In a twist of fate, it was Lionsgate that topped the weekend with their World War II epic Midway, which powered past expectations to a $17.5 million launch in first place (moderate $5,398 per-venue average), and a projected $20 million through Monday (which is Veteran's Day, though I wouldn't be surprised if the number pops higher to $21-22 million). Successfully bringing in older audiences, the film scored a strong "A" CinemaScore despite negative reviews. However, despite a stronger-than-expected debut (analysts were thinking a low-to-mid-teens millions debut), it does carry a large $100 million budget. That means unless it displays strong holding power or breaks out internationally (its earned $25 million so far), its' not in good shape. However, Lionsgate shared costs with other studios which may minimize overall financial risk. Maybe strong word-of-mouth will keep it afloat into the holidays. Or maybe that's wishful thinking. We shall see of course.In a surprise upset, Doctor Sleep underwhelmed big time in second place. The follow-up to the horror classic The Shining failed to bring in a major audience, with $14.1 million (weak $3,658 per-venue average), behind the $25-30 million expected by many analysts, including me. What went wrong here? Reviews were good and marketing was strong and mysterious. But maybe it was too mysterious? There wasn't much of an obvious connection to Shining in the marketing, and while buzz was there, it was never overwhelming. And horror crowds have had plenty to chew on the past month also. That being said, it did earn a solid "B+" CinemaScore, which is very strong for horror. So, it could play decently as an alternative. But, on a $50 million budget plus more in marketing, it could wind up in red ink for distributor Warner Bros.
Meanwhile, Paramount breathed a sigh of relief as their PG-rated family flick Playing with Fire outperformed its' low expectations into third place. The John Cena flick earned a decent $12.8 million (mild $4,096 per-venue average). In comparison, analysts thought it would have a hard time reaching $10 million. Despite a crowded marketplace for family flicks, Cena and Keegan Michael-Key along with the studio's extensive marketing effort worked in bringing in more of the family crowd. There is competition in a couple weeks from Frozen 2, but this is the kind of film that can play alongside it and benefit from the long Thanksgiving weekend as well. On a $30 million budget, plus a solid "B+" CinemaScore, I would definitely consider this a fairly successful start.
Surprisingly last out of the new releases is holiday comedy Last Christmas. The Universal release pulled in $11.6 million in fourth place (mild $3,364 per-venue average), behind the $15 million expected from analysts. Considering the marketing and effort, and the popularity of the George Michael song, this debut is a bit disappointing. However, being a Christmas movie, I can't call it a bomb yet at all. These types of films tend to hold extremely well through the holiday season, and that could definitely be the case here. One drawback is that audiences gave it a mixed "B-" CinemaScore, so I'm not sure exactly if that will hold true here. The budget was kept to $25 million, so that definitely helps in this case. But, I'm sure Universal and producer/writer Emma Thompson probably wished there was more interest here on opening weekend.Following its disappointing debut last week, Terminator: Dark Fate proved to be frontloaded, down 63% to $10.8 million and falling to fifth place. In 10 days, the failure of a reboot has pulled in $48.5 million, which is behind even Genysis ($59 million) through the same point. Its' also not clicking overseas, with the worldwide gross below $200 million in just 3 weeks of release. With how fast its falling, $300 million worldwide may be a stretch here.
The Fall season's champion, Joker, continued to be a strong player. The villain story was off just 32% in its sixth frame to $9.2 million, for a huge $313.5 million pick-up in 37 days. And the overseas story is even stronger, with $675 million earned so far, and $985 million worldwide. It will pass $1 billion by Thanksgiving, and this is all (even more impressively) without the help of China. With Doctor Sleep not performing well, this makes Joker's profits even more of a relief for WB (at a $60 million budget, its' probably one of the most (if not the most) profitable movie of the year).
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil continued to hold fairly well, off 39% to $8 million in its fourth weekend. While a $97.3 million pick-up in 24 days might not look good for a big-budget film, its' at least performing very strongly overseas. The fantasy sequel is at $330 million internationally, and looks like it could approach or reach $500 million by the time its' finished. Meanwhile, after its solid debut last week, Harriet was down 38% in its second weekend to $7.2 million. The Focus Features hit is at $23.5 million in 10 days, and should continue to play strong through the Turkey Day holiday.
Zombieland: Double Tap has played pretty well over the past few weeks, down 42% to $4.3 million in its fourth frame. The anticipated sequel has pulled in a very good $66.7 million in 24 days, and $40 million overseas. Rounding out the Top 10 is The Addams Family, which fell 49% in its fifth frame to $4.2 million. The animated hit has pulled in a solid $91.5 million in one month, and over $150 million worldwide.
That's about it. Next weekend, three different releases look to shake up the box office, with James Mangold's Ford v. Ferrari looking likely to top the charts. Also debuting is Sony's Charlie's Angels reboot and crime drama The Good Lie. Look for a weekend predictions report on Thursday. Hope all has a great week! :)
