Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, as what many expected, held on to the box office crown for a second-straight frame, and held admirably. The well-received action sequel fell 50% to $36 million, for a strong $139 million gross in 10 days. Given that most summer movies this year fell at least 55%, that's a nice hold and indicates strong word-of-mouth. At this point, Dawn is looking likely to play through Labor Day, and could earn as much as $250 million domestically. Competition will be fierce in the next several weeks from movies like Hercules and Guardians of the Galaxy, but the strong word-of-mouth will help keep its drops less than the genre usually faces. Overseas, its approaching the $250 million mark worldwide in just two weeks.Opening in a not-too-distant second was The Purge: Anarchy. The horror sequel didn't fall on its face, though, it opened to $28.4 million, averaging a Top 10-best $10,114 from 2,805 locations. That was $6 million shy of the first Purge, which opened to $34 million back last June. Considering horror films haven't had a good year, this opening was a nice relief for the genre. Yes, it didn't hit its predecessor (very rarely a sequel does). But, the budget was just $9 million. And, reviews were surprisingly more in the decent range (52% on Rotten Tomatoes). The CinemaScore was a better-than-average (for the genre) B. Look for at least slightly better-than-average playability considering there is no more competition until later in August. Universal was expecting around $30 million.
Opening in the same position as the first movie (third place), Planes: Fire and Rescue debuted to solid (if unspectacular) numbers. The animated sequel pulled in $18 million, for a mild $4,705 per-venue average (from 3,826 locations). Yes, that's a few million behind the first movie ($22.2 million). But, to retain majority of its audience is not an easy feat to do. Plus, it improved both in audience reception ("A" CinemaScore) and critical reception (44% Rotten Tomatoes) from the last time. There's also very little competition coming up, so look for this to play through Labor Day. The first Planes ended up with four times its opening weekend at $90 million domestically. If Fire and Rescue follows the same trajectory, it will land with around $75 million, a very solid result given the $50 million budget. Disney was hoping for more than $20 million.The other new release floundered. S** Tape, starring Cameron Diaz and Jason Segel, only managed to pull in $15 million, averaging a mild $4,899 from 3,062 locations. Despite the mediocre buzz, the R-rated comedy was expected by many to open above $20 million. But, the inapt and confusing title most likely kept some from theaters. Tape even opened lower than the recent disappointment A Million Ways to Die in the West, another signal that the R-rated comedy genre has simply worn out its welcome this summer. The CinemaScore was a poor C+, so look for this to fade fast.
Holding extremely well in fifth place was Transformers: Age of Extinction, which fell a solid 39% to $10 million. Since its debut 24 days ago, the Michael Bay reboot has earned $227.2 million. That's a solid tally, but nowhere near the previous movies. Extinction will also falter in the face of competition in the next few weeks, so look for it to top out around $250 million. It could top Captain America: The Winter Soldier for first place in 2014 if it can maintain a steady pace. Overseas remains bustling, with another $80 million earned pushing the worldwide total to near $900 million. This will definitely be one of the most successful films of all-time despite the domestic shortcomings.
Also holding well in the face of competition was Tammy, which was off 39% to $7.6 million, for a solid $71.3 million gross in 19 days. Tammy is proving to hold well despite word-of-mouth being apparently mixed. Should it continue at this pace, it will finish around $85-90 million. Yes, this isn't the best for Melissa McCarthy, but it doesn't exactly slow things for her that much.
22 Jump Street remains holding strong despite new competition. The action comedy fell a light 28% to $4.7 million, for a bustling $180.5 million in six weekends of release. 22 Jump Street won't hit the $200 million mark, but unlike the recent Hangover sequels, is seeing its audience expand further here from the first movie. That's not easy to do.
Especially for another sequel. How To Train Your Dragon 2 did hold decently in the face of Planes, though, off 37% to $3.8 million. The animated sequel is at $160.7 million so far and will finish ahead of Kung Fu Panda 2's $165 million final gross. But that doesn't change its mildly disappointing status. Dragon is about to pass $400 million worldwide, and will likely close in line with the first movie's $500 million worldwide gross.
About to bow out of the Top 10 after an impressive eight weekends in the list, Maleficent might have gotten a boost from perhaps being in double-features with fellow Disney movie Planes. The Angelina Jolie flick was down a Top 10-lightest 21% to $3.3 million, and has earned a strong $228.4 million in 56 days. The fairy tale is now ahead of the pace of X-Men; Days of Future Past through the same point and will finish as May 2013's highest-grossing movie. Impressive considering we're also talking Godzilla and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 just barely crossing $200 million.
Tying Maleficent for ninth place was fellow family flick Earth to Echo, which fell 41% to $3.3 million. Since opening 19 days ago, the E.T. parody has earned a very mild $32 million. It should hit $40 million by the time its done, a decent number considering it was only produced for $13 million (though that doesn't include marketing). DVD sales should help turn a solid profit for Relativity Media.
Next weekend, July ends with two different action movies. Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson becomes Hercules, as he competes against Scarlett Johannson as Lucy. Which one will be able to take the top spot?
