As expected, action sequel Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows wound up on top. But, like many sequels this year, it didn't succeed in breaking out like its predecessor did. Shadows pulled in $35.3 million, for a decent $8,675 per-venue average from 4,071 locations. While in line with distributor Paramount's expectations, in comparison, the first Turtles opened to $65 million back in August 2014. While part of the reason for the huge drop-off from film to film can be attributed to strong competition for families (Captain America, Alice, Angry Birds and even Jungle Book are still playing), a lot of it can also be credited to that the first film wasn't very well-received by audiences (it only got a "B" CinemaScore). The sequel earned a bit better remarks from critics (still negative at 35% on Rotten Tomatoes), while audience reception also improved ("A-" CinemaScore). However, its hard to bring back an audience if the first film wasn't all that great. Hollywood seems to once again be learning that lesson the hard way.Out of the Shadows got off to a $35 million start also from 40 international territories. Though not quite on par with its predecessor, its not a bad start by all means. The budget here was $135 million, and with a heavy marketing spend, the turtles are going to need at least $350 million worldwide to have a chance at breaking even. Competition gets even stronger in the coming weeks as Warcraft will take away older kids next week and Finding Dory will arrive the next week.
Last week's topper, X-Men: Apocalypse, had the floor pulled out from underneath it, down 65% to $22.8 million. The latest in the mutant trilogy has picked up a somewhat disappointing $117 million in 10 days. In comparison, Days of Future Past had reached that gross in just five days. Whether or not Apocalypse holds better from here is yet to be determined, though it has done strong business overseas (it passed $400 million worldwide in three weeks).
Opening in third place with very solid results was romantic drama Me Before You. Benefiting from strong advance buzz, the British production pulled in $18.7 million, for a solid $6,924 per-venue average. That was ahead of expectations, which predicted a low-to-mid teens millions start. But, the lack of date night and chick flick options in the marketplace caused this number to happen. Reviews were mixed (55% on Rotten Tomatoes), while the CinemaScore was a strong "A" despite some controversy and backlash over some of the film's controversial and depressing themes. With no competition for date night couples and females over the next few weeks, this could prove to hold very well. Distributor Warner Bros. produced this for just $20 million.Following its very disappointing start last week, Alice Through the Looking Glass plummeted 58% to $11.3 million, for a distressing $51.4 million gross in 10 days. It may have a better hold next week, but the rare Disney misfire is now unlikely to come close to $100 million stateside. Overseas isn't helping much either, with the worldwide gross at just $180 million so far.
Faring much better was another family movie, The Angry Birds Movie, which was off 46% to $10.2 million, for a $87.1 million pick-up in 17 days. The app adaptation will have one more week before Finding Dory arrives, and has been very solid overseas, with the worldwide gross beginning to approach $300 million. The budget here was just $73 million, so Sony will be safely in the black here.
Captain America: Civil War followed with more signs of fast fading, off 49% to $7.8 million in its fifth weekend. The superhero mash-up is at $389.2 million domestically and $1.13 billion worldwide, ranking as the 12th-biggest movie of all-time worldwide. Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising followed with another heavy drop also, down 48% to $4.9 million, for a still somewhat disappointing $48.7 million in 17 days. A $60 million finish would normally be OK in this case, but not if its just a little bit higher than the first movie's opening weekend ($50 million).
Opening in eighth place with underwhelming results was the film debut of the comedy group The Lonely Island, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping. Never expected to be a major hit, the parody flick pulled in $4.7 million, for a weak $2,033 per-venue average. On a $20 million budget, distributor Universal will probably lose some money on this one. Critical reception was surprisingly very good, however (77% on Rotten Tomatoes). The CinemaScore was a "B".
Still playing eight weeks into its release, Disney's remake of The Jungle Book had the strongest hold of the Top 10, off 37% to $4.4 million, for a very strong $347.7 million gross in 56 days. The CGI-filled adaptation is approaching $900 million worldwide, with Japan and Korea set to push it past the $1 billion mark in August. Rounding out the Top 10 was The Nice Guys, which was off 47% to $3.5 million. The critically-acclaimed Shane Black film continues to disappoint, with just $29.1 million picked up in 17 days.
And that's it. Next weekend, more sequels as The Conjuring 2 looks to bring in horror fans while Now You See Me 2 aims for more general moviegoers. Finally, Universal hopes Warcraft will be as big of a hit stateside as it is overseas. As always, we shall see what happens.
