Overall business was up 13% from this same weekend last year, which featured Pacific Rim: Uprising dethroning Black Panther for the #1 spot with $28 million.
Many believed that Jordan Peele's sophomore effort Us would be a big hit. But I don't think anyone was counting on a $70.3 million opening! (huge $18,778 per-venue average) So how on earth did this come together so strong? It's rare you see a director jump to blockbuster status on his second movie. But, Get Out (from two years ago) was that rare mix of ingredients that really caught Hollywood's attention and audiences' attention, which made both impatiently await his next effort. Buzz from last weekend's SXSW Festival bolstered anticipation even more so. Us not only had the third-biggest debut ever for a horror flick (behind It and last year's Halloween reboot), it also had the biggest debut ever for an original, live-action film in almost a decade (Avatar's $77 million launch in 2009 is the higher benchmark). Analysts predicted anywhere between $40 and $55 million for the film, but it really was a perfect storm of ingredients heading into this weekend. There also hadn't been any real options for horror fans since January's Escape Room. With a strong (for its genre) "B" CinemaScore, Us looks set to play solidly through the remainder of the Spring season. Don't expect strong legs like Get Out (which turned a $37 million opening into a $180 million final gross), but it looks to ultimately pass that film's final gross. Us earned $17 million overseas, for an $87 million worldwide launch. Universal and Peele produced the film for a tidy $20 million, and they forecasted a $45 million start.
Of course, this means Captain Marvel has been shoved to second place. But Marvel's latest hero still is playing solidly. The female superhero was down 49% in her third weekend to $35 million, for a strong $321.5 million gross in 17 days. It's also passed $900 million worldwide, and will likely pass $1 billion in the next two weeks. With Shazam! opening in two weeks, Captain Marvel is set to finish around $400 million stateside.
Following a better-than-expected start last week, Wonder Park didn't exactly hold very strong. The pricey animated flick was off 43% to $9 million in its sophomore frame, for a not-very good $29.5 million pick-up in 10 days. Dumbo will provide strong competition for the family crowd next week, so I'm not sure if this can hold well together much longer. It's not doing great overseas either. Holding better was Five Feet Apart, which was off 34% to $8.8 million. The romantic dramedy is at $26.5 million in 10 days, solid considering it only cost $7 million to make.
How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World spent a fifth-straight week in the Top 5, and held up well once again. The franchise finale was off 30% to $6.5 million, for a solid $145.8 million in one month of release. It passed the final gross of Kung Fu Panda 3 ($141 million) a few days ago. At this pace (with Dumbo likely to steal some business next week), it's on track for a $160 million finish, off from the first sequel's $177 million final gross. It's earned nearly $500 million worldwide, in the meantime.
A Madea Family Funeral continues to defy Tyler Perry standards, off 43% in its fourth frame to $4.5 million. The final entry in the comedy franchise has earned a strong $65.9 million in 24 days. It's on track to surpass Boo! A Madea Halloween's $73 million final gross to become the character's second-biggest movie behind Goes to Jail.
Below that, everything was under $2 million. In semi-wide release, drama Gloria Bell earned $1.8 million from 654 theaters. Since its limited launch 17 days ago, the film has picked up $2.5 million. Nearly tying was the Spanish comedy sequel No Manches Frida 2. The film is turning out to be frontloaded, off 54% to $1.78 million, for a decent $6.6 million in 10 days. It may fall short of the original's $11 million finish stateside.
The LEGO Movie 2 earned a seventh-straight week in the Top 10, and was off 48% to $1.1 million. With $103.3 million in 49 days, it continues to track far behind the original LEGO Movie, which had earned well over $200 million by this point. It debuted weakly in China, where the worldwide gross is only at $180 million so far. Rounding out the Top 10 in its sixth frame was Alita: Battle Angel. The sci-fi epic was off 47% to $1 million, for a mild $83.7 million pick-up in 42 days. It's about to finally pass $400 million worldwide with very little to go.
And that's about it. Next weekend, March comes to a close with Disney launching their remake of Dumbo in theaters. Pure Flix looks to bring in awareness for its' drama Unplanned and in semi-wide release is the comedy Beach Bum. It looks to be a promising end to the month, and I will have a predictions post up on Wednesday. :)
