The past six weeks at the box office has been a tale of two very different movies. For most of February, it was the filthy, foul, R-rated "Deadpool" that dominated the multiplex, only for the pendulum to swing in the complete opposite direction with Disney‘s family flick "Zootopia" riding at the top of the box office, where this weekend, it has grabbed first place again, for its third straight week.
The numbers on the animated movie are great. The picture pocketed another $38 million domestically, contributing to a $102.8 million global haul, bringing the total worldwide number to $591 million. Few movies do this well on their third weekend in release, and indeed, "Zootopia" has placed eighth all-time in that category, behind a list of mostly blockbuster sequels. By the time all is said and done, "Zootopia" is looking at $900 million total, if not more. But its hold on the top spot likely ends this weekend with "Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice" on the way.
In second place, Lionsgate‘s "Allegiant" underperformed with $29 million. It’s way off last spring’s $52 million opening of "Insurgent" which ultimately went on to beat "Divergent" with a total worldwide haul of $297 million, with 56% of that number coming from international ticket sales. "Allegiant" pocketed $53 million abroad, bringing the opening weekend total to $82 million. However, with ‘Batman v Superman’ arriving on Friday, the picture is going to have to really fight to stay relevant both at home and internationally, and the studio might already be questioning their decision to split the finale of the series in two parts, and worrying how "Ascendant" will fare next spring.
Coming in third, Tri-Star‘s faith-based "Miracles From Heaven" found its audience, taking in a solid $15 million. The movie’s A+ CinemaScore indicates it has resonated strongly with its intended crowd, and moreover, should have solid word of mouth as it goes into Easter weekend. This should wind up being a tidy performer for the studio.
On 1,100 screens, Sony Pictures Classics‘ gymnastics comedy "The Bronze" fell hard earning a grim $421,434. That’s a woeful $361/screen, giving the Melissa Rauch vehicle the distinction of the worst opening of 2016 so far, and one whose low bar will be very difficult to beat.
In limited release, "Midnight Special" was strong, taking $185,000 on five screens, with a $35,000/screen average. It looks like Warner Bros.’ platform plan was a wise move instead of going wide, but given how busy they’ll be pushing ‘Batman v Superman’ next weekend, let’s hope they don’t take their eye off Jeff Nichols‘ movie. Meanwhile, A24‘s "Krisha" earned $10,250 on two screens, while 20th Century Fox‘s "El Clan" and Magnolia‘s "My Golden Days" took $12,500 and $27,000 respectively on three screens each.
1. “Zootopia” — $38 million ($201.8 mil.)
2. “The Divergent Series: Allegiant” — $29 million
3. “Miracles From Heaven” — $15 million
4. “10 Cloverfield Lane” — $12.5 million ($45.1 mil.)
5. “Deadpool” — 8 million ($340.9 mil.)
6. “London Has Fallen” — $6.8 million ($50 mil.)
7. “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” — $2.8 million ($19.2 mil.)
8. “The Perfect Match” — $1.9 million ($7.3 mil.)
9. “The Brothers Grimsby” — $1.4 million ($5.9 mil.)
10. “The Revenant” — $1.2 million ($181.1 mil.)
