- A Haunting in Venice – £1,472,237 – £4,947,591
Dropped 32.7% in the second weekend.
649th biggest second weekend between Erin Brockovich and Lethal Weapon 3 (close to House of Gucci, The Iron Lady, Burn After Reading and Philomena) and 1,112th biggest inflated between The Devil’s Advocate and Get Out (close to The Descendants, Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, In Her Shoes and First Man).
Previous two Hercule Poirot second weekends
2017’s Murder On The Orient Express dropped 12% £4,376,429 #2 and £12,989,387 of £24,224,914
2022’s Death on the Nile dropped 28% £1,349,395 #3 and £4,738,119 of £8,012,201.
Grey pound second weekends
2021’s House of Gucci took £1,511,982 dropped 37.6% and £5,584,060 57.8% of £9,649,005
2012’s The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel took £2,342,095 up 5.4% and £7,014,101 34.5% of £7,014,101; took £4.79m in its opening 7 days including £2.57m Mon-Thurs
2015’s The Lady in the Van took £1,609,943 down 28.6% and £6,437,140 50.8% of £12,660,028; took £4.82m in its opening week Mon-Thurs.
2015’s The Second-Best Marigold Hotel took £1,957,256 down 48.1% and £8,640,646 55.47% of £15,575,797; took £6.69m in its opening 7 days taking almost £3m Mon-Thurs.
1,401th biggest between The Five-Year Engagement and Hacksaw Ridge (close to Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris, Déjà Vu, A Simple Favour and Shadowlands) and 1,940t inflated between Ron’s Gone Wrong and Zombieland (close to Sex, Lies and Videotape, Fried Green Tomatoes, So I Married An Axe Murderer and To Die For).
- 2. Expend4bles– £761,443- NE
1,899th biggest opening between Lakehouse and Little Voice (close to 16 Blocks, Point-Break (1991), We Were Soldiers and Training Day) and 2,2,87th biggest inflated between Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and Frantic (close to True Romance, Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, Midnight Run and Running Scared (1987).
Opened in 579 cinemas 228th widest opening similar to Uncharted, Pokemon Detective Pikachu, The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, Zootropolis and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1; 576th 500+ cinema opening since 2002’s Monsters, Inc.
Even after receiving the worst reviews of the series Expend4bles should have managed to open with £1m+ (similar to 2019’s Rambo: Last Blood £1,075,071) but it opened 9 years after the last film and 13 years after the first. Lionsgate will be hoping for better things from Saw X opening on Friday after 2021’s Spiral opened with £779,107 less than half of 2017’s Jigsaw £1,851,249 and Hunger Games prequel The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes opening in November.
2014’s The Expendables 3 opened £1,689,927 #3 from 462 screens taking £3,741,848
2012’s The Expendables 2 opened £1,985,082 #4 from 451 screens taking £5,938,099
2010’s The Expendables opened £3,935,700 #1 from 453 screens taking £9,630,137
After The Expendables 3 disappointed taking $39.32m in the US and $214.65m compared to 2012’s The Expendables 2 taking $85.02m US and $314.97m WW and 2010s The Expendables took $103.06m US and $274.47m was thought that the film series had ended. But in December 2016 Sylvester Stallone announced the fourth film had a 2018 release date but left the film three months later after script issues. In 2020 the fourth film was back in development but due to COVID production was delayed and filming started in September 2021.
Expend4bles will drop heavily in its second weekend 60%+.
- 3. The Nun 2 – £703,819 – £5,117,836
Dropped 37.9% in the third weekend.
825th biggest third weekend between Good Will Hunting and About Time (close to Alien: Covenant, Cloverfield, 12 Monkeys and Paranormal Activity 2) and 1,041st inflated between The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It and Inferno (close to Annabelle: Creation, LA Story, Predator (1988) and The Untouchables).
