LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥� Moviegoers were not exactly feeling the Christmas spirit this weekend, or at least not based on their attendance at showings.
The big budget, star-driven action comedy with Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans sold $34.1 million in tickets in its first weekend in theaters, according to studio estimates Sunday. It easily topped a box office populated mostly by holdovers.
For traditional studios, a $34.1 million debut against a $200 million-plus production budget would be a clear indication of a flop. Some even peg the budget closer to $250 million. But 鈥淩ed One鈥� is an Amazon MGM Studios release with the luxury of playing the long game rather than relying solely on global box office where Johnson tentpoles often overperform. The film may have a life on Prime Video for years to come.
鈥淩ed One,鈥� in which Johnson plays Santa鈥檚 bodyguard, was originally built to go straight-to-streaming. It was greenlit prior to Amazon's acquisition of MGM. One interpretation of its lifecycle is that the theatrical earnings are not only just a bonus, but an additive gesture toward struggling theaters looking for a consistent stream of new films.
鈥淎mazon has 250 million plus worldwide subscribers to the platform. It鈥檚 similar to the way Netflix, I think, looks at stuff for their platform,鈥� said Kevin Wilson, head of distribution for Amazon MGM Studios. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a there鈥檚 a massive value for a movie like this in terms of how many eyeballs you鈥檙e going to get.鈥�
The first major studio holiday release since 2018, 鈥淩ed One鈥� opened on 4,032 screens, including IMAX and other large formats, on an otherwise quiet weekend for major releases.
鈥淲e鈥檙e really happy with the results," Wilson said. 鈥淚 think when you look at the theatrical marketplace that's sometimes unforgiving, especially for original films, this is a good result for us.鈥�
Since 2020, only seven films that weren't sequels or based on another piece of intellectual property have opened over $30 million (including 鈥淥ppenheimer鈥� and 鈥淣ope.鈥�)
Warner Bros. is handling the overseas release, where it has made an estimated $50 million in two weekends from 75 territories and 14,783 screens.
Still, it鈥檚 certainly not a theatrical hit in North America. Even made slightly more in its first weekend. 鈥淩ed One,鈥� directed by Jake Kasdan and produced by Johnson鈥檚 Seven Bucks, was roundly rejected by critics, with a dismal 33% Rotten Tomatoes score. Jake Coyle, in his review for The Associated Press, wrote that it 鈥渇eels like an unwanted high-priced Christmas present.鈥�
Audiences were kinder than they were to 鈥淛oker 2,鈥� giving it an A- CinemaScore, suggesting, perhaps, that the idea of it becoming a perennial holiday favorite is not so off-base.
鈥淩ed One鈥� is also overperforming in the middle of the country, Wilson said, and perhaps will have a nice holdover over Thanksgiving as a different option to the behemoths on the way.
Sony's added $7.4 million this weekend's box office to take second place, bringing its domestic total to $127.6 million. Globally, its total stands at $436.1 million.
Lionsgate's 鈥淭he Best Christmas Pageant Ever鈥� landed in third with $5.4 million. That much more modestly budgeted Christmas movie has already nearly doubled its $10 million production budget in two weeks. Fourth place went to A24鈥檚 Hugh Grant horror with $5.2 million, bumping its total gross to $20.4 million.
Universal and DreamWorks Animation鈥檚 rounded out the top five in its eighth weekend in theaters with an additional $4.3 million. The animated film surpassed $300 million worldwide.
This weekend is a bit of a stopover before the Thanksgiving tentpoles arrive. Next week, 鈥淲icked鈥� and face off in theaters with , which also stars Johnson, sailing in the Wednesday before the holiday.
鈥淕ladiator II鈥� also got a bit of a head start internationally, where it opened in 63 markets this weekend to gross $87 million. That's a record for filmmaker Ridley Scott and for an R-rated international release from Paramount. It opens in the U.S. and sa国际传媒 on Nov. 22.
Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore, said that the 鈥淩ed One鈥� is helping set into motion a momentum leading into the Thanksgiving corridor.
The upcoming releases, he said, 鈥渨ill finally bring some excitement to what has been a somewhat quiet post-Labor Day moviegoing marketplace.鈥�
Dergarabedian added that it could be 鈥渙ne of the biggest revenue generating Thanksgiving periods in box office history.鈥�
Final domestic figures will be released Monday. Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:
1. 鈥淩ed One,鈥� $34.1 million.
2. 鈥淰enom: The Last Dance,鈥� $7.4 million.
3. 鈥淭he Best Christmas Pageant Ever,鈥� $5.4 million.
4. 鈥淗别谤别迟颈肠,鈥� $5.2 million.
5. 鈥淭he Wild Robot,鈥� $4.3 million.
6. 鈥淪mile 2,鈥� $3 million.
7. 鈥淐onclave,鈥� $2.9 million.
8. 鈥淗ello, Love, Again,鈥� $2.3 million.
9. 鈥淎 Real Pain,鈥� $2.3 million.
10. 鈥淎nora,鈥� $1.8 million.
Lindsey Bahr, The Associated Press
