OPENINGS: LEAGUE OF SUPER-PETS (DC/Warners) arrived with a blah $23M, given its franchise-adjacent pedigree and starry voice cast, and it wasn’t very animated overseas either, with $18.4M in 63 markets. It faces almost no competition for family audiences through the rest of the summer, which may help it stretch its run by enough to recoup around $175M in production/marketing costs.
VENGEANCE (Focus/Universal) launched at a semi-wide 998 theaters and found a slow $1.8M, lower than the recent start for the studio’s Mrs Harris Goes To Paris at a similar number of theaters, and even bleaker because Mrs Harris was aimed at an older demo. It probably won’t get much past $5M in the US before hitting VOD in 17 days, and hasn’t opened overseas.
HOLDOVERS: NOPE (Universal) fell 58% from last week’s opening to $18.5M, worse than the 53% Weekend 2 drop for US, although Nope has the advantage of summer weekday business. (The initial Monday-Thursday for Nope was down only 10% from US‘s first set of weekdays, while the 2nd weekend is down 45%.) Nope may reach $125M in the US, but it will need to perform overseas (where it hasn’t yet launched) to do more than earn back its costs.
THOR: LOVE & THUNDER (Marvel/Disney) dropped 42% to $13.1M in its 4th weekend, still on its way to $335M in the US, which would be up about 10% from Ragnorak. However, its $360.9M overseas total is on pace to be down as much as 25% from its predecessor.
MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU (Illumination/Universal) wasn’t harmed too much by the arrival of Super-Pets, down 40% to $10.9M in its 5th weekend, as it cruises towards $350M in the US, similar to the return for the first Minions. Overseas, though, it has $389.9M after a $35.3M weekend in 79 territories, and is unlikely to approach its predecessor’s $823.4M.
TOP GUN: MAVERICK (Paramount) continued to do its thing, down just 20% to $8.2M in its 10th weekend, and possibly with the muscle to pass Avengers: Infinity War, the #6 movie all time in the US at $678.8M. It’s also massive overseas, where it has $671M after a $13.8M weekend in 64 markets.
WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING (Columbia/Sony) held well again, down 27% to $7.5M in its 3rd weekend, with $75M in its sights. It has $8.7M in early overseas release.
ELVIS (Warners) had the best hold in the Top 10, down 12% to $5.9M in its 6th weekend as it heads toward $150M in the US. It’s doing fair business overseas as well, with $105.3M to date.
THE BLACK PHONE (Blumhouse/Universal, also on VOD) is showing very strong legs for low-budget horror, down a mere 29% to $2.5M in its 6th weekend and closing in on $90M in the US. It also has $58.1M overseas.
JURASSIC WORLD: DOMINION (Universal, also on VOD) lost 33% to $2.1M in its 8th weekend, and should end at around $375M in the US, down 10% or so from Fallen Kingdom. Internationally it has $573M after a $13.7M weekend (of which $10.2M was from its opening in Japan, its last major scheduled market), and will be down over 30% from its predecessor.
MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON (A24) expanded again, this time by 40% to 821 theaters, but its weekend was nonetheless down 31% to $600K, and with a $700 weekend per-theater average it seems to have hit its wall, unlikely to cross $10M in the US. It hasn’t yet opened overseas.
LIMITED RELEASE: SHARP STICK (Utopia) launched at 2 theaters in NY/LA, and boosted by in-theater Q&A it averaged $9200. A LOVE SONG (Bleecker Street) opened at 4 theaters, and similarly helped out by in-theater Q&As, it averaged $4700. FIRE OF LOVE (Neon) widened to 191 with an $800 average. RESURRECTION (IFC) opened at 97 with a $950 average. MEDUSA (Music Box) arrived at 3 with a $700 average.
NEXT WEEKEND: The last big-ticket opening for quite a while is BULLET TRAIN (Columbia/Sony), which will be counterprogrammed by BODIES BODIES BODIES (A24) and EASTER SUNDAY (Universal).