LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥� The Godzilla-King Kong combo stomped on expectations as 鈥� 鈥� roared to an $80 million opening on 3,861 North American screens, according to Sunday studio estimates.
The monster merger from Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures starring Rebecca Hall and Brian Tyree Henry brought the second-highest opening in what has been a robust year, falling just short of the the $81.5 million debut of 鈥淒une: Part 2.鈥�
Projections had put the the opening weekend of 鈥淕odzilla x Kong: The New Empire,鈥� which sees the monsters teaming up instead of squaring up, at closer to $50 million.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a cinematic event, and we鈥檙e seeing these iconic characters doing things we鈥檝e never seen them do before,鈥� said Mary Parent, chairman of worldwide production for Legendary. 鈥淭here鈥檚 big swaths of the film that don鈥檛 have any dialogue, where we put you with the characters, it鈥檚 a very mythic experience.鈥�
Last week's , 鈥� ,鈥� was second with $15.7 million for a two-week total of $73.4 million.
鈥� 鈥� stayed strong in its fifth week, falling in the third spot with an $11.1 million take and a domestic total of $252.4 million.
The last matchup of the two monsters from Warner Bros. and Legendary, 2021's 鈥� ,鈥� had a much smaller opening weekend of $48.5 million, but for a film slowed by the coronavirus pandemic and released simultaneously on HBO Max, it was a serious success that signaled what was to come for the pairing.
鈥淚t was a really big number all things considered,鈥� Parent said.
The newer film had the second biggest opening of the studios' broader MonsterVerse franchise. 鈥淕odzilla鈥� brought in $93.2 million in 2014. It was the biggest earner in the nearly 70-year cinematic history of the creature that originated and spent most of its screen life in Japan. It earned more than $200 million in North America and more than $500 million globally.
鈥淕odzilla x Kong鈥� comes just four months after the most recent Japanese rendition, the critical favorite and
But there was clearly no Godzilla glut for audiences, many of whom were willing to pay extra for IMAX and other special formats.
鈥淭hese are literally two of the biggest movie stars in the world, and you have to see them on the biggest screen possible with the biggest sound possible,鈥� said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for data firm Comscore.
The combination of 鈥淕odzilla x Kong," 鈥淒une Part Two鈥� and 鈥淕hostbusters" has put the year to date 6 percent behind 2023, while it was 20 percent behind on the eve of the March 1 release of 鈥淒une."
鈥淭he industry was feeling pretty glum right before 鈥楧une Part 2鈥� opened, but they've made up a lot of ground,鈥� said Dergarabedian.
The summer is full of titles that are not guaranteed megahits but could break big, including Ryan Gosling's 鈥淭he Fall Guy" and the next installments of 鈥淧lanet of the Apes,鈥� 鈥淢ad Max,鈥� 鈥淚nside Out鈥� and 鈥淒eadpool.鈥�
That brings cause for optimism as the theatrical movie business seeks to hang on, though it鈥檚 highly unlikely it will surpass 2023, which saw 鈥淏arbie鈥� surpass $1 billion globally with its release-date mate 鈥淥ppenheimer鈥� not far behind.
鈥�'Barbenheimer'鈥� is kind of a once-in-a-lifetime event," Dergarabedian said.
Estimated ticket sales are for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. 鈥淕odzilla x Kong: The New Empire,鈥� 80 million.
2. 鈥淕hostbusters: Frozen Empire,鈥� $15.7 million.
3. 鈥淒une: Part Two," $11.1 million.
4. 鈥淜ung Fu Panda 4,鈥� $10.2. million.
5. 鈥淚mmaculate,鈥� $3.3 million.
6. 鈥淎rthur the King,鈥� $2.4 million.
7. 鈥淟ate Night With the Devil,鈥� $2.2 million.
8. 鈥淭illu Square,鈥� $1.8 million.
9. 鈥淐rew,鈥� $1.5 million.
10. 鈥淚maginary,鈥� $1.4 million.
Andrew Dalton, The Associated Press