2018’s The Nun dropped 44% £1,021,628 #5 and £9,497,601 of £11,302,155
2013’s The Conjuring dropped 39% £973,073 #5 and £8,121,962 of £9,337,626
2014’s Annabelle dropped 48% £749,621 #6 and £6,013,797 of £7,402,588
2016’s The Conjuring 2 dropped 51% £401,155 #8 and £10,312,076 of £10,896,992
2017’s Annabelle: Creation dropped 44% £666,181 #6 and £6,391,376 of £8,079,017
2019’s Annabelle Comes Home dropped 35% £496,373 #7 and £4,973,900 of £6,176,801
2021’s The Conjuring 3 dropped 36% £664,829 #4 and £6,780,373 of £9,367,720
The 8 Conjuring films have made over £70m since 2013.
Horror has been one of the strongest-performing genres of films since cinemas reopened three years ago, with 19 wide-released horrors including Insidious: The Red Door, Evil Dead Rises, Scream VI, M3gan, The Menu, Smile, Nope, The Black Phone, Scream, Candyman, A Quiet Place Part II and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It taking over £100m. There are 4 more due for release this year The Exorcist: Believer, Five Nights at Freddy’s, Saw X and Thanksgiving.
73rd biggest horror between Candyman and Cabin in the Woods (close to Evil Dead Rises, 28 Weeks Later, Insidious: The Last Key and Jigsaw) and 114th inflated between The Woman in Black: Angel of Death and Cabin Fever (close to Halloween: H20, From Dusk till Dawn, I Still Know What You Did Last Summer and House of Wax).
With Saw X opening on Friday and The Exorcist: Believer the following weekend The Nun will likely drop 50% over the next two weeks.
- 4. The Equalizer 3 – £537,327 – £7,284,324
Dropped 38.6% in the fourth weekend.
683rd biggest third weekend between Deep Blue Sea and Braveheart (close to The Specialist, Sweet Home Alabama, True Grit and Cape Fear) and 939th biggest inflated between Watchmen and Bullet Train (close to The Bourne Legacy, Insomnia, Jack Reacher and Die Hard.
Third Weekends
2014’s The Equalizer dropped 48% £620,025 #6 from 411 screens and £5,558,555 of £6,669,034
2018’s The Equalizer 2 dropped 50% to £625,218 #8 from 443 screens and £6,090,669 of £7,247,966.
It’s the fifth film starring Denzel Washington and directed by Antoine Fuqua after 2002’s Training Day (took £1,942,439), 2014’s The Equalizer 2016’s The Magnificent Seven (£5,895,017) and 2018’s The Equalizer 2.
1,133rd biggest between Transformers: Rise of the Beasts and Vertical Limit (close to Phone Booth, Jackie Brown, Taken and 28 Days Later) and 1,690th biggest inflated between Transformers: Rise of the Beasts and Kiss the Girls (close to Out of Sight, The Taking of Pelham 123, Copycat and John Wick: Chapter Two).
- 5. Dumb Money – £506,095 – NE
51st biggest opening of 2023 between Strays and The Boogeyman (close to Allelujah, Renfield, Missing and Champions).
Opened in 563 cinemas 271st widest opening between King Arthur (2017) and M3gan
The second film released from Black Bear (after The Son in February opened £48,251 #21 from 193 screens) since it took over STXUK operations in August 2022. They will next release Micheal Mann’s Ferrari in December.
For more than a decade day day-and-date opening has become the norm for almost every studio film, (while Dumb Money is made by Black Bear it’s released by Sony in the US) but not all films are suitable.
MGM acquired rights to Ben Mezrich’s book in January 2021, it was one of several films that were in development about GameStop, MGM dropped out of the film in September 2022 and Black Bear acquired world rights selling US and selective international rights to Sony, previous adapted Ben Mezrich 2009’s The Accidental Billionaires into 2010’s The Social Network.
Dumb Money was at a disadvantage due to the SAG strike, (Sony Pictures decided to platform open it over three weeks after premiering at the Toronto Film Festival) as films like Dumb Money need the cast to promote the film, as audiences won’t go to see the otherwise. Previously distributors would hold back these kinds of films in the hope the US release would generate buzz.
