Going to keep this report short as The Conjuring 2 succeeded my earnings expectations by opening to $40.3 million. For the supernatural horror subgenre that dollar amount makes it the fourth-highest debut of all time, behind Paranormal Activity 3 ($52.5M), The Conjuring ($41.8M) and Paranormal Activity 2 ($40.8M). Audiences were clearly looking for something beyond superheroes, mutant ninja turtles, and angry birds. Factor in overly positive reviews (with an aggregate RT score above 70%), The Conjuring 2 nearly matched the weekend earnings of its predecessor, which opened three years ago.
Taking second place with $24.3 million in estimated earnings was game developer’s Blizzard Entertainment’s first foray into theatrical adaptations, Warcraft. I’ve heard from various camps that the movie is all over the place in terms of story and action and CGI, which is a shame for director Duncan Jones; he deserved a better tentpole project after the stellar Moon and solid Source Code. The bright side is that the film is playing to packed audiences in international territories. It has amassed more than $260 million outside of the U.S.
Now You See Me 2 takes the bronze with $23 million. The opening is $6 million shy of 2013’s Now You See Me. Magic and sleight of hand may have worked once, but I don’t think I’m the only one that did not think NYSM was deserving of the franchise treatment. Much like I didn’t think there needed to be added installments to Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s Eleven.
The rest of last week’s top earners drop down three pegs with first-place finisher Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows now at No. 4 with $14.8 million (a 58.1% drop). The Angry Birds Movie (No. 7) and Alice Through the Looking Glass (No. 8) flip-flop from their previous finishes the week before. Sorry, Johnny. If you aren’t playing Capt. Jack Sparrow it seems audiences would rather see you walk the plank than pay money to see your latest case of histrionics.
Sadly, The Lonely Island’s Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping has made a quick exit out of the top 10 ($8.3M earned in two weeks), as has Shane Black’s The Nice Guys ($32.6M in 4 weeks).
On tap for the weekend it will be animatronic fish (Finding Dory) taking on the odd couple of Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart (Central Intelligence). Dory will take the weekend in a walk, but the question remains on how big its opening will be. The biggest openings in Pixar’s history are Toy Story 3 (with $110M) and Inside Out (with $90M). Could the Finding Nemo sequel be a better catch than either of those openings? We shall see.
Top 10 results below.
01. The Conjuring 2 – $40.3 Million
02. Warcraft – $24.3 Million
03. Now You See Me 2 – $23 Million
04. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows – $14.8 Million ($61M)
05. X-Men: Apocalypse – $10 Million ($136.3M)
06. Me Before You – $9 Million ($36.8M)
07. The Angry Birds Movie – $6.7 Million ($98M)
08. Alice Through the Looking Glass – $5.5 Million ($62.4M)
09. Captain America: Civil War – $4.3 Million ($396.8M)
10. The Jungle Book – $2.7 Million ($352.6M)
