How about that Jurassic World, huh? At first it looked like it finished just south of The Avengers in biggest domestic opening ever. But when estimates turned to actuals it became clear that more tickets were sold than previously thought, and it finished with $208 million. And it continues to smash records. Not only was it the fastest film to reach $300 million in the U.S. (8 days), it also achieved the highest grossing non-opening Tuesday at the box office with a little more than $24 million as well as non-holiday Monday gross ($25.3 million). For its second weekend it dropped 51.1% but still finished with $102 million. That’s an excellent hold for a summer tentpole, however the estimated gross is not a record breaker. That is, unless actuals have it finishing with more than $103 million, then it will dethrone another record held by The Avengers.
So, yeah, JW is sort of a big deal in the box office world.
Worldwide it is at an astronomical $981.3 million. Chances are better than 50/50 that it will become the fastest film to eclipse $1 billion (coincidentally, another Universal Studios production holds that distinction – Furious 7 achieved the milestone in 17 days).
As I predicted last weekend, Pixar’s streak of #1 openings has been broken. Not including the limited engagement A Bug’s Life had in its first weekend, this is the first time a Pixar release has not opened in first place. Nevertheless, Inside Out grossed $91 million in its debut, making it second to Toy Story 3 for a highest-grossing opening. Both it and JW combined for $193 million and with it helped to boost other films at the cineplex, most likely due to sell out shows and audiences choosing a replacement movie for the night instead.
Just look at Spy and San Andreas. The Melissa McCarthy comedy is close to $75 million in three weeks after a low first-place opening number. Dwayne Johnson’s earthquake disaster movie has sold more than $130 million in tickets and home, while worldwide it is near $400 million. Now that’s something to make you raise an eyebrow.
The only other newcomer in wide release is Open Road Films’ Dope. Debuting on 2,000 screenings, this hit from Sundance just couldn’t find a good foothold among the tentpole, star-driven titles. It made $6 million with a very low $3,006 per-screen average.
Pitch Perfect 2 and Mad Max: Fury Road have spent six weeks in the top ten and are close to a couple of milestones. The a capella musical is nearing $300 million globally, while Fury Road should surpass $350 million in the next few days. Then there’s that superhero movie sequel about a villain named Ultron. It’s at $1.3 billion worldwide, making it the fifth-highest grossing film of all time. Don’t you just love high ticket costs and special add-ons like 3D and IMAX presentations? It’s like the equivalent of juicing in pro sports. Makes what Jaws, which celebrated its 40th anniversary this weekend, all the more impressive.
In smaller release, Love & Mercy slipped out of the top ten but increased its viewership on its way to adding $1.7 million to its $7.1 million total overall. The Orchard’s The Overnight grossed $61,523 from three theaters for $20,507 per-screen average. IFC Films opened with David Gordon Green’s Al Pacino-starring Manglehorn in three theaters for a $13k weekend. Perhaps it will find a niche in the VOD market.
On tap for the weekend we have Ted 2 and Max as the two big releases, along with Amplify’s Felt as the indie release to be on the look out. Look for Seth McFarlane to get back to his winning ways after the dismal A Million Ways to Die in the West. The first Ted opened at $54 million the same weekend three years ago. Could the sequel possibly make it to the $70 million range, if not more? The top three should combine to numbers similar to what Jurassic World and Inside Out did this weekend.
Top 10 below.
01. Jurassic World — $102,019,000 ($398,230,000)
02. Inside Out — $91,056,000
03. Spy — $10,500,000 ($74,374,000)
04. San Andreas — $8,240,000 ($132,229,000)
05. Dope — $6,018,000
06. Insidious Chapter 3 — $4,110,000 ($45,370,000)
07. Pitch Perfect 2 — $3,300,000 ($177,500,000)
08. Mad Max: Fury Road — $2,815,000 ($143,602,000)
09. Avengers: Age of Ultron — $2,723,000 ($451,039,000)
10. Tomorrowland — $2,009,000 ($87,696,000)
