11 | journal=The Journal of American Culture | volume=26 | issue=2 | pages=237–242 | issn=1542-734X | doi=10.1111/1542-734X.00089 }} * {{cite book | last=Markovitz | first=Jonathan | year=2004 | chapter=Reel Terror Post 9/11 | editor-last=Dixon | editor-first=Wheeler Winston | title=Film and Television After 9/11 | publisher=Southern Illinois University Press | pages=201–225 | isbn=978-0-8093-2556-6 }} * {{cite book | last=Nielsen | first=Bianca | year=2005 | chapter=Home Invasion and Hollywood Cinema: David Fincher's ''Panic Room'' | editor-last=Heller | editor-first=Dana | title=The Selling of 9/11: How a National Tragedy Became a Commodity | publisher=Palgrave Macmillan | pages=242–262 | isbn=978-1-4039-6817-3 }} * {{cite journal | last=Ramuglia | first=River | date=Winter 2021 | title=Closed-Circuit Anthropocene: Natural Security and the Home(land) in David Fincher's ''Panic Room'' | journal=Resilience: A Journal of the Environmental Humanities | volume=9 | number=1 | pages=23–36 | issn=2996-4849 | doi=10.1353/res.2021.0007 }} *{{cite journal | last=Siegel | first=Carol | year=2013 | title=Metaphoric Architecture: Race and Real Estate in ''Panic Room'' and ''The People Under The Stairs'' | journal=Quarterly Review of Film and Video | volume=30 | pages=74–88 | issn=1050-9208 }} *{{cite journal | last=Stahl | first=Lynne | year= 2016| title=Chronic Tomboys: Feminism, Survival, and Paranoia in Jodie Foster's Body of Work | journal=The Velvet Light Trap | volume=77 | pages=50–68 | issn=0149-1830 | doi=10.7560/VLT7704 | s2cid=147324963 | url=https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/faculty_publications/1177 | url-access=subscription }}

==External links== {{Wikiquote}} * {{official website}} * {{IMDb title}}

Category:2002 films Category:2002 crime thriller films Category:2002 psychological thriller films Category:American crime thriller films Category:American psychological thriller films Category:Columbia Pictures films Category:Films about security and surveillance Category:Films directed by David Fincher Category:Films produced by Ceán Chaffin Category:Films produced by David Koepp Category:Films scored by Howard Shore Category:Films set in New York City Category:Films shot in Los Angeles Category:Films shot in New York City Category:Films with screenplays by David Koepp Category:Films about home invasion Category:Films about mother–daughter relationships Category:2002 English-language films Category:2002 American films Category:English-language crime thriller films Category:Works about diabetes