Financial films have had mixed success at the box office depending on how accessible they are to audiences as they normally have a lot of jargon. Boiler Room (opened £88,765), Wall Street (opened £318,798 (£1,104,704 inflated) taking £2,850,868 (£9,878,877 inflated), The Wolf of Wall Street (£4,655,984 #1 £22,267,066), Rogue Trader (£269,871 taking £969,565, The Big Short (£1,302,205 #4 £5,494,586), Margin Call (opened £131,982 #12), Bonfire of the Vanities (£238,939 (£628,49 inflated) taking £473,284 (£1,244,909 inflated); 99 Homes (opened £38,078 #23) Hustlers (£1,353,324 #3 taking £7,253,643) and Trading Places.
Despite receiving huge media coverage at the time, a film like Dumb Money needs talent interviews to get audiences to understand the film, The problem with Dumb Money is it doesn’t have an internationally friendly cast as The Social Network had, so the film will need to do the heavy lifting which it failed to do.
Craig Gillespie previously directed Cruella (opened £1,453,635 #1 taking £9,491,691); I, Tonya (£1,049,551 #3 £3,564,608); Fright Night (£680,543 #7 £4,259,288); The Finest Hours (opened £247,643 #11) and Million Dollar Arm (opened £150,050 #15).
At CinemaCon in 2014 Disney said Million Dollar Arm had tested higher than the first Harry Potter film. While it received a positive reaction from CinemaCon struggled to find an audience in the US opening a few months later.
As with many other films that fail to find their audience at their opening weekend exhibitors have severely cut back on showtimes in their second weekend. Films like Dumb Money used to find their audience via word of mouth as they aren’t films audiences will rush out to see and will find it has one random afternoon show in its second weekend.
It also again shows the difficulties independent distributors have in launching films in the UK so many companies have tried to open distribution over the years but so many have closed, while Electric, Redbus and Optimum were acquired by international companies to become eOne (now part of Lionsgate), Lionsgate and Studiocanal.
There is so much talk about the UK film industry with films like Barbie and The Marvel shot in the UK, but US studios make them in the UK due to 25% tax breaks, and then UK studios suffer with the strikes as most of the film and TV made in the UK is financed by US studios despite hundreds of millions of Lottery funding invested into the British film industry. This money should have been spent on infrastructure making the British film industry self-sufficient.
Also released.
Barbie – £295,211 #6 – £95,046,660
Dropped 35.3% in the tenth weekend.
63rd biggest tenth weekend between Independence Day (£299,053) and Alvin and the Chipmunks 2 (£278,649) close to Doctor Dolittle, Ghost, The Bodyguard and Sense and Sensibility and 121st biggest inflated between Sleeping with the Enemy (£297,486) and Bean (£292,019) close to The Commitments, Batman, No Time to Die and Sleepless in Seattle).
6th biggest between Spectre (£95,179,832) and Avatar (£94,025,474) close to Spider-Man No Way Home, No Time to Die, Avengers: Endgame and Top Gun Maverick and 19th biggest inflated between Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 and Casino Royale (close to Toy Story 3, Spider-Man No Way Home, Shrek 2 and Toy Story 2; 7th since 2009’s Avatar to take £90m+ and is Warner Bros UK biggest film overtaking 2011’s Deathly Hallows Part 2.
Barbie will drop down the chart as Oppenheimer over the next few weeks but will overtake Spectre by the weekend to become the fifth-biggest film in the UK, had it got IMAX screens earlier it could have overtaken Spider-Man No Way Home and No Time to Die.
Oppenheimer – Universal Pictures
Down 19% in its tenth weekend taking £261,616 – £57,810,964
Oppenheimer has taken 5.26x opening (Dunkirk 5.65x; Insomnia 4.87x; Inception 5.92x) similar to Inception in its 9th-weekend #14 taking £271,033 but the marketplace was far more crowded in 2010 as in 2017 Dunkirk’s 9th-weekend #8 £336,547.
72nd biggest tenth weekend between Incredibles (£265,207) and Toy Story (£259,699) close to Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, No Time to Die, Mrs. Doubtfire and Home Alone) and 134th biggest inflated between The BFG (£263,181) and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (£260,273) (close to Saving Private Ryan, Inception, Quantum of Solace and Three Billboards Outside).
28th biggest between Joker (£58,166,427) and LOTR: The Two Towers (£57,600,094) close to Jurassic World, LOTR: The Return of the King, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace and Dunkirk) and 70th biggest inflated between Notting Hill and Alice in Wonderland (close to The King Speech, The Matrix Reloaded, Gladiator and The Greatest Showman); 47th film to take £50m+ since 1997’s The Full Monty.
