Things are about to get very crowded out there for moviegoers. Between now and Christmas Day, a slew of new releases will by vying for our attention and it all begins this weekend with our first crop of films set to kick off the Christmas holiday rush. Leading the pack is Jumanji: The Next Level, the sequel to the 2017 film that proved to have major staying better during this particular holiday season and into the new year.
No one really knew what to expect from Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. They made sure to let us know that it wasn’t a reboot of the 1995 film starring Robin Williams and that it existed in the same universe. I think this was done to ease the anger and fears of those of us who had hardcore nostalgia feelings for that film and didn’t want to see anyone tarnish it. Even as they eased our fears, nothing pointed to the film being the true hit that it came to be. The film launched to surprisingly good reviews (76% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and began a pretty solid box office run with an opening of $36.1 million over the December 20 frame. Remember, December box office isn’t about launching huge out of the gate (unless you’re Star Wars) so the real success came for Jumanji as it became a true favorite of the holiday season and saw some pretty impressive legs. The film was in wide release for a staggering 14 weeks and ultimately grossed $404.5 million at the domestic box office and $962 million worldwide. The film was the biggest global release for Sony Pictures until Spider-Man: Far From Home made the billion-dollar club worldwide this year.
A sequel was inevitable, even if it wasn’t probably planned from the start. It may also be a shameless cash grab but with a 69% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, it seems like if you liked the first one, you’ll likely enjoy another trip inside the game. I saw the film last night and while slightly too long, it was great fun and features the same appeal that made the first film such a likable treat two years ago. This time out, Jumanji 2 opted to open a week before Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, whereas Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle rode into theaters on December 20, 2017, a week after Star Wars: The Last Jedi opened to $220 million. What made that stand out was that it showed that there was room for both films and the narrative that holiday season was how well Jumanji held up in the face of that juggernaut. The Next Level just needs to avoid sequelitis that has plagued many a franchise and it should hold up in a similar fashion this year. I’m calling for an opening of $45-50 million and the real test will be how it holds up the rest of the month, which well will be monitoring closely here.
Taking advantage of the horror-centric release date of Friday the 13th and the Christmas holiday season is Black Christmas, the second remake of Bob Clark’s 1974 cult slasher classic. From what I’m hearing, this is a remake in name only and is a more “woke” pro-feminism horror exercise that is being praised by some in horror circles while being equally trashed by others for failing to create a worthy remake yet again from the source material. Black Christmas was remade back in 2006 and took the premise of the original film and expanded on it by trying to give an unneeded backstory for its killer. The end result was a splatterfest that was cut to pieces by Dimension Films and rushed out to theaters to try to take advantage of the Christmas box office. Even though the holiday season is inflated, it didn’t do much to help the 2006 Black Christmas which opened to $3.7 million on Christmas Day and only managed a final domestic total of $16.2 million.
This remake of Black Christmas has the Blumhouse Productions name on its side and that really means something for horror fans nowadays. This is a production company that carries weight in the genre and it should be enough to ensure a decent opening weekend and from there it will be interesting to see if the target demo of young girls can keep the film steadily grossing until after the holiday. Black Christmas could start to decline faster after Christmas because the holiday theme is a part of the film’s premise and interest may subside the day after we all open our presents. Reviews aren’t great but aren’t abysmal either (43% rotten on Rotten Tomatoes compared to the 15% rotten score of the 2006 remake). Blumhouse kept this one cheap, as usual, with a budget of $5 million so it’s likely that the film will be profitable before the close of business on Saturday. I’m predicting an opening of about $11 million.
Clint Eastwood is ready to entice the older demographic with Richard Jewell, the veteran director’s take on the real-life story of the security guard (Paul Walter Hauser) initially celebrated as a hero for saving lives after a bombing during the 1996 Summer Olympics, then vilified when he was reported as a suspect by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and other outlets. The film is garnering some awards attention, mostly for Kathy Bates in the Supporting Actress category and it has solid reviews as well (75% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes).
Clint Eastwood is a reliable box office player with older moviegoers. Last year Eastwood directed and starred in The Mule which opened over this very weekend a year ago to $17.5 million. The Mule was 70% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and wasn’t really an awards player but the film had some solid legs and went on to gross $103.8 million at the domestic box office. There was nothing especially exciting about The Mule but Eastwood managed to take its compelling story and turn it into a true box office hit. Richard Jewell’s subject matter does have a bit more excitement attached and all the media attention it’s receiving will likely build interest. In recent days, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution has objected strenuously to the film’s portrayal of the late journalist Kathy Scruggs (Olivia Wilde), who, in Eastwood’s film, is implied to have traded sex for information from an FBI agent. They say all publicity, is good publicity, and that may very well be the case here. Granted, I don’t this film really needed the extra media boost but it definitely gets its name out there a bit more. I think it’s going to be a close call between this film and Black Christmas with about $11-13 million, and I’m predicting the high end here just in case Black Christmas falters earlier in the weekend.
Opening in select theaters at the specialty box office is Jay Roach’s Fox News sexual harassment saga Bombshell, produced by and starring Charlize Theron alongside Nicole Kidman and Margot Robbie & Josh and Benny Safdie’s Uncut Gems, starring Adam Sandler. I’ll go into their predictions once they open wider next weekend.
