Opening at #1, as many anticipated, was the female ensemble of Ocean's 8. The heist flick came in at the high end of expectations, pulling in $41.6 million (very solid $10,038 per-venue average). For Sandra Bullock (one of the stars of the film), this was her second-largest debut of her career behind Gravity. And even though its' not in continuity with the Oceans franchise (its more of a spin-off), it did post the largest (unadjusted for inflation) opening for that franchise to date (the previous largest opening was the $39.2 million debut of 2004's Ocean's Twelve). On a fairly reasonable budget of $70 million, this is a successful start. Overall reviews leaned on the positive side (68% on Rotten Tomatoes), while audiences gave it a solid "B+" CinemaScore. While blockbuster competition is pretty strong over the next couple of weeks, they aren't necessarily aimed at the female audience this film is going for. That could help it hold solidly over the coming weeks. Distributor Warner Bros. was forecasting a debut in the mid-30's millions.In its third weekend, Solo: A Star Wars Story held much better than last weekend, but that did little to reverse its fate. The galactic spin-off/origin story was off 46% to $15.7 million, for a mediocre $176.7 million gross in 17 days (it is important to note that both Force Awakens and Last Jedi pulled in this amount of money in 2-3 days). At its current pace (with strong competition coming from Incredibles 2 and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom in the next couple weeks), Solo will probably finish around $210 million. If only it didn't cost $250-300 million to make, huh? The worst news is that overseas, its only pulled in $135 million so far with all markets opened.
Faring far better than Solo, Deadpool 2 had a very good hold in its fourth weekend. The edgy Merc with a Mouth was off 39% to $14.1 million, for a very strong $279.2 million pick-up in 24 days. The sequel is set to pass $300 million over the next couple of weeks. The film has also earned over $650 million worldwide as well.
Besides Oceans' 8, there was another film that debuted to strong numbers. Horror flick Hereditary, benefiting from spectacular reviews (92% on Rotten Tomatoes), managed a very good $13.6 million (solid $4,580 per-venue average). Analysts were forecasting a debut in the $6-8 million range for the A24 release. The indie distributor scored its biggest debut ever with this film, surpassing the $8.8 million debut of similar horror flick The Witch. On a budget of $10 million, this will likely turn into a decent-sized success for all involved. The only snag is that audiences didn't enjoy it nearly as much as critics, slapping the film with a "D+" CinemaScore. Whether or not that affects staying power is (for right now) yet to be seen.
The other major blockbuster, Avengers: Infinity War, had its strongest hold yet in its seventh frame. The penultimate Marvel entry was off just 31% to $7.2 million, for a $655.1 million gross in 49 days. The end of Phase 3 passed Jurassic World a few days ago for fifth place on the all-time list, and will pass Titanic ($659 million) for fourth place in the next week. Overseas, the film continues to have some strong late-in-the-game stability (probably due to Solo's underwhelming performance), with the worldwide gross set to pass $2 billion in the next few days (the fourth movie in history to do so).
After a mixed debut last week, Adrift failed to have any sense of stability. The true story romance thriller fell 55% to $5.3 million, for a mediocre $22 million in 10 days. On a $35 million budget, its going to be challenging for it to even match that number stateside. Faring far better, Book Club was off 39% in its fourth weekend to $4.3 million. The romantic comedy has earned a very successful $57 million in 24 days.
Despite a solid marketing campaign, indie thriller Hotel Artemis failed to pull in a decent audience in eighth place. The directing debut of actor/screenwriter Drew Pearce pulled in $3.2 million (weak $1,343 per-venue average), behind the $6-7 million expectations of distributor Global Road and analysts. Reviews were mixed (58% on Rotten Tomatoes), while audiences slammed it with a negative "C-" CinemaScore. In other words, I don't see this hotel being open for very long.
Upgrade followed with a 49% decline in its sophomore frame to $2.4 million. The horror flick (of sorts) has pulled in $9.3 million in 10 days, with not much more to go. However, considering its budget was in the $3-5 million range, and the limited marketing effort, it might just make enough to get into the black. Rounding out the list was Melissa McCarthy's Life of the Party, which fell 38% to $2.2 million. The comedian's latest has earned a mild $50.3 million in one month of release.
That's about it. Next weekend, its Pixar weekend, and they are about to unleash perhaps their most anticipated movie in the last decade. Incredibles 2 is looking to perhaps unseat Finding Dory's $135 million debut for an all-time record for animation. Early reviews are in at a very strong 95% on Rotten Tomatoes so far, another promising sign. Again, we shall see. Other films set to open include R-rated comedy Tag and comedy Superfly. Predictions post coming Thursday. :)
