Register

    “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil” Edges Out “Joker” Atop Weekend Box Office

    By SHOOTUpdated:No Comments2912 Views
    • Image
    This image released by Disney shows Angelina Jolie as Maleficent in a scene from "Maleficent: Mistress of Evil." (Disney via AP)

    By Lindsey Bahr, Film Writer

    LOS ANGELES (AP) --

    The Walt Disney Co.'s "Maleficent: Mistress of Evil" knocked "Joker" out of the No. 1 spot at the box office, but just barely.

    The film starring Angelina Jolie and Elle Fanning grossed an estimated $36 million in North America and $117 million internationally in its first weekend in theaters. The first film had a much stronger domestic showing, opening to nearly $70 million domestically in 2014, and the sequel was expected to earn more stateside. 

    "It's not as strong as we hoped domestically, but it's a good start for October and we have a great window leading into Halloween," said Cathleen Taff, Disney's president of theatrical distribution. "Most encouraging is the fact that audiences seem to be responding very positively."

    The A CinemaScore — in contrast to the mixed critical reviews — suggests that the film could have a longer life at the box office.

    Although it fell to second place after two weekends at the top, Warner Bros.' "Joker" continues to hold strong at the box office. It added $29.2 million in its third weekend in North America. The villain origin story has grossed over $247 million domestically. Worldwide, it's earned $737.5 million, and has already surpassed the lifetime grosses of "Justice League" and "Suicide Squad."

    Now the big question is whether the R-rated film will make it to $1 billion, but with a $55 million production budget, it's already a massive hit for the studio and will likely also become director Todd Phillips' highest-grossing film too.

    "It's already in territory that nobody thought it would get to. It's achieved a box office that is above the wildest expectations of the studio and analysts," said Paul Dergarabedian, Comscore's senior media analyst. "Even if the box office stopped right now it's an absolute, unqualified success."

    Third place went to another new sequel, Columbia Pictures' "Zombieland: Double Tap" with $26.7 million. The R-rated comedy comes 10 years after the original, reuniting Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone and Woody Harrelson with director Ruben Fleischer.

    "Three films earning over $25 million, that doesn't happen very often," Dergarabedian noted, although the weekend is down from last year when "Halloween" opened to over $76 million.

    In notable landmarks, "Hustlers" crossed $100 million domestically this weekend. It's the second STX film to do so this year after "The Upside."

    And buzzy, awards-friendly indies are continuing to thrive. "Parasite," which opened last weekend, added $1.2 million. This weekend, Taika Waititi's Nazi satire "Jojo Rabbit" opened in five theaters with a strong $350,000, the black and white Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe mindbender "The Lighthouse" earned $419,764 from eight theaters, and "Jay & Silent Bob Reboot" grossed $93,520 from one screen this weekend.

    But the year is still down 5% from last year.

    "It was a great weekend for sequels and great weekend for indie movies," Dergarabedian said. "But we're still struggling to get ahead of last year. We're racing to the finish line here. We've only got 11 weekends left to go."

    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."Maleficent: Mistress of Evil," $36 million ($117 million international).
    2."Joker," $29.5 million ($77.8 million international).
    3."Zombieland: Double Tap," $26.7 million ($5.3 million international).
    4."The Addams Family," $16.1 million.
    5."Gemini Man," $8.5 million ($33.4 million international).
    6."Abominable," $3.5 million ($9.2 million international).
    7."Downton Abbey," $3.1 million ($2.5 million international).
    8."Judy," $2.1 million ($1.3 million international).
    9."Hustlers," $2.1 million ($3 million international).
    10."It: Chapter Two," $1.5 million.

    Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at international theaters (excluding the U.S. and Canada), according to Comscore:

    1. "Maleficent: Mistress of Evil," $117 million.
    2. "Joker," $77.8 million.
    3. "Gemini Man," $33.4 million.
    4. "One Piece: Stampede," $21.9 million.
    5. "The Captain," $17.8 million.
    6. "Abominable," $9.2 million.
    7. "My People, My Country," $8.4 million.
    8. "Zombieland: Double Tap," $5.3 million.
    9. "A Witness Out of the Blue," $4.6 million.
    10. "A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon," $3.1 million.

    Category:News
    Tags:box officeJokerMaleficent: Mistress of Evil



    Hwang Dong-hyuk On Season 2 of “Squid Game,” Wrapping Production on Season 3; What’s Next?

    Thursday, December 26, 2024

    Viewers may gasp, cringe or cry out watching characters die on Netflix's "Squid Game," but those simulated deaths have a different effect on its creator, writer and director. Instead, Hwang Dong-hyuk feels happiness seeing them go.

    The show has a huge cast and Hwang says it was "really difficult" to manage everyone on set.

    As characters would die, Hwang recalls saying to the actors on their last day, "'Oh no! How sad! I won't see you tomorrow,' but I was always smiling inside."

    "Squid Game" season two premieres Thursday. It once again stars Lee Jung-jae and centers around a secret competition in South Korea that targets people in debt and the winner gets a big cash prize. What they don't know is that losing the game is deadly.

    Hwang originally conceived of the show 15 years ago as a two-hour film but it failed to gain traction with financiers or even interested actors. He put it aside and worked on other films instead. He then had the idea to make it a TV series instead and took the project to Netflix. There, it could reach a wide audience.

    "I never in my wildest dream thought it was going to be this huge," said Hwang, who spoke about the show and what comes next. Answers have been edited for clarity and length.

    Q: What have you learned from "Squid Game"?

    HWANG: I learned that I shouldn't give up. If you love something and if you want to create something, it might not work now, but the time might come later. Or that idea could be the source of inspiration for something else.

    Q: You've already finished filming season three of "Squid Game." Have you thought about what your next project will be?

    HWANG: I'm afraid to talk... Read More

    MySHOOT Profiles


    Add A Comment