Warner Bros. has earned its flowers and then some by achieving another $40 million-plus debut for one of its latest projects, Weapons. Having earned very positive reviews and an A- from CinemaScore, this $42.5 million opening bodes well for The Conjuring: Last Rites in September. It is also a nice little stark reminder that WB has been on fire recently with some originals in the past few years (minus Jordan Peele’s Nope, which Universal distributed in 2022). The marketing kicks in when you least expect it, pal.
The $27.5 million earned from overseas territories brings the total to $70 million globally, which is a strong opening for a horror original. Put those fears aside about horror becoming entrenched as another IP formula that scares audiences; it still earns its reputation when sold correctly, turning in profits.
In other news, Disney’s Freakier Friday opened with $29 million. For a “just the comedy” ride, this Disney 22-year sequel did pretty well in bringing some folks back in for nostalgia’s sake when Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis were kicking it in 2003. I’m not certain if making a kids’ feature aimed at a past generation (yours, indeed, included) was the right call, as this reeks of Hollywood’s most sour-tasting attempts at revitalizing IP because folks “liked” it. But, for the genre, this has to be deemed a pass. Regarding its predecessor, it may end up legging around $115-125 million domestically.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps took in $15.5 million in its third weekend, bringing it to $230 million domestic and $434 million worldwide. Yes, $500 million globally plus should be a no-brainer, and yes, this is a step in the right direction as Disney (and Sony) have been milking the sneak peaks/teases/first clips of Spider-Man: Brand New Day. However, for the umpteenth time, the MCU is no longer a bona fide brand name and has reached its limit for its extensive list of films that are not branded under “The Avengers” or “Spider-Man.” We get it: Hollywood had factors beyond its control, but Disney should’ve mitigated that with a methodical approach to the box office, rather than overshadowing homework assignments on Disney+. It’s enervating as much as it is vexing to continue trudging these lines, but when your latest “we finally did justice to the family right!” on the fourth try is barely selling more tickets than the 2005 version and legging like the abomination in the 2015 version, it proves that the woes had to catch up somewhere (if die-hard folks didn’t want to see it with Quantumania, The Marvels, Brave New World, and Thunderbolts).
The Bad Guys 2 earned $10.4 million in its second weekend, with a 53% drop. That’s a decent hold for the animation sequel, but it won’t receive much preservation in trying to outdo its predecessor, which did so well in 2022. The Naked Gun took in $8.375 million in its second weekend and has passed $56 million worldwide. Superman took in $7.8 million in its fifth weekend and is past $578 million globally (maybe in another week or so, expect it to reach $600 million).
Jurassic World Rebirth will pass $800 million worldwide before the end of this sentence. F1: The Movie has passed $570 million worldwide, and might drive on all cylinders to reach $600 million. Neon’s Together snagged $2.6 million in its second weekend, and other newcomer Sketch opened with $2.57 million.
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning has concluded its run, earning $596 million worldwide. Dang it, Tom Cruise, you should’ve re-released it once more with additional scenes to get it past $200 million domestically and $600 million globally!
Next weekend sees the release of Nobody 2, Americana, Highest 2 Lowest, The Knife, East of Wall, and Under Fire.