Tenth weekends
2010’s Inception dropped 25% £201,162 #12 132 screens and £34,976,999 of £35,264,403; held #1 for 1 week and in the top 5 for 5 weeks and top 10 for 8 weeks.
2020’s Tenet dropped 26% £98,794 #6 242 screens and £17,361,041 of £17,479,421; dropped 27% in the eighth weekend taking £134,968 held #1 for 8 weeks and in the top 5 for 9 weeks and top 10 for 10 weeks
2017’s Dunkirk dropped 44% £185,321 #9 290 screens and £56,086,005 of £56,797,955; held #1 for 4 weeks and in the top 5 for 8 weeks and top 10 for 10 weeks.
2014’s Interstellar took £20,852,599 after 7 weeks; held #1 for 2 weeks in the top 5 for 4 weeks and top 10 for 6 weeks.
2008’s The Dark Knight dropped 48% £88,230 #15 from 94 screens and £48,246,658 of £49,411,323: #1 for 2 weeks, top 5 for 6 weeks and top 10 for 8 weeks.
2012’s The Dark Knight Rises dropped 52% £109,850 #17 from 67 screens and £55,994,743 of £56,446,768: #1 for 2 weeks, top 5 for 6 weeks and top 10 for 8 weeks.
Christopher Nolan’s films have taken over £320m at the UK BO and £400m inflated; average £42m and £51m over the last 7 films.
UK box office in detail
This weekend’s top 10 box office took £5,160,786 down 20.1% from last weekend’s £6,463,338: 647,526 admissions down 20.1% from 810,958.
38th biggest weekend of the year out of 38 weeks below the previous lowest 15 September 2023 #1 A Haunting in Venice £2,186,930
117th biggest since cinemas reopened out of 129 weeks between 10 December 2021 #1 West Side Story (£1,297,786) and 09 September 2022 #1 See How They Run (£1,163,484)
1,066th biggest top 10 of the last 21 years (out of 1,121) between 29 June 2012 #1 Ice Age: Continental Drift £853,226 (16.53% of top 10) and 28 April 2006 #1 Ice Age II £1,100,736 (21.34% of top 10) and 1,089th biggest inflation inflated between 09 September 2022 #1 See How They Run £1,163,484 (23.23% of top 10) and 17 September 2021 #1 Shangi-Chi £2,362,692 (49.1% of top 10)
The top 3 took (£2,937,499) 56,9% of the top 10; A Haunting in Venice 28.53% (£1,472,237); Expend4bles 14.75% (£761,443); The Nun II 13.64% (£703,819);.
731st highest percentage (28.53%) between 14 February 2020 Sonic The Hedgehog (28.62%) and 27 March 2009 Knowing (28.52%)
1,067th biggest admissions #1 (184,722) between 03 September 2010 The Last Exorcism (185,690) and 29 February 2008 The Bank Job (182,887).
