Box Office: Madea Extinguishes Inferno With $16.6M Weekend

Box Office, Columns, News, Top Story

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Here’s a math problem that is easy to solve. Tom Hanks + Clint Eastwood = $$$. Tom Hanks + Ron Howard = $. Two months removed from the opening of Sully, Tom Hanks was back in theaters with Inferno, his third outing as the fictional Robert Langdon, protagonist of Dan Brown’s best-selling novels (The Da Vinci Code, Angels & Demons). Ah, but here’s the kicker: Brown’s novels have waned in popularity (Inferno got mixed reviews upon publication).

With The Da Vinci Code the book’s success helped in ushering in audiences. With a $77 million opening in May 2006, it would go on to make $758 million worldwide. Inferno will be lucky to clear $75 million domestic. Overseas, it is off to a strong start with $132 million. However, with an estimated $75 million budget plus another $75-$80 million tied into print and ad costs, this may be another financial bomb for director Ron Howard, who recently gave us In the Heart of the Sea starring Chris Hemsworth.

Inferno‘s $15 million bow was not enough to knock Tyler Perry’s Boo! A Madea Halloween from its No. 1 spot. The Madea comedy finished the weekend with an estimated $16.6 million to bring its two-week total to $52 million. Conceiveably, if Boo! has another good showing next weekend, it could be Tyler Perry’s second best performing film on his resume. Already it is a few $100k shy from overtaking 2013’s A Madea Christmas.

Dropping to third was Tom Cruise’s Jack Reacher: Never Go Back. It has made close to $40 million U.S. in two weeks. Internationally, it stands at $54 million. Unless it catches fire in other foreign territories, don’t expect a sequel. Ben Affleck’s The Accountant continues to perform steady thanks to word of mouth. In its third week its attendance dropped 37.9% as it added 70 new screens. Ouija: Origin of Evil added another $7 million to bring its total to $24.6 million.

Elsewhere, Tim Burton’s Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children is on the cusp of reaching $80 million. A far cry from Alice in Wonderland‘s $334 million, but a better performer than Burton’s Dark Shadows, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Big Eyes, and Big Fish. Rounding out the top 10 was the Indian release Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. Opening on 302 screens, the Bollywood release raked in $2.1 million.

In limited release the big story was A24’s Moonlight. Adding 32 screens to bring its count to 36, the drama made $900k and had a per-screen average of $25k, the best average of any film currently playing in theaters.

The upcoming weekend presents a three-headed monster of Marvel’s Doctor Strange, Mel Gibson’s Hacksaw Ridge and the animated Trolls. Look for Strange to take the weekend with ease followed by a strong showing by Trolls.

Complete Top 10 below.

01. Boo! A Madea Halloween – $16.6 Million ($52M)
02. Inferno – $15 Million
03. Jack Reacher: Never Go Back – $9.5 Million ($39.6M)
04. The Accountant – $8.4 Million ($61.1M)
05. Ouija: Origin of Evil – $7 Million ($24.6M)
06. The Girl on the Train – $4.2 Million ($65.9M)
07. Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children – $3.9 Million ($79.8M)
08. Keeping Up with the Joneses – $3.3 Million ($10.7M)
09. Storks – $2.7 Million ($68.2M)
10. Ae Dil Hai Mushkil – $2.1 Million1

Travis Leamons is one of the Inside Pulse Originals and currently holds the position of Managing Editor at Inside Pulse Movies. He's told that the position is his until he's dead or if "The Boss" can find somebody better. I expect the best and I give the best. Here's the beer. Here's the entertainment. Now have fun. That's an order!