Shazam! kept the superhero train going this weekend with a strong $53 million opening in first place, notching another success for the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) and kicking off the month of April in sizzling fashion following a near-record-breaking March. Fellow opener Pet Sematary also posted healthy numbers in second place, while the Taraji P. Henson drama The Best of Enemies had a so-so debut in sixth.
Despite boasting a title superhero with little name recognition outside of the DC comic book fandom, Shazam! soared in its opening frame thanks to a clever marketing campaign, terrific reviews (93% on Rotten Tomatoes), and a crowd-pleasing tone that, along with recent DCEU entries Wonder Woman and Aquaman, has successfully steered the franchise in a new, more light-hearted direction. The opening for the Warner Bros. release came in just a bit below the $57.2 million debut of the similarly-flavored Ant-Man, another character who – at least prior to launch – was less well-known outside the core fanbase.
As superhero movies go, it was somewhat of an uphill battle for Shazam! in the months leading up to release given the character’s low name recognition among general audiences. But the studio’s marketing team did a sensational job of creating a strong presence for the character both on- and offline while also positioning the film as a seeming antidote to the more brooding likes of DCEU installments like Justice League and Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice. As the blockbuster success of last year’s Aquaman proved, fans of the DC shared universe are hungry for a more playful tone along the lines of what Marvel has been serving up for the last decade-plus, and on that front Shazam! delivered. Including the $3.3 million Shazam! racked up in a special preview on March 23 (not included in the opening-weekend tally), the film’s total now stands at a terrific $56.6 million through Sunday. With a three-week window prior to the release of Disney/Marvel’s Avengers: Endgame and likely strong word of mouth (the Cinemascore on this one is an “A”), Shazam! has strong potential for a leggy run ahead.
Coming in a strong second was Pet Sematary, a new adaptation of Stephen King’s 1983 horror novel/a remake of the 1989 film. With $25 million for the weekend, the film finished a bit on the lower end of expectations (perhaps due to the continued strength of Us), but this is nonetheless a solid showing for the Paramount release. The success of the film was certainly boosted by the recent success of It, another Stephen King adaptation that debuted to an astonishing $123.4 million in September 2017 on its way to becoming the highest-grossing horror movie of all time ($327.4 million).
In terms of horror remakes, Pet Sematary opened right in line with 2013’s Evil Dead, which debuted with $25.7 million on its way to a $54.2 million total. Interestingly, both of those films received “C+” Cinemascores, suggesting Pet Sematary could finish in similar territory. That’s not a bad result when you consider its budget came in at a reported $21 million.
Third place went to last weekend’s top finisher Dumbo, which dropped a hefty 60% to an estimated $18.2 million on the heels of its $45.9 million debut. That’s a sharp dip, particularly for a family-oriented release, which suggests that audiences are cooling on the adorable flying elephant rather quickly. The Disney release now has $76.3 million after ten days, a disappointing total for the reported $170 million production and a stumble for Disney in terms of its slate of live-action reimaginings.
Us tallied an estimated $13.8 million in fourth place, a fairly steep drop of 58% from last weekend. That’s in part due to the arrival of Pet Sematary, which seems to have chipped away at its audience a bit. The Universal shocker now has a terrific $152.4 million after three weeks of release, putting the Jordan Peele-directed horror film within striking distance of Get Out‘s $176 million final gross.
In fifth, Captain Marvel continued to hold up well with an estimated $13 million, a drop of just 36% from last weekend. With $374.1 million so far, the MCU blockbuster is closing in on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, which finished its North American run with $389.8 million. Once it surpasses that, the Disney release will rank as the seventh highest-grossing MCU release ever in North America. It currently stands as the twelfth highest-grossing superhero release of all time in North America.
Sixth place went to the weekend’s final wide newcomer The Best of Enemies, which stars Taraji P. Henson as a civil rights activist circa 1971 who goes toe-to-toe with a Ku Klux Klan leader (Sam Rockwell) over the issue of school integration. The STX release brought in an estimated $4.5 million, a so-so result about in line with the wide opening of last fall’s eventual Best Picture winner Green Book. Unfortunately, without an awards campaign to keep the film afloat and only mediocre reviews (it’s currently at 51% on Rotten Tomatoes), this one is probably looking at a short life at the multiplex. It’s worth noting that audiences liked this one much better than critics; it received an overall “A” Cinemascore and an “A+” among women 35 and over, a demo that made up a large portion of its opening-weekend audience.
In seventh, the YA hit Five Feet Apart eased 40% to an estimated $3.7 million, giving The CBS Films title $41.5 million after four weeks of release.
After debuting to a stronger-than-expected $6.3 million last weekend, Pure Flix’s anti-abortion drama Unplanned fell to an estimated $3.2 million in its sophomore frame. The total for the faith-based film now stands at $12.4 million.
The two final spots in the Top 10 went to animated holdovers Wonder Park and How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, which brought in an estimated $2.04 million and $1.99 million, respectively. The former’s total now stands at a disappointing $41.9 million after four weeks, while the latter has a solid $156.6 million after seven weeks of release.
Limited Release:
A24’s “cosmic sci-fi epic” High Life starring Robert Pattinson and Juliette Binoche boasted the highest per-screen average of the weekend in its limited debut, opening to just over $100K on four screens (a per-screen average of $25K). The critically-acclaimed film from director Claire Denis will expand further next weekend.
Overseas Update:
Shazam! took in a solid $102 million this weekend from 79 overseas markets, bringing its worldwide opening gross to $158.6 million. The latest DCEU entry opened to $30.9 million in China (making it the No. 1 U.S. release in the market), $6.2 million in Mexico, $5.3 million in the U.K., $5.2 million in Russia, $5.1 million in Brazil, $4.1 million in Indonesia and $3.9 million in Korea. The Warner Bros. release opens in its final market Japan on April 19th.
Pet Sematary brought in an estimated $17.3 million overseas, bringing its worldwide opening total to $42.3 million. This weekend’s gross represents 73% of the film’s international footprint; markets left to release include France (April 10), Korea (April 11) and Brazil (May 9).
Dumbo brought in an estimated $39.6 in international markets, bringing its overseas cume to $137.5 million and its global tally to $213.8 million. Country totals include $18.6 million in China, $15.3 million in the U.K. and $14.7 million in Mexico.
Grossing another $10.3 million overseas, Us surpassed the $200 million mark worldwide over the weekend, a tally that includes $64.2 million from international markets.
Captain Marvel grossed an estimated $27 million internationally this weekend, bringing its overseas cume to $663.5 million and its global tally to an incredible $1.0376 million. The Marvel blockbuster is now the ninth highest-grossing superhero release of all time worldwide.
The post <em>Shazam!</em> Rockets to $53M; <em>Pet Sematary</em> Unearths $25M in 2nd appeared first on Boxoffice.
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