By Chris Kavan - 09/29/19 at 11:22 PM CT
It was a win-win for Universal Studios as the top two films at the box office can be claimed by the studio. The animated film, Abominable, opened on top while Downton Abbey (Focus Features - but Universal owns the world-wide rights) took runner-up. Many of the holdover, including Hustlers and It: Chapter Two, had strong holds as well while Judy made a splash in the top 10, and increased its awards-season hopes, with a strong opening in limited release. It will be interesting to see how the controversial Joker does next weekend as fall continues to enjoy some welcome returns.
1) ABOMINABLE
Universal's animated offering, Abominable, the first animated film to open in over a month, took the top spot at the box office with a $20.8 million opening. It is just the third "original" film of 2019 to open atop the box office, following Us and Good Boys. But in terms of opening, it is also quite low for DreamWorks Animation - with only Sinbad having a lower opening. It's well below the openings for Kung Fu Panda or Monsters vs. Aliens (both opening around the $60 million range) or The Croods ($43 million). The good news is the film carries a relatively light budget of $75 million and, with a little help from China, the film should wind up in the black in the long run. Animated films also tend to do well in the long run with audiences and the "A" Cinemascore means audiences were happy with the results. Said audience was 56% female. It was also a hit with critics, scoring 96% on Rotten Tomatoes. The next, big animated film slated is the updated Addams Family, dropping October 11th, so we'll see how Abominable does between now and then. On the international front the film opened to $8.8 million across 30 territories - though it's long-term prospects seem much better.
2)
DOWNTON ABBEY
Dipping just over 53%, Downton Abbey managed a $14.5 million weekend, powering the film across the $50 million mark with a new $58.5 million total. That already represents the fifth-best showing for a Focus Features film after a mere 10 days in theaters. It only has to reach the $83 million total of Brokeback Mountain to take the title outright - a goal that seems quite reasonable at this point. Granted, it may have taken a steeper drop than anticipated given the current competition at the box office, but this still seems like a mostly fan-driven affair, so big opening or not, I don't know how big an influence it had with general audiences. This should still have a decent showing in the coming weeks if adult audiences continue to show up and fans maybe give is another shot. In terms of TV adaptations, it has broken into the top 50 (remember, this includes Star Trek and Mission: Impossible films as well) and if it continues to play well, a place in the top 30 is likely.
3)
HUSTLERS
Hustles had an exceptional hold, dipping a light 31.8% from last weekend and actually moving from 5th place to 3rd place with a $11.47 million weekend and a new $80.6 million total. It also moved up to third place for STX, topping the $72 million for A Bad Moms Christmas - with just The Upside ($109 million) and Bad Moms ($113 million) left to go. Oh, and it had also earned 4x its $20 million budget thus far. It's worldwide total sits at $95 million as well and the film looks like it will continue to play well, given its current status and I have a feeling it will become the highest-grossing STX film in the end.
4)
IT: CHAPTER 2
Also having a great weekend-to-weekend hold, It: Chapter Two dipped a light 39% in its fourth weekend out, adding another $10.4 million and giving the film a new $194 million total. The film should hit $200 million by next weekend. Meanwhile, the film has also topped $400 million worldwide - $417 million to be exact, nearly 6x its $70 million budget. For an R-rated horror sequel, I'm going to go out on a limb and say this is about as good as you could hope for. I don't know how long it is going to stick around in October, but if it can make it anywhere near Halloween, I expect even bigger things for it.
5)
AD ASTRA
Brad Pitt's existential space adventure took a harsh 46.6% hit, adding $10.14 million for a new $35.5 million total. Given its current trajectory, the heady sci-fi film is looking at a domestic total just over the $50 million mark - or just half its $100 million budget. It's going to have to hope its international total holds up - with $53.5 million thus far, it's doing a bit better overseas, but it's going to have to improve on its $89 million worldwide total if it hopes to actually earn any money. I think this one is a bit too deep for general audiences, though I'm still interested in seeing how this one turns out but, like many people, just not willing to do so in theaters.
Outside the top five: Judy, the starring Renée Zellweger in the title role of Judy Garland during her 1968 tour of London, opened very strong with $3 million in just 461 theaters representing a top 12 best $6,706 per-theater average and 7th place showing. Zellweger has been earning plenty of buzz for the role and this bodes well for its awards-season chances. The film also earned an "A-" Cinemascore (60% female with 79% coming in 35 or older) and, if the film expands, should mean good things for its long-term chances.
Next week brings just one new wide release as well, Joker, which has been getting both acclaim and controversy - so it should be interesting to see how it affects its opening.
Comments