Down 40.3% from 2022 (£8,643,800); Ticket to Paradise (£2,805,615); Don’t Worry Darling (£2,771,935); Avatar (Re: 2022) (£1,218,693); #1 Ticket to Paradise £2,805,615 1st week 687 screens (32.46% of top 10)
Up 13.2% from 2021 (£4,559,204); The Many Saints of Newark (£945,319); Oasis Knebworth 1996 (£344,833); The Green Knight (£166,118); Dune (1984) (Re: 2021) (£39,582); #1 Shangi-Chi £1,558,002 4th week (34.2% of top 10)
Up 144.3% from 2020 (£2,112,443); Rocky (Re: 2020) (£10,820); Rocky 2 (Re: 2020) (£4,468); Rocky 3 (Re: 2020) (£2,794); Rocky 4 (Re: 2020) (£996k); #1 Tenet £648,517 569 screens 19% drop 5th week (30.7% of top 10)
Down 51.3% from 2019 (£10,591,749); Ad Astra (£2,265,387); Rambo: Last Blood (£1,075,071); The Farewell (£207,356); The Kitchen (£107,929); #1 Downton Abbey £3,280,442 2nd week down 37% 736 screens (31% of the top 10)
Down 52.7% from 2018: (£10,913,234); The House with a Clock in its Walls (£3,370,591); A Simple Favour (£1,621,900); Mile 22 (£795,888); The Little Stranger (£300,089); #1 The House with a Clock in its Walls £3,370,591 1st week 541 screens (30.8% of top 10)
Down 64.2% from 2017: (£14,426,113); Kingsman: The Golden Circle (£8,525,664); Maze (£123,985); Borg vs. McEnroe (£101,918); Lawrence of Arabia – 70mm (Re: 2017) (£9,359); #1 Kingsman: The Golden Circle £8,525,664 1st week 602 down (59.1% of the top 10)
Down 55.7% from 2016: (£11,647,518); The Magnificent Seven (£2,132,609); The Girl with All the Gifts (£432,529); The Rolling Stones: Havana Moon (£56,666); #1 Bridget Jones’s Baby £6,453,799 2nd week 648 screens 20% drop (55.4% of the top 10)
Down 27.7% from 2015; (£7,140,352); Miss You Already (£487,247); Solace (£340,537); Captive (£52,227); Life (£38,237); 99 Homes (£38,078); McFarland (£12,773); #1 Everest £1,996,439 2nd week 1st #1 598 screens 37% drop (27.9% of top 10)
Down 35.7% from 2014: (£8,023,248); Billy Elliot The Musical Live 2014 (£1,904,098); The Equalizer (£1,890,146); What We Did on our Holiday (£811,087); Maps to the Stars (£131,057); I Origins (£14,953); #1 Billy Elliot The Musical Live 2014 £1,904,098 1st week 509 screens (33% drop (26.6% of top 10)
Down 21.7% from 2013: (£6,586,232); Diana (£623,051); R.I.P.D. (£506,521); The Call (£409,975); Cold Comes the Night (£4,833); #1 Rush £1,336,449 2nd week (1st #1) 464 screens (20.2% of top 10)
Down 20.3% from 2012 (£6,476,971); Killing Them Softly (£955,506); The House at the End of the Street (£796,041); Savages (£379,898); Now is Good (£317,451); Intouchables (£109,328); Raiders of the Lost Ark (Re: 2012) (£73,558); Tower Block (£36,371); Hysteria (£9,903); #1 ParaNorman £1,219,194 2nd week (1st #1) 484 screens 12% drop (18.8% of top 10)
Down 30.6% from 2011 (£7,431,246); Crazy, Stupid, Love (£860,112); Warrior (£808,410); Drive (£607,454); Killer Elite (£481,143); Jurassic Park (Re: 2011) (£245,422); Soul Surfer (£47,293); Page One: Inside the New York Times (£6,757); #1 Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy £2,104,762 2nd week 422 screens 25% drop (28.3% of top 10)
Down 22% from 2010: (£6,612,218); Eat Pray Love (£1,165,234); The Town (£1,005,039); 3-D The Hole (£906,722); #1 The Other Guys £1,292,144 2nd week 444 screens 35% drop (19.5% of top 10)
Down 26.4% from 2009; (£7,010,262); Fame (£2,408,242); Surrogates (£961,271); The Soloist (£373,151); Creation (£199,477); The Crimson Wing (£746); #1 Fame £2,408,242 1st week 459 screens (34.3% of top 10)
Down 18.1% from 2008; (£6,302,076); Taken (£1,165,986); Righteous Kill (£768,803); Death Race (£683,038); I’ve Loved You So Long (£116,990); Appaloosa (£90,673); Redbelt (£10,303); #1 Tropic Thunder £1,345,392 2nd week 461 screens 46% drop (21.3% of top 10)
Down 20.2% from 2007:(£6,468,802); I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry (£1,090,831); Death Proof (£407,525); A Mighty Heart (£153,028); As You Like It (£9,444); Evening (£20,836); Clubland (£1,808); #1 Run, Fat Boy, Run £1,206,177 3rd week 401 screens 22% drop (18.6% of top 10)
