2019 box office really isn’t living up to the start of 2018. We have had several weekends that have underperformed and this one is no different. Alita: Battle Angel lead the President’s Day box office but it was the worst showing for the holiday weekend in 15 years.
Alita: Battle Angel grossed an estimated $28.2 million over the weekend. The has amassed $41.7 million since opening last Wednesday and the good news is that it debuted ahead of tracking, which had it grossing a little less. The other good news is that it received an “A-” CinemaScore so moviegoers did like what they saw but the good news ends there. This would be a decent showing for just about any movie but the budget is a reported $170-237 million depending on what sources you follow and that’s even before marketing costs. In order for the film to break even, it will need to gross about $500-550 million at the worldwide box office. Internationally, Alita debuted in 11 markets last weekend and expanded to 86 total markets this weekend, delivering $56.1 million for an overseas total that now stands at $94.3 million. Alita has a long way to go and despite the positive fan reaction, I believe it’s going to come up short.
Dropping to second is The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part with an estimated $21 million. That’s a drop of 38.4% which is a bit on the heavier side considering the second weekend fell on what should’ve been a lucrative holiday weekend. The good news is that President’s Day was likely kind to the film since most of its target audience is out of school so it’s likely to bump to $27 million when those final results come in. The film has grossed $62.5 million to date and internationally it added over $12 million this weekend from 69 markets for a global total that is now just shy of $98 million.
Debuting in third is Isn’t It Romantic with an estimated $14.3 million. The film has grossed $20.5 million since opening Wednesday which is pretty much in line with where the film was tracking. The film should be a modest hit in the long run but the “B” CinemaScore isn’t exactly glowing for a romantic comedy.
Coming down to fourth is What Men Want with an estimated $10.6 million. That’s a drop of 41.4% which isn’t entirely great but it honestly could’ve come down even harder so this has to be considered a win of sorts. The film did perform better than Happy Death Day 2U, which was actually expected to lead the weekend so mark that as another win for the film as well. What Men Want has grossed $35.9 million to date and given its $20 million budget, it’s already on its way to being a hit.
Coming in below tracking and rounding out the top five is Happy Death Day 2U with an estimated $9.5 million. Since opening Wednesday, the film has grossed $13.2 million and was honestly tracking at a debut that seemed to suggest it would be at $20-23 million by the time we got to President’s Day. It’s a little difficult to pinpoint what went wrong here but there were some signs when you look closer, that indicated it may come up a bit short. Reviews weren’t horrible with a 66% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes but it was a bit lower than the 71% fresh rating on the original. Critics that didn’t like the sequel, found it too confusing in a Back to the Future 2 kind of way and a bit less fun. The film received the same “B” CinemaScore as the original but some of the Twitter reaction seems to suggest that the film went too heavy on the sci-fi and laughs this time around which may have turned off moviegoers wanting more of a slasher/comedy like the original. What makes the film a winner, no matter how you spin it, is the Blumhouse model of making their movies on the cheap. The film cost $9 million to make and even if it sputters out at around $30-35 million, it’s still turning a profit. The film also got its start internationally this weekend with $11.8 million in 41 markets, led by a $2.2 million performance in South Korea.
No matter how you look at the weekend box office, it’s down a considerable amount from President’s Day last year. The 4-day Presidents Day weekend box office is going to be down in a huge way with just over $150 million over four days, roughly -57% off from a year ago when Black Panther led all titles to $346.5 million. That’s the lowest result for the 4-day holiday since 2001.
Check out the full top ten results below:
| Film | Total | % Change | Gross to Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Onward | $10,601,952 | -72.9% | $60.3 |
| Bloodshot | $9,176,695 | NEW | $9.17 |
| I Still Believe | $9,103,614 | NEW | $9.10 |
| The Invisible Man | $5,890,805 | -61.1% | $64.3 |
| The Hunt | $5,304,455 | NEW | $5.3 |
| Sonic the Hedgehog | $2,522,584 | -67.3% | $145.7 |
| The Way Back | $2,356,115 | -71.2% | $13.3 |
| The Call of the Wild | $2,226,720 | -67.1% | $62 |
| Emma. | $1,295,215 | -73% | $9.9 |
| Bad Boys for Life | $1,102,208 | -63.5% | $204.2 |
