NEW YORK 鈥 It took six weeks but 鈥淏lack Panther鈥 has finally been unseated as the top film at the North American box office. The monsters vs. robots science-fiction sequel 鈥淧acific Rim: Uprising鈥 dethroned the superhero sensation with $28 million in ticket sales over the weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday.
But the result for 鈥淧acific Rim: Uprising,鈥 a Universal Pictures-Legendary Entertainment release that cost $150 million to make, was soft 鈥 at least domestically. Like the recently released 鈥淭omb Raider,鈥 its biggest business was in China. 鈥淧acific Rim: Uprising鈥 debuted there with $65 million for Legendary, which the Chinese conglomerate Wanda Group acquired in 2016.
And even though 鈥淏lack Panther鈥 slid to second place with $16.7 million in its sixth weekend, Ryan Coogler鈥檚 film notched another box-office milestone. It鈥檚 now the highest-grossing superhero film ever in North America, not accounting for inflation. The film鈥檚 $631 million in domestic ticket sales has surpassed the $623 million of 2012鈥檚 鈥淭he Avengers.鈥 鈥滲lack Panther鈥 also becomes the fifth highest grossing film of all-time, rising above 鈥漇tar Wars: The Last Jedi.鈥
Yet the record-breaking hit of 鈥淏lack Panther鈥 has been followed by a string of lacklustre performers, including 鈥淭omb Raider,鈥 鈥滱 Wrinkle in Time鈥 and 鈥漅ed Sparrow.鈥 鈥漃acific Rim: Uprising鈥 may have taken down the champ, but a blockbuster heir to 鈥滲lack Panther鈥 is yet to be found. Next weekend, Steven Spielberg will try with his big-budget virtual-reality spectacle 鈥漅eady Player One.鈥
Hollywood has essentially already squandered the early lead 鈥淏lack Panther鈥 gave it. Despite the firepower of 鈥淏lack Panther,鈥 the year is running 2.6 per cent behind 2017 at U.S and sa国际传媒 theatres, according to comScore. This weekend was down 36.5 per cent from last year when 鈥淏eauty and the Beast鈥 was in its second week and the surprisingly successful 鈥淧ower Rangers鈥 debuted.
鈥淥ne movie isn鈥檛 enough to support a whole marketplace,鈥 said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for comScore. 鈥淲e need a real shot in the arm here. 鈥橮acific Rim,鈥 that鈥檚 a fine opening. But we need bigger numbers to be put up.鈥
鈥淧acific Rim: Uprising鈥 could point to better results abroad, where it grossed $122.5 million over the weekend. The July 2013 original, directed by Guillermo del Toro, was likewise conceived as an East-West hybrid tailored after classic kaiju movies, the Japanese giant monster genre. It launched with $37.3 million domestically and $45 million in China.
The $411 million worldwide haul for del Toro鈥檚 film was enough to prompt a sequel, even if enthusiasm for a second installment was considerably higher in Asia. Steven S. DeKnight co-wrote and directed 鈥淯prising,鈥 which critics largely slammed. It scored a 46 per cent fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
鈥淭he domestic market was a very important part of it and we really came in above any reasonable expectations,鈥 said Jim Orr, domestic distribution chief for Universal. 鈥淭his was always engineered to be a worldwide event film.鈥
The strategy was similar for Warner Bros.鈥 鈥淭omb Raider鈥 reboot, starring Alicia Vikander. Domestically, it dropped steeply in its second week, sliding 56 per cent with $10.4 million. Sales have been brisker overseas, where 鈥淭omb Raider鈥 has grossed $170 million thus far.
MGM and Paramount Pictures鈥 animated family sequel 鈥淪herlock Gnomes鈥 disappointed with a $10.6 million debut. Forecasts had been higher for the sequel to 鈥淕nomeo & Juliet,鈥 which grossed $194 million worldwide in 2011.