Down 1.2% from 2006; (£5,225,385); The Children of Men (£1,284,254); Trust the Man (£280,929); Dirty Sanchez (£257,034); Clerks II (£223,046); #1 The Children of Men £1,284,254 1st week 370 screens (24.5% of top 10)
Down 15.8% from 2005 (£6,125,984); Revolver (£882,814); Land of the Dead (870,285); Howl’s Moving Castle (212,628); #1 Pride and Prejudice £1,934,083 2nd week 402 screens 24% drop (31.5% of top 10)
Down 21.8% from 2004 (£6,598,718); Wimbledon (£1,699,096); Hero (£1,005,571); Cellular (£427,365); The Punisher (£186,017); #1 Wimbledon £1,699,096 1st week 444 screens (25.7% of top 10)
Down 28.1% from 2003 (£7,175,270); Once Upon a Time in Mexico (£846,100); Young Adam (£228,692); Ned Kelly (£211,643); #1 Calendar Girls £1,761,985 4th week 2nd #1 439 screens 5% drop (24.5% of top 10)
Down 25.6% from 2002 (£6,934,104); My Big Fat Greek Wedding (£1,503,436); Swimfan (£396,425); Road To Perdition (platform) (£256,035); #1 Signs £2,657,379 2nd week 440 screens 29% drop (38.3% of top 10)
Down 25.1% from 2001 (£6,893,581); A.I. (£2,285,786); Crazy/Beautiful (£137,017); #1 A.I. £2,285,786 1st week 428 screens (33.1% of top 10);
Next Week 2022 (£6,887,976); Smile (£1,860,452); Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris (£807,817); #1 Smile £1,860,452 1st week 519 screens (22.3% of top 10)
Film News
UK admissions were 14.576m in August (up 57.3% from 2022 but 6.3% down from 2019) due to Barbie taking £40.03m and Oppenheimer £25.73m but this was down on pre-COVID August; 2019 15.55m; 2018 19.22m; 2016 18.08m; 2014 17.06m; 2013 17.63m and similar to 2015 14.37m and 14.47m, as the problem was audiences didn’t come out in high numbers to see the Augiust releases.
The Meg 2 highest-grossing August film was £11.93m and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem was £7.92m. While US BO will often drop off in August UK BO has been historically strong as it is when UK distributors release British comedies including The Inbetweeners and Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa. This has also been the case in September and despite National Cinema Day the first Saturday of the month September will likely have the second lowest admissions for the last 10 years only ahead of COVID-19-affected 2020 having Tenet as the major release for the month.
October will start slowly but will be boosted by Taylor Swift Era Tour surprisingly being released in the UK ahead of her international tour starting in November, it was expected that it wouldn’t be able to be released internationally until after her last European concert at Wembley Stadium on August 17th. Presales went on sale on Tuesday after an initial rush for tickets Tuesday they have since slowed down and it’s unlikely to be as big in the UK as the US, that said with all tickets being £19.89 for adults and £13.13 for children and IMAX/Dolby £23.89 this will boost admissions for the month.
Admissions for 2023 are 88.14m which is 4.6% up from 2022 but 25.3% down from 2019 the remaining slate of the year is much weaker than both 2022 and 2019 admissions will likely be similar to 2022 about 120m down from 176.1m from 2019.
US Box Office
- The Nun II – Warner Bros
Dropped 41% in the third weekend $8.55m #1 and $69.37m.
848th biggest third weekend between He’s Just Not That into You and Ticket to Paradise (close to Scream 3, The Others, Nope and 300: Rise of an Empire).
1,243rd biggest between Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and The Golden Compass; 2,132nd biggest inflated between P.S. I Love You and Horrible Bosses 2; 24th biggest 2023 between The Equalizer 3 and Blue Beetler; 60th biggest horror between Mama and The First Purge; 204th biggest Warner Bros between Grumpy Old Men and Blue Beetle.
The Conjuring Universe 9 films have taken over $800m in the US and over $2.3bn since 2013.
