'Ford V Ferrari' Easily Takes The Win In The Weekend Box Office Race As 'Charlie's Angels' Fizzles

A trio of beautiful superspies didn’t stand a chance this weekend at the box office, as it was the duo of Christian Bale and Matt Damon that not only took the top prize but did so in dominating fashion. Sadly, the battle between “Ford v Ferrari” and “Charlie’s Angels” proved to be far less interesting than the period racing drama that won the weekend.

Debuting in the top spot, “Ford v Ferrari,” from director James Mangold, easily took home the checkered flag and earned an impressive $31 million in its first three days and $52 million worldwide. While this isn’t a massive debut, especially for a film that is estimated to have cost roughly $96 million to produce, the film’s rock-solid 92% on Rotten Tomatoes and ‘A+’ CinemaScore mean that ‘Ford’ likely has plenty of gas left in its tank and should prove to be consistent over the next few weeks, as more family-friendly fare debut, such as “Frozen 2.”

READ MORE: Christian Bale & Matt Damon Take A Thrilling Ride In James Mangold’s ‘Ford v Ferrari’ [Review]

And with the solid debut, “Ford v Ferrari” continues its push for awards season relevancy. Mangold, Bale, and Damon all seem poised to factor into the Oscar discussion, and with the nice debut, strong reviews, and the potential to be a box office hit, Fox might just have at least one decent showing in 2019. Previously, films such as “Dark Phoenix,” “Ad Astra,” and, to a lesser extent, “Stuber,” have proven to be pretty big misses for the studio. Maybe ‘Ford’ is the type of film to turn around the studio’s losing ways as it goes into awards season and 2020.

Speaking of losing, let’s talk about the debut weekend for Sony’s “Charlie’s Angels.” The film was originally supposed to be released two weeks ago, but once the film found itself faced with competition from “Terminator: Dark Fate,” the studio decided that ‘Angels’ would be better suited closer to Thanksgiving. Sadly, it appears that perhaps Sony was mistaken, as “Charlie’s Angels” debuted in 3rd place, with a dismal $8.6 million in its first weekend. Depending on how the film fares on Sunday, tomorrow, we could be looking at the film dropping to #4, as estimates already put “Playing with Fire” only $50,000 behind the action film.

READ MORE: ‘Charlie’s Angels’: Kristen Stewart’s Your Playful Girl Crush In An Otherwise Silly, Sexy, Forgettable Actioner [Review]

This is a dreadful opening, even when you consider “Charlie’s Angels” only carries a modest $48 million budget. With reviews being mixed (60% on Rotten Tomatoes), Sony was hoping that there was plenty of buzz surrounding the three stars of the film (primarily Kristen Stewart) and the film’s director/co-star Elizabeth Banks. And while the film did earn a decent ‘B+,’ there’s just not enough people buying tickets to think that “Charlie’s Angels” will be able to turn a profit during its theatrical run. Not even China could save the film, as the worldwide total for ‘Angels’ sits at $28 million after one weekend.

So, as we ask ourselves every single time a film underperforms at the box office, what went wrong? Well in the case of “Charlie’s Angels,” it likely comes down to a couple of issues. First, there is just a fair amount of competition in the multiplex right now, with older crowds flocking to ‘Ford’ and other prestige dramas, while younger folks have various films that are calling them. And the primary audience for “Charlie’s Angels,” women and girls, just didn’t show up. But there’s also the issue that can kill an action movie, let alone a film that is based on an existing IP, it just isn’t very exciting.

If you look at “Charlie’s Angels” versus other spy films, such as “Mission: Impossible – Fallout,” there’s really no competition. The film’s action set pieces are very small and there’s nothing during the film’s run time that will make people sit on the edge of their seats. Perhaps that’s an issue for Banks, who previously directed “Pitch Perfect 2” and doesn’t seem like someone that might be equipped to handle blockbuster action. But sadly, “Charlie’s Angels” doesn’t have a lot of strong comedy, either. Say what you will about the early-2000s ‘Angels’ films, directed by McG, but each one looked incredible, with strong action and goofy comedy. Not even Kristen Stewart can save the 2019 reboot.

READ MORE: ‘The Good Liar’: Helen Mirren & Ian McKellen Can’t Save This Truly Dull Thriller [Review]

The final major debut for the weekend is “The Good Liar,” starring Ian McKellen and Helen Mirren. The film earned $5.7 million in its first frame and that puts it right in the #7 spot for the weekend. With a reported budget of only $10 million, “The Good Liar” was never likely going to be a huge box office force, but should find itself faring pretty well and may just turn a profit for Warner Bros.

As for the disappointing film from last weekend, “Doctor Sleep,” the horror film from #2 all the way down to #6 in its second weekend, earning a depressing $6.2 million. That puts the Stephen King adaptation at a miserable $25 million domestically after two weekends. Not good.

READ MORE: Stephen King Continues To Stump For ‘Doctor Sleep’ As Analysts Predict Film Will Lose $30 Million For WB

In limited release, A24 found a great opening for the new film from director Trey Edwards Shults, “Waves.” In only 4 theaters, “Waves” earned an impressive per-theater-average of $36,141. That’s a solid start for the indie drama, which could find itself in the awards discussion later this year, as well. We’ll have to keep an eye on it as it expands in the weeks to come.

READ MORE: ‘Waves’: An Impressive Ensemble Bare Their Souls In Trey Edward Shults’ Unwieldy Ambitious Drama [Review]

Next weekend sees the debut of three wide releases, as the Russo Brothers-produced action film “21 Bridges,” the Tom Hanks-led drama “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood,” and Disney’s “Frozen 2” all hit multiplexes. Now, it’s clear that “Frozen 2” will win the weekend, but we will have to wait and see how it affects the rest of the films. Can Disney suck all the air out of the box office yet again in 2019? We’ll find out in a week.

Here’s the entire domestic top 10 for November 15 to November 17:
1. Ford v Ferrari – $31M (Debut)
2. Midway – $8.75M ($35M Overall)
3. Charlie’s Angels – $8.6M (Debut)
4. Playing with Fire – $8.55M ($25.5M)
5. Last Christmas – $6.7M ($22.6M)
6. Doctor Sleep – $6.2M ($25M)
7. The Good Liar – $5.7M (Debut)
8. Joker – $5.6M ($323M)
9. Maleficent: Mistress of Evil – $5.2M ($106M)
10. Harriet – $4.8M ($32M)