Audiences clearly have Frozen fever all over again, as the Disney animated sequel continued to play strong. Easing 35% over the three-day frame, Frozen 2 added another $85.3 million (and $123.7 million over the five-day stretch), a better hold than I expected, considering its' a sequel and they tend to be more front-loaded. In 10 days, Elsa and gang have pulled in a huge $287.6 million stateside. Frozen 2 also claimed the biggest Thanksgiving weekend gross ever, ahead of the $109.9 million five-day gross of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (which was in 2013, topping the first Frozen at #2 at $93.7 million). With Christmas break still ahead of it, the gang seems to be on track to pass its' predecessors' $400 million stateside final gross. Overseas numbers continue to be potent also, with another $164 million earned from most territories. With an impressive $738 million worldwide, Frozen 2 will easily soar past the $1 billion mark and may surpass its' predecessor depending on how it holds later on in its run. It's earned an impressive $90 million in China as well.
But it wasn't just about Disney this weekend. Lionsgate scored a strong win this frame too with the buzzy murder mystery Knives Out. The critically-acclaimed ensemble piece paced way ahead of expectations, earning $27 million over the three-day stretch (solid $7,807 per-venue average), and $41.7 million since Wednesday. In comparison, many analysts thought $30 million was the ceiling for the five-day frame. Original films have struggled as of late, so this kind of win was desperately needed in the marketplace. Benefiting from rave reviews and possible Oscar buzz, and a strong marketing campaign, adults and teenagers in for a spin on the mystery genre definitely came out. On a budget of just $40 million and a strong "A-" CinemaScore from audiences, this should play very well through the Christmas season and be a profitable venture. Its' even faring well overseas, with $30 million earned there so far.
Older audiences and awards season buzz also allowed two other films to hold strongly over the Thanksgiving frame. Ford v. Ferrari was off just 16% over the three-day stretch to $13.2 million ($19 million 5-day), for a solid $81 million gross in 17 days, with still more to go. Its' almost at $150 million worldwide. Following a more modest start last week, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood was off just 11% to $11.8 million in its sophomore frame ($17.3 million since Wednesday). Tom Hanks' take on Mr. Rogers has earned $34.3 million in 10 days, and will hope to have strong legs going forward.
Opening in fifth place with very solid numbers was the Universal drama Queen and Slim. Benefiting from solid reviews, the adult flick pulled in $11.7 million over the three-day (solid $6,923 per-venue average from just under 1,700 locations), and $15.8 million since Wednesday. Analysts were thinking it might would hit $10 million for the five-day stretch. On a budget that was between $17 and $20 million, this is the kind-of start you could hope for. My biggest guess for why this overperformed is that this played very strongly with African-Americans, who have been underserved as of late. Audiences gave it a solid "A-" CinemaScore.
21 Bridges held decently from its disappointing start last week, off 37% to $5.8 million, and $7.9 million since Wednesday. Since its launch last week, the Chadwick Boseman film has earned a mediocre $20.6 million. Meanwhile, Playing with Fire benefited strongly from Turkey Day, off just 7% to $4.2 million (and $6 million since Wednesday), for a solid $39.2 million pick-up in 24 days. It looks like it will try to get to $50 million stateside, but may fall short. Midway also fared well over the holiday, down just 15% to $4 million ($5.7 million 5-day), for a still not very impressive $50.2 million in the same amount of time.
Essentially tying for ninth place were Joker, Last Christmas and Harriet, all estimated to pull in around $2 million apiece (and $2.8-2.9 million apiece for the five-day). The DC villain spent a ninth-straight week in the list, and was off 26%. It's earned $330.6 million in 63 days, passing the final gross of Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice. The Emilia Clarke holiday flick was down 36%, and has earned a subdued $31.7 million in 24 days. Finally, the historical biopic was off just 18%, and has pulled in a solid $39 million in one month of release.
That's about it. Next weekend, only one movie is set to launch, and its toy adaptation Playmobil. As usual, all holdovers are set to plunge a bit as audiences wait out for the Christmas releases. Look for a predictions post Thursday along with reviews of Disney+ movies Lady and the Tramp and Noelle. Hope all has a great week!! :)
