OPENINGS: DUNE (Legendary/Warners, also on HBO Max) launched in US theaters at $40.1M, the highest start for a film also premiering on HBO Max. (And while Warners had previously preserved Thursday night for theatrical-only, the studio allowed Dune to hit HBO Max nationwide simultaneous with its first East Coast screenings.) The film should also benefit from being the first big-budget arrival in the past month that won’t face direct competition in its 2nd weekend, although it’s likely to hit a brick wall in Weekend 3 when Eternals opens. With the HBO Max factor in play, Dune will hope to reach $125M in the US. Overseas, it’s at $180.6M after a $47.4M weekend in 75 territories, which included a $21.9M opening in China. A worldwide $350M total wouldn’t have been considered a success in 2019 for a movie with Dune‘s mammoth budget, but times have changed.
RON’S GONE WRONG (20th/Disney) could only manage $7.3M, and probably would have gone straight to streaming if it hadn’t been covered by the pre-Disney merger Fox pay-TV agreements that require a theatrical window. It might see $20M in the US, and also launched at $10M overseas.
HOLDOVERS: HALLOWEEN KILLS (Blumhouse/Universal, also on Peacock) plunged 71% to $14.5M in its 2nd weekend, which is front-loaded even for the horror genre (its 2018 predecessor fell 59% in Weekend 2). Still, a $100M US total would be quite profitable for the low-budget thriller. Halloween Kills also has $17.8M overseas.
NO TIME TO DIE (MGM) dropped 50% to $11.9M in its 3rd weekend, and now seems headed to a $155M US total, which would be the lowest of the Daniel Craig Bond films. It’s reached $405.6M overseas after a $33.1M weekend in 72 markets, with China opening next week.
VENOM: LET THERE BE CARNAGE (Marvel/Columbia/Sony) dropped 45% to $9.1M in its 4th weekend, and should top $200M in the US before it’s done, similar to the $213.5M for the first Venom. However, so far it isn’t close to its predecessor’s $642.6M international total, with $170.6M after a $38.3M weekend in 53 territories.
THE ADDAMS FAMILY 2 (UA/MGM, also on VOD) lost 39% to $4.3M in its 4th weekend, on its way to $60M in the US. It also has $18.7M overseas.
THE LAST DUEL (20th/Disney) didn’t benefit from word of mouth, down 56% to $2.1M in its 2nd weekend, and en route to a disastrous $15M US total, with an additional $9.2M overseas.
SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE 10 RINGS (Marvel/Disney) will soon make way for stablemate Eternals and should get past $225M in the US, for the moment the highest-grossing film of 2021 in this market. In its 8th weekend, it was down 40% to $2M. Internationally, it has $196.6M without the benefit of a China release.
LIMITED RELEASE: THE FRENCH DISPATCH (Searchlight/Disney) gave arthouse cinema its best news of the pandemic era with a robust $25K weekend per-theater average at 52 houses for a $1.3M weekend total. The film itself will face a challenge next weekend with a scheduled expansion to 600 theaters, but that result suggests that the indie audience may be coming out of its hibernation. BECOMING COUSTEAU (Picturehouse) wasn’t in that league with a $350 average at 319. MASS (Bleecker Street) widened to 59 with a $400 average.
NEXT WEEKEND: Halloween is typically a quiet weekend at the box office, and that’s likely to be particularly so this year with the festive day on Sunday. The arrivals are thrillers LAST NIGHT IN SOHO (Focus/Universal) and ANTLERS (Searchlight/Disney).
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