{"id":195058,"date":"2018-12-23T19:38:48","date_gmt":"2018-12-24T00:38:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=195058"},"modified":"2018-12-23T19:38:48","modified_gmt":"2018-12-24T00:38:48","slug":"aquaman-outswims-poppins-bumblebee-with-67-4m-debut","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2018\/12\/23\/aquaman-outswims-poppins-bumblebee-with-67-4m-debut\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Aquaman’ outswims ‘Poppins,’ ‘Bumblebee’ with $67.4M debut"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
FILE: Cast and director of Aquaman at the 2018 San Diego Comic-Con. From left to right: Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Nicole Kidman, Patrick Wilson, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and James Wan (Photo By Gage Skidmore\/Wikimedia <\/a>commons, CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

NEW YORK \u2014 In a flood of new releases, \u201cAquaman\u201d easily swam past \u201cMary Poppins Returns\u201d and \u201cBumblebee\u201d to lead the busy pre-Christmas weekend with an estimated $67.4 million over the weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday.<\/p>\n

Without a \u201cStar Wars\u201d film on the December schedule for the first time in four years, a crowded slate of films sought to capitalize on the lucrative holiday period in theatres.<\/p>\n

The DC Comics superhero film \u201cAquaman,\u201d which cost Warner Bros. $200 million to make, arrived already a juggernaut overseas, where it has grossed more than $400 million in three weeks of release. Including advance previews, the Jason Momoa-led \u201cAquaman\u201d reeled in $72.1 million in U.S. and Canada theatres, bringing its global total to $482.8 million.<\/p>\n

\u201cAquaman,\u201d directed by James Wan, has proven to be a stabilizing \u201cJustice League\u201d spinoff for Warner Bros. following bumpier DC releases outside of \u201cWonder Woman.\u201d The film garnered an A-minus Cinemascore from audiences.<\/p>\n

For the studios, the weekend was as much about setting themselves up for Christmas to New Year’s, when theatres are routinely packed through the week. With Christmas falling on a Tuesday, studio executives said the weekend was an unpredictable and distraction-filled one, competing with some of the busiest shopping days of the year.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe really kick off starting Tuesday,\u201d said Warner Bros. distribution chief Jeff Goldstein, who said the \u201cAquaman\u201d performance came in just above the studio’s $65 million forecast. \u201cWith kids not really returning to school until January 7, this aligns the stars for us in a really positive way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Returns were more modest for Disney’s \u201cMary Poppins\u201d sequel and Paramount’s \u201cTransformers\u201d spinoff, though each had reason to expect strong business through the holidays.<\/p>\n

\u201cMary Poppins Returns,\u201d starring Emily Blunt and directed by Rob Marshall, debuted with $22.2 million over the weekend and $31 million since opening Wednesday. That was on the low side of expectations for the musical, which cost $130 million to make.<\/p>\n

\u201cMay Poppins Returns,\u201d which co-stars Lin-Manuel Miranda, will depend heavily on legs through the holiday season. On its side are good if not spectacular reviews (77 per cent fresh on Rotten Tomatoes), an A-minus CinemaScore from moviegoers and four Golden Globe nominations.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s a great weekend to start yourself off on a launch pad into the holiday period,\u201d said Cathleen Taff, head of distribution for Disney. \u201cWe’re looking forward to great word of mouth building over the next few weeks. And we’re looking forward to a long run.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPoppins\u201d still narrowly edged \u201cBumblebee,\u201d which opened with $21 million. That, too, is a soft beginning for a film that cost about $135 million to make after tax credits. It’s also far off the pace of the \u201cTransformers\u201d films, the last of which (\u201cTransformers: The Last Knight\u201d) debuted with $44.7 million in summer 2017.<\/p>\n

But \u201cBumblebee,\u201d a \u201cTransformers\u201d prequel directed by Travis Knight and starring Hailee Steinfeld, has something the Michael Bay films never had: good reviews. \u201cBumblebee\u201d was the weekend’s most acclaimed new wide release with a 94 per cent fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences also gave it an A-minus CinemaScore.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe pre-Christmas preoccupation for moviegoers affected everyone. All movies were impacted slightly by that,\u201d said Kyle Davies, head of distribution for Paramount. \u201cIt doesn’t concern me. We played really well with great reactions. The game plan has always been that we’re now starting that play period where people go multiple times over the next few weeks, and that’s the whole point.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTo me, this weekend was a dress rehearsal for the big push that starts Christmas Day,\u201d added Davies.<\/p>\n

