As expected, Captain Marvel easily remained in first place. The film didn't hold strongly per se, but a 55% drop is pretty much par for the course for superhero flicks nowadays. The female-led superhero earned another $69.3 million, for a strong $266.2 million pick-up in 10 days. In comparison, Black Panther was off just 45% in its sophomore frame, while Infinity War fell 56% and Wonder Woman was down only 43%. Captain is outperforming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, which had just under $250 million by its' 10th day. That movie ended up just under $400 million stateside, which Captain Marvel is hoping to surpass. Overseas, however, is where the film continues to shine, with the overseas gross already approaching $500 million. China has earned over $130 million of that so far also. With $760 million worldwide and still surging, this is virtually guaranteed to pass $1 billion worldwide. Another huge win for Disney and Marvel.
It wasn't even close, however, Paramount still got a little bit of juice out of its' newest animated offering, Wonder Park. The original pic managed to pull in $16 million in second place (mild $4,169 per-venue average). That's ahead of expectations, which most had predicted a debut in the $10-12 million range (I predicted $15 million and got close). The strong marketing effort and original premise, plus Spring Break for some schools succeeded in enticing some families. It was held back somewhat by the somewhat overcrowding of animated films in the marketplace (this is the third one in the past month and a half), and overall buzz was quiet. But, honestly, this could have done much worse. However, on a budget that was reported anywhere between $80 and $100 million, this film is going to need strong legs in order to have a chance at turning a profit. Disney's Dumbo remake comes out in two weeks, and may be an obstacle. Early overseas numbers are not promising. Paramount was thinking of a low-double digits millions debut, and it earned a "B+" CinemaScore.
Also outperforming forecasts was romantic drama Five Feet Apart. The teenage-skewing film earned a respectable $13.2 million in third place (mild $4,691 per-venue average). This isn't an amazing debut, but on just a $7 million budget, its' the kind of start you would want for a film like this. Distributor Lionsgate marketed this film heavily, hoping it would be the next Fault in Our Stars. It's not, but it did outperform recent teen-aimed films like Everything, Everything ($11 million) and The DUFF ($10 million). With the small budget, and a rave "A+" CinemaScore, plus no more options for date night crowds the remainder of the month, this could have strong legs. Lionsgate didn't release an official forecast and most analysts were expecting a debut below $10 million.Despite a new animated competitor, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World held on surprisingly well in its fourth frame. The franchise finale was off 36% to $9.3 million, for a very good $135.6 million pick-up in 24 days. Look for another strong hold next week before Dumbo steals more of the kid-friendly audience. The film continues to perform strongly overseas as well, with $465 million worldwide so far. Look for the worldwide total to possibly approach $600 million.
One other big surprise. A Madea Family Funeral had the weekend's best hold. Defying Tyler Perry standards, the character's last laugh was off just 35% in its third weekend to $8.1 million. In 17 days, Madea has pulled in a very successful $59.1 million.
Opening in sixth place, No Manches Frida 2 managed to debut to a very solid $3.9 million (in 475 locations, it had the second-best per-venue average this weekend at $8,250). That was a notch higher than its' predecessors' $3.7 million debut from three years ago. Spanish-speaking films usually do solid business at this time of year, and this one was no different. Distributor Lionsgate (who has three films in the Top 10 this weekend) definitely earned a solid win with this one.
The same can't be said for Focus Features, who pushed sci-fi thriller Captive State to theaters with little marketing and buzz. Captive only was able to earn $3.2 million in its debut (weak $1,241 per-venue average). That's not much of a surprise (analysts were a bit optimistic at $5-6 million), as the film never seemed to be given any real confidence from its' distributor. In fact, I'm surprised Netflix didn't get it. Thankfully, the budget was kept small at $25 million, so any red ink here should relatively minor. It received a "C" CinemaScore.
The LEGO Movie 2 continued its disappointing run, down 45% in its sixth frame to $2.1 million. With $101.3 million in 37 days, it doesn't have much more to go. It opens in China next week, which will be its' last chance at getting a much-needed boost (its at $71 million overseas). Meanwhile, Alita: Battle Angel is starting to finish its run in theaters. The sci-fi thriller was down 41% to $1.9 million, for a moderate $81.8 million pick-up in one month of release. Its about to finally pass $400 million worldwide, which may not be enough to break even (against a $170 million budget).
Rounding out the list in its 18th week of release (11th in the Top 10, second-longest 2018 run in the list behind Black Panther) is Green Book. The Oscar winner for Best Picture debuted on DVD and Blu-ray this past week, so its' 49% drop shouldn't be seen as a surprise. With another $1.3 million added, the historical drama bows out having earned a very successful $82.6 million.
And that's about it. Stay tuned later this week for reviews of Mortal Engines (I rented it and am finishing it up this evening), Wonder Park and Captain Marvel. Meanwhile, my box office predictions for next weekend will arrive on Thursday, as I start to discuss Jordan Peele's hotly-anticipated new film Us.
