Weekend Wrap-Up: Good Does Well, Box Office is Still Weak

August 20, 2019

Good Boys

It’s the dog days of summer and Good Boys was the only new release with an impressive debut of $21.40 million, while The Angry Birds Movie 2’s $16.09 million six-day debut isn’t a bad start for this time of year. There were a few holdovers to earn more than $10 million over the weekend, so the overall box office wasn’t a disaster, just a disappointment down 9.5% from last weekend to $119 million. More importantly, this is 7.7% lower the the same weekend last year. Year-to-date, 2019 has pulled in $7.35 billion, but this is 6.3% or $490 million behind last year’s pace. At this point, I don’t think it is possible for 2019 to catch up, but hopefully it can put together a strong last few months to at least save face. Additionally, the international box office is doing better, so worldwide it is close to a wash.

Good Boys opened in first place with $21.40 million over the weekend. This is the best opening for a comedy this year and the first time an R-rated comedy has come out on top in over three years. Its reviews and its B plus from CinemaScore suggest good legs, but not great legs. Additionally, this is not the kind of film that translates well into other cultures / languages, so its international prospects are weak. That said, the film reportedly only cost $20 million to make, so it won’t need long legs or a massive international box office to break even eventually.

Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw gave Universal the top two results earning $14.18 million over the weekend for a three-week total of $133.78 million. The film will top $150 million domestically, but it is doing much better internationally and that will save its financial future.

The Lion King is already one of the biggest hits of the year and it overperformed this weekend earning $12.33 million giving it a total of $496.54 million after a month of release. It will soon become just the second film released in 2019 to earn $500 million domestically, but it won’t be the last.

The Angry Birds Movie was next with just $10.35 million over the three-day weekend. However, it debuted on Tuesday and its $16.09 million six-day opening isn’t bad for this time of year. It is still a massive decline from the first film and I don’t think the franchise should be extended into a trilogy. That said, I don’t think Sony will lose a ton of money on this film either.

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark was a surprise entry in the top five. It managed this feat in part to its strong hold. The film only fell 52% to $10.01 million over the weekend for a two-week total of $40.17 million. The film will become a solid midlevel hit and should be profitable enough to justify a sequel or two.

Dora and the Lost City of Gold missed the top five with $8.57 million over the weekend for a two-week total of $33.98 million. The film fell 51%, which is a sharper than average decline for a family film, but it should still have little trouble matching its $49 million production budget domestically. If it can find an equally-sized audience internationally, then it will break even sooner rather than later. If not, it could still be a financial hit, if it increases merchandise sales.

47 Meters Down: Uncaged only managed seventh place with $8.43 million. This is a drop-off from its predecessor, but still more than it cost to make. Its reviews and its C plus from CinemaScore suggest decent legs, for a horror film and it might still break even, eventually.

Blinded By the Light barely managed a spot in the top ten with just $4.33 million over the weekend. Its reviews are the best of the weekend, as is its A minus from CinemaScore. Unfortunately, its word-of-mouth won’t matter, because many theater owners will be looking to drop it as soon as they are contractually able to. That said, I think it could become a hit on the home market, especially on streaming services.

Where’d You Go, Bernadette was right behind with $3.46 million during its opening weekend. Unlike the previous film, it won’t be able to rely on strong word-of-mouth, as its reviews are the worst of the weekend and its B from CinemaScore is not good given its target audience.

There were three more films in the sophomore class that we hadn’t gotten to yet. The Art of Racing in the Rain was the best of these three landing in ninth place with $4.57 million over the weekend for a two-week total of $17.05 million. It is likely still going to lose money, but it won’t be a disaster. On the other hand, The Kitchen fell 60% to just $2.21 million over the weekend for a two-week total of $10.38 million. Its theater average was just $804, so most theater owners will be looking to drop it as soon as possible. Brian Banks fell 67% to just $709,000 over the weekend for a total of $3.75 million after ten days of release. It will be all but gone from cinemas by the end of the month.

Filed under: Weekend Wrap-up, Where’d You Go Bernadette, The Lion King, The Angry Birds Movie 2, Good Boys, Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, 47 Meters Down: Uncaged, Dora and the Lost City of Gold, The Kitchen, The Art of Racing in the Rain, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, Brian Banks, Blinded by the Light, Angry Birds