Also in the mix is Sony’s well-reviewed \u201cSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,\u201d which slid to fourth in its second week with $16.7 million in ticket sales. The film also made one of the best debuts for an animated release in China where it was no. 1, grossing $26.1 million over the weekend.<\/p>\n

Clint Eastwood’s \u201cThe Mule\u201d added $9.3 million in its sophomore frame, bringing its two-week total to $35 million. Bradley Cooper, who co-stars in \u201cThe Mule,\u201d could also celebrate his \u201cA Star Is Born\u201d crossing $200 million domestically.<\/p>\n

Largely overlooked in the onslaught at theatres was STXfilms’ \u201cSecond Act,\u201d starring Jennifer Lopez. The romantic comedy debuted with an estimated $6.5 million in 2,607 locations, drawing an audience that was 70 per cent female.<\/p>\n

But the weekend’s real flop was \u201cWelcome to Marwen,\u201d the Robert Zemeckis-directed fantastical drama starring Steve Carell as an imaginative man whose scale model town helps him rehabilitate after a trauma. The film, which cost at least $40 million to make, earned just $2.3 million in 1,900 theatres. It’s the second straight flop for Universal (which teamed with DreamWorks for \u201cMarwen\u201d) following \u201cMortal Engines.\u201d That $100 million film debuted last weekend with $7.5 million film in ticket sales.<\/p>\n

Yet the weekend managed to nearly equal the box office of the same weekend last year when \u201cThe Last Jedi\u201d was in its second week of release and \u201cJumanji: Welcome to the Jungle\u201d opened. Ticket sales for the \u201cStar Wars\u201d-less weekend were down a mere 2.1 per cent, according to Comscore.<\/p>\n

Year to date, the domestic box office is up 7.5 per cent and was expected to just eke past 2016’s record $11.38 billion sometime late Sunday or early Monday, said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for Comscore.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe collective and cumulative strength of these newcomers, particularly ‘Aquaman,’ and a huge slate of holdovers gave us a stronger weekend than anyone imagined,\u201d Dergarabedian said. \u201cA superhero movie in December can make up for not having a ‘Star Wars’ movie in December.\u201d<\/p>\n

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at\u00a0international\u00a0theatres (excluding the U.S. and Canada), according to Comscore:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \u201cAquaman,\u201d $67.4 million ($91.3 million\u00a0international).<\/li>\n
  2. \u201cMary Poppins Returns,\u201d $22.2 million.<\/li>\n
  3. \u201cBumblebee,\u201d $21 million ($31.1 million\u00a0international).<\/li>\n
  4. \u201cSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,\u201d $16.7 million ($38 million\u00a0international).<\/li>\n
  5. \u201cThe Mule,\u201d $9.3 million.<\/li>\n
  6. \u201cThe Grinch,\u201d $8.2 million ($23.7 million\u00a0international).<\/li>\n
  7. \u201cSecond Act,\u201d $6.5 million.<\/li>\n
  8. \u201cRalph Breaks the Internet,\u201d $4.6 million ($9.3 million\u00a0international).<\/li>\n
  9. \u201cWelcome to Marwen,\u201d $2.4 million.<\/li>\n
  10. \u201cMary Queen of Scots,\u201d $2.2 million.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \u2014\u2014\u2014<\/p>\n

    Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at\u00a0international\u00a0theatres (excluding the U.S. and Canada), according to Comscore:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. \u201cAquaman,\u201d $91.3 million.<\/li>\n
    2. \u201cSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,\u201d $38 million.<\/li>\n
    3. \u201cBumblebee,\u201d $31.1 million.<\/li>\n
    4. \u201cThe Grinch,\u201d $23.7 million.<\/li>\n
    5. \u201cMary Poppins Returns,\u201d $20.3 million.<\/li>\n
    6. \u201cBohemian Rhapsody,\u201d $15 million.<\/li>\n
    7. \u201cAirpocalypse,\u201d $12.9 million.<\/li>\n
    8. \u201cRalph Breaks the Internet,\u201d $9.3 million.<\/li>\n
    9. \u201cKung Fu Monster,\u201d $8.1 million.<\/li>\n
    10. \u201cThe Drug King,\u201d $7.5 million.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

       <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      NEW YORK \u2014 In a flood of new releases, \u201cAquaman\u201d easily swam past \u201cMary Poppins Returns\u201d and \u201cBumblebee\u201d to lead …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":195060,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,106],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-195058","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","category-hollywood","mauthors-jake-coyle","mauthors-the-associated-press"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/195058","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/44"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=195058"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/195058\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/195060"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=195058"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=195058"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=195058"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}