It was a rather halfhearted session for theaters across North America this weekend as a glut of new movies debuted in wide release only to bomb right out of the gate. Only the Universal sequel Pacific Rim: Uprising managed to make any noise, and even that was nothing to write home about. Uprising did, however, managed to do what other big-ticket box office turkeys of late could not do: it unseated Black Panther from the number one spot.
Five years ago this summer, Warner/Legendary Pictures’ Pacific Rim opened with a mild $37 million en route to a domestic finale of $101.8 million. Considering that the film cost at least twice that to produce and market, all signs pointed to the film being a “one and done” deal.
But that was before the international grosses were factored in. Powered by a $119 million gross in China, Pacfic Rim wound up with a profitable $309 million overseas, which was more than enough for Legendary to commit to a sequel.
With a new cast, director and studio partnering up on distribution, Pacific Rim Uprising opened in theaters worldwide this past Friday. In North America, Uprising touched down on 3,780 screens where it punched up a mild $28 million. Overseas, the John Boyega headliner scored a big $122 million. Not surprisingly, $65 million of the international gross came from China.
While the reviews for the 2013 original –directed by recent Oscar winner Guillermo del Toro- were hardly a unanimous chorus of approval, it did score a decent enough 71% on Rotten Tomatoes. Uprising, on the other hand, wasn’t as lucky. It scored a rusty 46% approval on Rotten Tomatoes and a 44/100 on Metacritic.
Even ticket buyers, who usually ignore critics when it comes to films like this one, weren’t overly thrilled by what they saw. They gave the film a middling “B” on CinemaScore, a grade that doesn’t bode well for the film’s box office longevity. But don’t worry: if you enjoyed Uprising and it continues to do gangbuster business in China, we’ll get Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Kaiju 3 before long.
It may no longer be a box office king, but isn’t stopping Black Panther from continuing to make money or advance in the movie history books. Panther scored an estimated $16.7 million added from 3,370 screens in its sixth round, which brought its domestic total up to $631 million. The film has officially passed 2012’s The Avengers’ $623 million to become the biggest superhero film of all time, pre-inflation. Overseas, Black Panther has banked $606.4 million for an overall global total of $1,237 billion.
After surprising many with its strong debut one week ago, Roadside Attractions’ I Can Only Imagine had a strong sophomore session thanks to word-of-mouth –the film only dropped 19% in business this weekend- and the addition of 634 screens. Now playing in 2,253 venues, I Can Only Imagine sung up an estimated $13.8 million, bringing its overall total up to $38.3 million so far. A final box office between $65-70 million is possible for the $7 million production.
Seven years ago, Disney released an animated comedy called Gnomeo and Juliet. Dumped in the dead of winter, the family flick was a surprise hit, scoring $193 million from the worldwide box office. The lawn gnomes returned to theaters this weekend in Paramount/MGM’s Sherlock Gnomes, but few bothered to welcome them back. Gnomes landed with a thud in fourth place with a hollow $10.6 million 3,662 theaters. Reviews were awful for the cartoon: 21% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 41/100 on Metacritic. On CinemaScore, Sherlock Gnomes fared a bit better where it earned a “B+.”
It’s game over for Lara Croft in North America as Tomb Raider fell a sharp 56% in its second weekend, where it scored an estimated $10.4 million from 3,854 screens. After ten days, Raider has unearthed a dim $42 million domestically. Overseas however, the reboot has scored a terrific $170 million so far.
- A Wrinkle in Time (Disney) $8 million (-51%); $73.8 million
- Love, Simon (Fox) $7.8 million (-34%); $23.6 million
- Paul, Apostle of Christ (Sony) $5 million
Sony found few followers with their new religious drama starring Jim Caviezel. On the plus side for the studio, the movie carries a production tag of only $5 million.
- Game Night (Warner/New Line) $4.1 million (-26%); $61 million
- Midnight Sun (Open Road Films) $4.1 million
Outside the top ten, Fox Searchlight’s latest Wes Anderson offering Isle of Dogs opened Friday on 27 screens where it scored a fantastic $1.57 million. The PG-13 animated feature expands to 150 screens this Wednesday ahead of a nationwide release in early April.
Thursday sees the nationwide arrival of Steven Spielberg’s Ready Player One, which should have no trouble at all taking over the number one spot at the box office. God’s Not Dead 3 and Acrimony also arrive in theaters across the country on Good Friday.
