As what many were thinking, older families came out in force for book adaptation The House with a Clock in its Walls. The Eli Roth flick ended up opening ahead of expectations, grossing a strong $26.9 million in its debut (solid $7,475 per-venue average). Jack Black, on a roll after the strong success of the first Goosebumps (House outperformed that movie's $23 million opening) and Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, also proved again to be a strong draw for kids and parents. Cate Blanchett's starpower and Roth's reputation as a horror director didn't hurt either. It also helped that there had been no real PG competition for families since Christopher Robin last month. Distributor Universal had predicted an $18 million debut, while analysts were thinking it might would tick above $20 million, and the budget was a very reasonable $42 million. However, there is some PG competition coming up with Smallfoot and Goosebumps 2 both opening in the next few weeks. Audiences gave the pic a "B+" CinemaScore, though some parents have given generally very negative reactions toward the film on Common Sense Media (labeling as "too scary" and "not PG").After a solid debut last week, A Simple Favor rose a spot to second place and held on very well in its sophomore frame. The female-driven book adaptation was off just 35% to $10.4 million, for a very good $32.6 million pick-up in 10 days. With little competition for its demographic, it makes sense why this is showing strong playability. Look for the film to continue to hold strong through October as there's still little competition for its target crowd.
Boasting a better hold than last weekend, The Nun still provided plenty of scares as it was off only 44% to $10.3 million. The latest in the Conjuring movie universe has pulled in a strong $100.9 million in 17 days, and should make its way to around $125 million stateside. While not as strong as the first Conjuring, its' still outperforming both Annabelle movies. Meanwhile, after a mediocre debut, The Predator fell precipitously from first to fourth place. The reboot plunged 65% to $8.7 million, for a mediocre $40.4 million pick-up in 10 days. While that is a better hold than 2010's reboot (72% second weekend drop), it still doesn't lift this one out of bomb territory. At least its' earned $55 million overseas so far.
Staying put in fifth place was the word-of-mouth sensation Crazy Rich Asians. The romantic comedy was off just 25% in its sixth weekend to $6.5 million, for a strong $159.4 million pick-up in 44 days. The book adaptation is still on track for a finish around $175 million stateside, or nearly six times its $30 million budget. It has earned an additional $50 million overseas.
White Boy Rick held OK in its sophomore frame, off 44% to $5 million. The supposed awards contender has earned a mediocre $17.4 million as it tries to stand out for older adults. Look for the final gross to approach its $29 million budget. Meanwhile, Peppermint fared better in its third frame, off 38% to $3.7 million. Jennifer Garner's latest is at $30.3 million in 17 days as it tries to push for a $40 million finish.
Opening in eighth place with disappointing results was the political documentary Fahrenheit 11/9. Michael Moore's latest earned just $3.1 million (weak $1,804 per-venue average). In comparison, Moore's previous political effort, Fahrenheit 9/11, opened to a record-breaking $24 million on its way to $220 million worldwide. Personally, with American audiences sick and tired of political discussion and agendas on the news 24/7, that might explain why this failed to make much of an impact. Plus, the arguably left-leaning focus of the documentary wasn't appealing to all of America anyhow. The budget was between $5 and $6 million, so there probably won't be much red ink anyhow. On the very positive side, audiences gave it an "A" CinemaScore.
Once again, shark thriller The Meg continued to play strong in its seventh weekend of release. The PG-13 flick was down 39% to $2.35 million, as it prepares to wrap up a very strong run. One of the summer's biggest surprises is at $140.5 million in 49 days of release, with a little bit to go. It's also at a very successful $515 million worldwide. Rounding out the Top 10 was Sony's indie success story Searching. The technological thriller eased 32% in its fifth weekend (fourth in nationwide release) to $2.2 million. It's picked up a solid $23.1 million in one month, and should end up near $30 million stateside.
Meanwhile, outside the Top 10 were two duds. I admit that I was too optimistic on R-rated drama Life Itself, as apparently there wasn't much word about it among the This is Us crowd. The Dan Fogelman pic earned only $2.1 million, averaging a pathetic $807 from 2,609 locations, one of the worst averages ever for a release that wide. It did earn a "B+" CinemaScore from audiences. Meanwhile, fellow indie flick Assassination Nation fared even worse with just $1 million from 1,403 locations (a terrible $733 per-venue average). Both films didn't have real marketing efforts, which made overall awareness minimum to just about none.
That's about it. Next weekend, its' Kevin Hart vs. animation as PG-13 comedy Night School goes up against Warner Animation's latest, Smallfoot. Both are tracking similarly right now. Also opening in moderate release are horror flick H***fest and adaptation Little Women. Will the box office recover a bit after a step-back? We'll see. Look for a predictions post on Wednesday. :)
