It was another strong March weekend at the North America box office as Lionsgate’s reboot Power Rangers had a mighty debut. However, it wasn’t enough to unseat the even mightier Beauty and the Beast, which had a terrific second frame. The news wasn’t as bright for two other new arrivals: Sony’s Life and Warner’s CHiPS. The former found very little financial life at the multiplex while the latter was an outright DUD.
Easing a mere 49% off of a record-setting bow, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast scored a massive $88.3 million in its sophomore session on 4,210 screens. After ten days, the blockbuster family feature has danced its way to a remarkable $317 million. The second weekend figures are the fourth best on record, just behind the second weekend grosses for Star Wars: The Force Awakens ($149 million), Jurassic World ($106.5 million) and Marvel’s The Avengers ($103 million).
Whereas the Disney marketing machine opened the film like gangbusters, word-of-mouth from happy ticket buyers is what will continue to power the film throughout the spring and into early summer. That should help translate into a domestic box office final tally north of $475 million and a global box office well over one billion dollars.
Beauty and the Beast added $120 million from international markets this weekend, which helped bring its foreign total up to $373 million. China is the big breadwinner for Beauty overseas. So far, the film has earned a sizeable $73 million there.
Successfully tapping into the ‘90s nostalgia pool was Lionsgate’s Saban’s Power Rangers, with a $40.5 million opening from 3,693 screens. The $105 million resurrection of The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers was met with scorn from critics but fans of the original seemed to dig it. They gave the PG-13 reboot an “A” on CinemaScore, which may help turn this into a midsized hit in the States. Overseas, the film opened with $18 million.
Warner’s Kong: Skull Island continued to roar loudly in third place with an estimated $14.4 million from 3,666 theaters. Off 48%, the monster monkey epic has earned $133.5 million after three weeks of release. A final domestic total around $155 million is possible.
Skull Island’s international totals nudged ever so closer to the $200 million mark this weekend thanks to a monster-sized debut of $51 million in China. Kong’s foreign total is currently at $193 million.
Opening softly in fourth place was Sony’s sci-fi thriller Life with an estimated $12.6 million from 3,146 theaters. The $58 million production starring Ryan Reynolds and Jake Gyllenhaal received decent reviews from the critics, but failed to find much of an audience. Those who did show up to see the sci-fi thriller weren’t all that impressed with the film. They gave the film a “C+” on CinemaScore, which could translate into a short lifespan at the box office. Following last year’s Passengers, Life represents the second big budget sci-fi misfire for Sony Pictures.
Rounding out the top five was Fox’s mutant hit Logan, which passed the $200 million milestone thanks to a $10.5 million gross from 3,163 theaters. Off 43%, the overall domestic total for Logan stands at $201.4 million. Overseas, Charles and Logan have brought in $346 million to date.
- Get Out (Universal) $8.6 million (-35%); $147.4 million
- CHiPs (Warner) $7.6 million
Few were interested in Dax Shepard’s critically slammed, laugh-free comedic take on the popular TV show from the late 1970s. The film did earn a “B+” from ticket buyers on CinemaScore, but it’s highly doubtful it will translate into any sort of box office longevity for the $26 million misfire.
- The Shack (Lionsgate) $3.7 million (-37%); $49 million
- The LEGO Batman Movie (Warner) $1.97 million (-57%); $171 million
- The Belko Experiment (Blumhouse Tilt/Orion) $1.8 million (-56%); $7.5 million
The final weekend of March sees the arrival of the animated comedy Boss Baby and the live-action version of the popular anime Ghost in the Shell starring Scarlett Johansson. Both should open to decent numbers, but neither will unseat the reigning Belle of the box office ball.
