Another weekend with more evidence that Hollywood’s box office tracking system is about as accurate as throwing darts blindfolded and seeing where it lands. It was only a few days ago that pundits were excitedly predicting that “Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them” would open to $90 million this weekend, but alas, the numbers are a lot smaller.
The first entry in a five film franchise, the “Harry Potter” spinoff debuted with $75 million. No doubt, that’s decent coin on paper, but it’s actually the lowest launch of any “Harry Potter” movie to date. I’d wager Warner Bros. was hoping for a slightly better performance domestically, but as per usual, the tale of the tape is international. Overseas, the movie hauled in $143 million, bringing the global total to $218 million, and the studio will likely be keeping a very close eye on China where “Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them” will arrive next weekend. If it does monster business there, the franchise will be in healthy shape, and bear in mind that overall, “Harry Potter” has traditionally skewed very heavily toward international box office.
While the reviews were nearly unanimously positive, STX has another flop on their hands with “The Edge Of Seventeen” opening to a meagre $4.8 million. Aside from the breakout hit “Bad Moms,” and the better than expected business from horror “The Boy,” the studio has seen “Hardcore Henry,” “Desierto,” and “Free State Of Jones” all disappointing in 2016. Whether or not they can end the year strong next month with “The Space Between Us” remains to be seen, as it will be facing some formidable competition. As for “The Edge Of Seventeen,” here’s hoping it gets the cult love it deserves in the years ahead.
Meanwhile, boxing flick “Bleed For This” was KO’d, taking in a paltry $2.3 million. The film didn’t come off the festival circuit in a great shape with mixed reviews, and Open Road just couldn’t get the marketing there to get audiences to buy tickets. Expect this one to be hustled out of theaters fairly quickly.
In box office milestones, after three weeks “Doctor Strange” has already hit $571 million worldwide. That eclipses the entire global run of “Ant-Man” ($519 million) which ran for twenty two weeks. You can guarantee a “Doctor Strange” sequel now and at this rate, the Marvel movie could hit $800 million total.
At the arthouse, it was “Manchester By The Sea” that was the per-screen-average champ, earning $241,230 on four screens or $60,308 each, while “Nocturnal Animals” took in $494,000 on thirty-seven screens for a $13,351 PSA.
1. “Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them” — $75 million
2. “Doctor Strange” — $17.6 million ($181.5 mil.)
3. “Trolls” — $17.5 million ($116.2 mil.)
4. “Arrival” — $11.8 million ($43.3 mil.)
5. “Almost Christmas” — $7 million ($25.4 mil.)
6. “Hacksaw Ridge” — $6.7 million ($42.8 mil.)
7. “The Edge Of Seventeen” — $4.8 million
8. “Bleed For This” — $2.3 million
9. “The Accountant” — $2.1 million ($81.2 mil.)
10. “Shut In” — $1.6 million ($6 mil.)