By Jonathan Landrum Jr., Entertainment Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) --Two "Bad Boys" were too good for one "Dolittle" at the box office.
"Bad Boys for Life" starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence brought in $59 million in the U.S. and Canada to score a No. 1 debut entering the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend. The action-packed, buddy comedy returned for the franchise's third installment after a 17-year hiatus with popular demand to outlast "Dolittle," starring Robert Downey Jr., which opened at second with a mediocre $22.5 million.
Sony Pictures predicted that "Bad Boys" will make around $68 million over the four-day weekend. The film exceeded expectations, building momentum with favorable reviews including an A Cinema Score and a 76% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
"It's a great brand with two terrific stars, a beloved franchise and it feels like summertime in January," said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for Comscore. He said it was a smart move by Sony Pictures to release the film during January, an unusual month for blockbusters releases but it ultimately "reaped huge benefits."
"Dolittle" barely topped the World War I film "1917," which claimed the top spot last week. The Sam Mendes-directed war film continues to hold strong with $22.1 million this weekend after going from 11 screens in its first weeks to more than 3,600.
The Oscar-nominated epic wartime film has gained popularity after it won Golden Globes for best director and drama film a couple weeks ago. Saturday night, it won an award for theatrical motion picture at the Producers Guild Awards, which has gone on to win best picture Oscar 21 out of 30 times, including the past two years.
"'1917' is really taking a lot of the oxygen and taking on a life of its own since the Oscar nominations and all of these awards," Dergarabedian said. "If you haven't seen '1917,' you're totally out of the loop for awards season."
Along with "Bad Boys," Sony Pictures has two other films in the top 10 at the domestic box office including Oscar-contender "Little Women" and "Jumanji: The Next Level," which crossed $700 million worldwide.
In another blockbuster, "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" topped $1 billion globally after five weeks. The Disney's film focusing on the final chapter of the Luke Skywalker saga has also earned more than $492 million domestically.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Where available, the latest international numbers for Friday through Sunday are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. "Bad Boys for Life," $59.1 million, ($38.6 million international).
2. "Dolittle," $22.5 million, ($17.2 million international).
3. "1917," $22.1 million, ($26.1 million international).
4. "Jumanji: The Next Level," $9.5 million, ($17 million international).
5. "Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker," $8.3 million, ($10.9 million international).
6. "Just Mercy," $6 million, ($1.3 million international).
7. "Little Women," $5.9 million, ($6.2 million international).
8. "Knives Out," $4.3 million, ($3.1 million international).
9. "Like A Boss," $3.8 million.
10. "Frozen 2," $3.7 million, ($12 million international).
Latest Crop of VES Fellows Unveiled
The Visual Effects Society (VES) has announced the Society’s newest VES Fellows, who will be celebrated with the other honorees at a special VES Honors event later this month. This year’s venerated VES Fellows who will be bestowed with the post-nominal letters “VES” are: Matt Aitken, Girish Balakrishnan, Randall Balsmeyer, Michael Conte, Lisa Cooke, Bryan Grill, Thomas Knop, Arnon Manor and Susan Rowe.
VES 2024 Fellows
VES Fellow Matt Aitken, VES. Aitken has been an integral part of Weta FX since it first opened its doors. With two Oscar nominations and five VES Award wins, including the top award of Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature for Avengers: Infinity War, Aitken’s versatility and creative talent are foundational to the studio’s success. As head of visual effects, Aitken leads Weta FX’s artists across three countries, and is responsible for filmmaker and studio relationships. Prior to assuming this executive role, Aitken was one of Weta FX’s most experienced visual effects supervisors on projects including Avengers: Endgame, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts and Marvel’s Eternals. Aitken has been an active VES member for 20 years. He was instrumental in establishing the New Zealand VES Section in 2011, the 5th VES Section to be created, and was New Zealand Section chair for its first five years of operation.
VES Fellow Girish Balakrishnan, VES. Balakrishnan has more than a decade of experience driving business studio strategies, business development and production innovation across live action, animation and games. As director of creative innovation at Netflix, Balakrishnan leads the content & production studio investment strategy on the application of... Read More