Key Takeaways:
• Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire records a stronger-than-expected $31.7 million on its second weekend.
• Failures for The First Omen and Monkey Man at the box office – recorded $8.36 and $10.1 million respectively.
• Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire shows increased activity in its third week.
• Kung Fu Panda 4 and Dune: Part Two continue to perform well at the box office.
• Arthur the King and Neon’s horror flick Immaculate struggled to attract crowds despite Mark Wahlberg and Sydney Sweeney’s appeal.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire rules the Box Office
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, the sequel within the MonsterVerse series, continued its impressive run at the box office as it hauled in $31.7 million in its second week, taking the top spot. This was far more significant than the predicted $25 million, surpassing expectations.
The impressive earnings of the monster showdown also mark a decrease of around 60% in its second week. Even with this decline, the film’s performance remains solid for a blockbuster of its caliber. Contrary to popular assumption, the film wasn’t front-loaded and is now charting a path towards a domestic total of $200 million, or perhaps even more.
Underperforming Entrants-The First Omen and Monkey Man
The success of “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” spelled a significant setback for two new releases, “Monkey Man” and “The First Omen”. Both of these genre titles aimed for a share of Godzilla and Kong’s audience but failed to make a substantial impact on the box office.
“Monkey Man”, although failing to compete with Godzilla and Kong, managed a reasonable $10.1 million despite expectations. This was considered quite impressive as Universal had acquired the film at a similar cost after Netflix decided to release it. Thanks to the theatrical makeover given by executive producer Jordan Peele, the film, featuring Dev Patel in his debut as an action hero, is set to set to provide a decent return on investment for Universal.
However, “The First Omen”, the attempt from Disney and 20th Century Studios to revive the old franchise, turned out to be a flop with an unimpressive $8.36 million opening. Despite good reviews from critics, the film seemed to bore its target horror audience, possibly due to its too-close-for-comfort resemblance to the recently released “Immaculate” or perhaps the audience’s fatigue due to a series of unnecessary prequels.
The Unexpected Rise of Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire
“Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” offered a bolt from the blue this weekend. Even though the film hasn’t met Sony’s expectations in the previous weeks, its numbers started to pick up during the third week. The franchise could now possibly exceed the domestic gross collection of $100 million.
Kung Fu Panda 4 and Dune: Part Two remained stable, managing to secure fifth and sixth ranks respectively. With earnings exceeding $7 million, both films continue to attract a substantial audience. Kung Fu Panda 4’s domestic total climbed to an impressive $166 million, making it the second-highest grosser in the franchise. Meanwhile, Dune 2 heads towards a remarkable domestic total – potentially $300 million.
Last Ranks-Reflecting a Mixed Bag
The arthouse comedy, Wicked Little Letters, and the religiously themed film, Someone Like You, made a decent $1.56 million and $3 million respectively. Despite relatively limited releases, both films left a palpable impact on the audiences.
However, Mark Wahlberg’s family film, Arthur the King, grapples to find its audience, with earnings of scarcely $1.54 million over the weekend. The film now approaches an inevitable closure with a total revenue of $22 million. Similarly, Neon’s horror film Immaculate made $1.4 million, aggregating to a modest $14.1 million. Despite Sydney Sweeney’s mainstream appeal, Immaculate remained a modest arthouse hit.
As we watch “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” retain the top spot at the box office, curiosity is rising about next weekend’s much-anticipated release, Alex Garland’s “Civil War”. Will it dethrone Godzilla x Kong from their dominance? Only time will tell.
