An interesting thing happened at the movies this weekend within the top 5 box office results. We have five releases that appealed to different demographics & they all performed well. This weekend showed that older audiences still head to the movies & if the product is good, audiences will still pay to go to the movies.
In first place, we have Downton Abbey which grossed $31 million. I’ll be honest, despite the popularity of the series, I did not see this opening coming. The opening makes it the largest opening in Focus Features history, topping the $22.7 million opening of Insidious Chapter 3. Just to show who saw Downton Abbey this weekend, the audience was 74% female & 60% were aged 35 or older. I would consider this a one-weekend wonder but it has a few things in its favor that suggest legs: It has an 85% on Rotten Tomatoes along with a 96% audience score, it received an “A” CinemaScore & it has a solid 7.8/10 on IMDB. It’s already successful considering its $20 million budget but it will be one to watch in its second weekend.
Debuting in second is Ad Astra with $19 million. The good news is that it’s above the $16-18 million it was tracking at ahead of the weekend. The not so good news is the reported $80-100 million budget, which I doubt the film will match domestically. The film received a “B-” CinemaScore which doesn’t bode well for an adult sci-fi drama in terms of legs but it is 83% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes so maybe good reviews can help on that end. The audience was 54% male with 73% aged 25 or older. Internationally, where Ad Astra could get some help, the film opened in 44 markets and hauled in an estimated $26 million for a $45.2 million global debut. Leading the way were $2.8 million openings in both Korea and the UK.
Rambo: Last Blood is close behind in third place with $18.8 million. It’s just ahead of the $18.2 million opening for the last film 11 years ago & just a million and some change below its initial tracking. The budget is $50 million and it might match that but not much more. The film received a “B” CinemaScore & the audience was 66% male.
In fourth, we have It: Chapter Two which grossed $17 million, down 57.1% from last week. The domestic tally now sits at $178.9 million & it now ranks as the third-largest R-rated horror film of all-time at the domestic box office. The film will soon become only the third R-rated horror film to ever top $200 million at the domestic box office. Internationally, the film added another $21.3 million for an overseas gross that now totals over $205 million and a worldwide total topping $385 million.
Rounding out the top five is Hustlers with $16.8 million, down 49.3% from last week. I feared the drop would be larger given the “B-“ CinemaScore but the film is still attracting young female audiences. The film has grossed $62.3 million to date & will soon top A Bad Moms Christmas to become the third highest-grossing film of STX Entertainment’s history. $100 million is possibly in its sights & I don’t think anyone saw that coming.
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 |
