The holidays are over and it’s time for the box office to snap back to reality this weekend. We have a couple of new offerings that could leave a bit of an impression but holdovers will be the ones to watch this weekend.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story should hold on to the top spot this weekend with the greatest of ease but I think the gap between Rogue One and Sing could become even shorter this weekend. The force should continue to be strong with Rogue One with about $25-26 million this weekend with a solid first place finish.
Sing is proving to be a true hit with families and it will maintain its second-place finish over the weekend. Word of mouth on the film has been pretty stellar and there isn’t anything else out there for kids so the film should finish in the $20-23 million range.
The third spot should see Hidden Figures making a strong case for itself. The film is currently at 93% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and it has some awards buzz behind it as well. The film has grossed $2.77 million in ten days from only 25 locations and the marketing for its expansion has done a good job of displaying the feel good nature of its plot. I predict about $15-17 million for the weekend and solid word of mouth should turn this $25 million film into a true hit.
The fourth spot may very well have a sequel in its midst. Underworld: Blood Wars brings Kate Beckinsale back to the franchise for her fourth go-round as Selene (she was absent in the third film, which was a prequel) and much like the Resident Evil franchise, these films have played better overseas rather than on the domestic front. The worldwide totals have been enough to justify the sequels and this film will be no different. It’s getting trashed by critics with a 10% rotten rating on Rotten Tomatoes but this one feels critic-proof. I predict an opening in the $12-14 million range but the film has already grossed $45 million overseas and has yet to open in the UK, Spain, France or Italy so it should turn into another worldwide hit for the franchise.
To round out the top five, Passengers should have that spot on lock with about $10 million for the weekend. The film, which is budgeted at $110 million, has overcome some rotten reviews with so-so word of mouth to soften its lighter than expected opening over the holidays. It won’t match its budget here but at $125 million worldwide, it may be another film that is saved by its overseas gross.
Check back on Monday to see if the weekend plays out as predicted here!
