Downton Abbey is proving very early that it will be the one to beat this weekend if Thursday night previews are any indication.
Downton Abbey grossed $2.1 million in Thursday night previews at 2,800 theaters. The film actually held preview screenings last Thursday ahead of its wide release this weekend and grossed $2.2 million from those showings so Abbey brings its gross to $4.3 million ahead of the weekend. There isn’t a lot to compare Downton Abbey to since there aren’t many series like this from across the pond that has been given the big-screen treatment but considering its strong pre-sales and stellar reviews (85% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes), Downton Abbey will be the film of choice for older audiences, particularly older female audiences.
Ad Astra, surprisingly, pulled in the second-best showing of the wide releases in Thursday night previews with $1.5 million from 3,100 locations. Ad Astra‘s preview number is under The Martian‘s $2.5 million, but higher than First Man‘s $1.1 million last October. The latter is a better comparison because they’re both slow-burn sci-fi dramas and both were coming off strong critical reviews. First Man went on to a $5.7 million Friday and $16 million for the weekend. Ad Astra is 81% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and the Thursday start is stronger than expected but I saw the film last night and while a beautiful piece of filmmaking, I think its deliberately slow pacing is going to affect the box office throughout the weekend.
Rambo: Last Blood grossed $1.3 million in Thursday night previews from 2,900 locations. The Rambo preview number is just under the Thursday night take of Angel Has Fallen ($1.5 million preview, $7.95 million Friday, $21.3 million opening). It’s possible that Rambo gets close to that opening as it will likely be more of a Friday player tonight with the male demo.
