Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle

Weekend Box Office: Gaming the System

Even with three new wide releases and one major expansion stealing away audiences, the ‘Jumanji’ sequel was able to retain the top spot at the box office for the second consecutive week. The nearest competition was $9 million behind it, so ‘Jumanji’ didn’t even have anything snapping at it heels.

The weekend was a bit of a bust for each of the big new releases, but the awards contender made out all right.

Sony is certainly cleaning up with ‘Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle‘, the unexpected sequel that survived a post-‘Star Wars’ debut and managed to climb to the top of the charts in its third week. The crowd-pleasing action comedy drew another $27 million this weekend, bringing it domestic total up to $283.1 million. Foreign moviegoers appear to love the blockbuster just as much. Its international box office is at $383 million, placing the $90 million picture’s worldwide total at $666.1 million. I’m pretty sure I smell The Rock cooking up a sequel.

After three weeks on a very limited number of screens, Steven Spielberg’s ‘The Post‘ finally expanded wide, resulting in a second place nationwide debut with $18.6 million. The $50 million historical drama has made $23 million to date and has yet to open overseas. Despite being nominated for six Golden Globes, it didn’t win a single one (not that the Globes really signify anything special). When Oscar nominations are announced soon, assuming that ‘The Post’ is up for at least six more awards, expect to see its box office get another boost.

The best that any of the newcomers could do was third place. Liam Neeson’s latest suspense thriller ‘The Commuter‘ grossed $13.4 million. Budgeted at $30 million, that’s a decent opening for the bland movie. The action flick has yet to open overseas.

Last week’s ‘Insidious: The Last Key‘ suffered an expected 59% drop in attendance, similar to what most horror movies experience. Falling from #2 to #4, the fourth ‘Insidious’ movie scared up another $12.1 million. After ten days, the PG-13 freaky flick has $48.3 million in the domestic bank and $44.2 million overseas. With a $92.5 million worldwide total, the Blumhouse franchise continues strong.

The Greatest Showman‘ has the best staying power of any movie in recent history. Holding true with past weeks, its fourth weekend drop was a mere 14%. Earning $11.8 million, its domestic run is up to $94.5 million. International moviegoers have contributed $100.1 million to the cause, giving the $84 million musical a worldwide total of $194.6 million. When ‘The Greatest Showman’ took stage, it looked like it wouldn’t be capable of becoming a financial success, but word-of-mouth and a hot-selling soundtrack have shown otherwise.

The other two wide releases finished outside the Top 10. Despite glowing reviews, ‘Paddington 2‘ could only muster a #7 debut. The $10.6 million opening is $8 million behind the first ‘Paddington’. While North American audiences may not be taking to the lovable bear, he’s still beloved overseas. The sequel has made $125 million internationally, almost enough to bring the $50 million family film into profitability without taking into account the North American returns.

The hitwoman action movie ‘Proud Mary‘ came in just behind ‘Paddington 2’ in eighth place with $10 million. Fortunately, Sony produced the picture on a modest $14 million budget. By the time it opens internationally, it shouldn’t take too long to turn a profit.

Top 10:

1. ‘Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle’ (Sony) – $27,035,000

2. ‘The Post’ (Fox) – $18,600,000

3. ‘The Commuter’ (Lionsgate) – $13,450,000

4. ‘Insidious: The Last Key’ (Universal) – $12,135,000

5. ‘The Greatest Showman’ (Fox) – $11,800,000

6. ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ (Buena Vista) – $11,275,000

7. ‘Paddington 2’ (Warner Bros.) – $10,620,000

8. ‘Proud Mary’ (Sony) – $10,000,000

9. ‘Pitch Perfect 3’ (Universal) – $5,655,000

10. ‘Darkest Hour’ (Focus) – $4,525,000

2 comments

  1. I’m really looking forward to watching ‘Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle’…I’ll probably blind buy it during it’s new release Blu-ray sale prices (or during any Video on Demand promo).

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