The results were also modest for Steven Soderbergh鈥檚 鈥淯nsane,鈥 a psychological thriller starring Claire Foy (鈥淭he Crown鈥) that the director shot with iPhones. The Bleecker Street-Fingerprint Releasing film opened with $3.9 million in 2,023 theatres. Though both were inexpensively made, neither of Soderbergh鈥檚 first two films following his brief retirement from Hollywood has made much of a dent at the box office. Last year鈥檚 鈥淟ogan Lucky,鈥 starring Channing Tatum, tapped out at $27.8 million domestically.
But there were also bright spots. The Christian drama 鈥淚 Can Only Imagine鈥 held especially strongly in its second weekend. The Lionsgate-Roadside Attractions release grossed $13.8 million, bringing its two-week total to $38.5 million. 鈥淚 Can Only Imagine鈥 has emerged as the clear faith-based film of choice ahead of Easter, likely to the detriment of 鈥淧aul: Apostle of Christ,鈥 which took in $5 million this weekend for Sony鈥檚 Affirm Films.
And in limited release, Wes Anderson鈥檚 stop-motion animated 鈥淚sle of Dogs鈥 got off to a healthy start with $1.6 million in 27 theatres. Fox Searchlight, coming off its best-picture win at the Academy Awards for 鈥淭he Shape of Water,鈥 carefully selected the opening-weekend theatres to cater to Anderson鈥檚 die-hard fans.
鈥淲e just wanted to be out there to give his audience an opportunity to find the film,鈥 said Frank Rodriguez, distribution head for Searchlight.
Anderson is coming off the biggest box-office hit of his career. 鈥淭he Grand Budapest Hotel鈥 grossed $175 million worldwide in 2014. 鈥淚sle of Dogs,鈥 about a Japanese island of misfit canines in a future dystopia, has been received with nearly equal fanfare. Critics gave it a 93 per cent fresh Rotten Tomatoes score, audiences gave it an 鈥淎鈥 CinemaScore and Searchlight noted its opening-weekend audience was more than 60 per cent under the age of 30. But it has also sparked questions of cultural appropriation.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know how that鈥檚 going to affect most of the audience,鈥 said Rodriguez. 鈥淲e know that audiences want to see it. We can hope that people make their own decisions and hopefully look at the film as an homage to a great culture and great filmmakers. It鈥檚 pretty much Wes.鈥
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theatres, according to comScore. Where available, the latest international numbers also are included. Final three-day domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. 鈥淧acific Rim: Uprising,鈥 $28 million ($122.5 million international).
2. 鈥淏lack Panther,鈥 $16.7 million ($12.9 million international).
3. 鈥淚 Can Only Imagine,鈥 $13.8 million.
4. 鈥淪herlock Gnomes,鈥 $10.6 million.
5. 鈥淭omb Raider,鈥 $10.4 million.
6. 鈥淎 Wrinkle in Time,鈥 $8 million.
7. 鈥淟ove, Simon,鈥 $7.8 million.
8. 鈥淧aul, Apostle of Christ,鈥 $5 million.
9. 鈥淕ame Night,鈥 $4.2 million.
10. 鈥淢idnight Sun,鈥 $4.1 million.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at international theatres (excluding the U.S. and sa国际传媒), according to comScore:
1. 鈥淧acific Rim: Uprising,鈥 $122.5 million.
2. 鈥淭omb Raider,鈥 $34.1 million.
3. 鈥淧eter Rabbit,鈥 $28 million.
4. 鈥淏lack Panther,鈥 $12.9 million.
5. 鈥淭he Boss Baby,鈥 $7.8 million.
6. 鈥淩ed Sparrow,鈥 $6.2 million.
7. 鈥淥peration Red Sea,鈥 $6.2 million.
8. 鈥淭he Shape of Water,鈥 $5.2 million.
9. 鈥淏e With You,鈥 $5.1 million.
10. 鈥淐oco,鈥 $4.5 million.