Third weekends
2021’s The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It dropped 51.5% $5m #4 and $53.46m of $65.63m and $206.43m WW
2019’s Annabelle Comes Home dropped 40.5% $5.62 #7 and $60.83m of $74.15m and $228.51m worldwide
2019’s The Curse of La Llorona dropped 54% $8.04m #3 and $41.83m of $54.73m and $121.66m worldwide
2018’s The Nun dropped 45.4% $9.96m #3 and $100.61m of $117.45m and $36.39m worldwide
2017’s Annabelle: Creation 50.8% $7.68m #2 and $78.21m of $102.1m and $305.38m worldwide
2016’s The Conjuring 2 dropped 48.2% $7.7m #5 and $86.9m of $102.47m and $310.2m worldwide
2014’s Annabelle dropped 50.3% $7.87m #8 and $74.08m of $84.27m and $256.86m worldwide
2013’s The Conjuring dropped 41.3% $13.02m #4 and $107.95m of $137.4m and $317.78m worldwide
Took $20.8m from 72 territories and $135 and $205.12m worldwide; Mexico $18.7m; Brazil $8.7m; Indonesia $8.7m; Italy $6.7m; UK $6.4m; India $5.8m; Spain $5.6m; France $5.4m; Argentina $4.3m; Australia $3.7m.
879th biggest worldwide between The Ugly Truth and The Holiday; 27th biggest 2023 between Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves and Insidious: The Red Door; 32nd biggest horror between Paranormal Activity 3 and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It; 143rd biggest Warner Bros between JFK and Yogi Bear.
- Expend4bles – Lionsgate
Opened $8.3m; received poor reviews (16% Rotten Tomatoes) and B- CinemaScore.
Took $750k from Thursday midnights; The Expendables 3 took $875k from Thursday previews.
The Expendables B+ (41%) while Expendables 2 (67%) A- and Expendables 3 (31%) A-
Opened in 700 PLF screens including XD, RPX, Dolby and D BOX taking 37%
2010’s The Expendables opened $34.82m taking $103.06m and $274.47m WW
2012’s The Expendables 2 opened $28.59m taking $85.02m and $314.97m WW
2014’s The Expendables 3 opened $15.87m taking $39.32m and $214.65m WW
As with previous films, it will be front-loaded dropping 60%+ in its second weekend.
After the disappointing performance of The Expendables 3, it was expected to be the final film of the series, but the film series has been key to the success of Millennium Media over the last decade as they presell rights to the $100m film globally and previous films have taken 80%+ of BO internationally. Lionsgate reportedly acquired US and UK rights for $30m plus P&A.
Took $12.3m internationally and $25.6m including China and $33.9m worldwide.
- A Haunting In Venice – Disney/20th Century Studios
Dropped 56% in the second weekend taking $6.3m #3 and $25.35m.
Second weekends
2017’s Murder on the Orient Express dropped 51.9% $13.8m and $51.73m of $102.82m and $352.78m WW; took 71% internationally
2022’s Death on the Nile dropped 49.1% $6.56m and $25.29m of $45.63m and $137.3m WW; 67% internationally
Took $14.7m 35% drop) and $46.2m from 51 territories and $71.6m worldwide; UK $6.1m; Italy $5.4m; China $5m; France $3.2m; Spain $2.4m; Germany $1.9m; Japan $1.9m; Australia $1.5m; S. Korea $1.4m; Mexico $1.3m.
- The Equalizer 3 – Sony Pictures
Dropped 34% in the fourth weekend, taking $4.75m and $81.28m.
1,0025th biggest between The Post and Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials; 1,837th inflated between Stomp the Yard and Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey; 23rd biggest 2023 between Meg 2: The Trench and The Nun II; 66th biggest based on TV show between Star Trek: The Motion Picture and Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius; 134th biggest Sony Pictures between Insidious: The Red Door and 21.
Fourth weekends
2018’s The Equalizer 2 dropped 38.2% $5.4m #8 and $89.55m of $102.08m and $190.4m WW; 46% internationally
2014’s The Equalizer dropped 44.5% $5.38m #9 and $89.1m of $101.53m and $192.33m WW; 47% internationally
Denzel Washington’s biggest films to date at the US box office were 2007’s American Gangster taking $130.16m and 2012’s Safe House $126.18m.
His films have taken $2.45bn at the US box office and $4.23bn WW.
Took $5.4m from 54 territories total $67.4m and $148.7m worldwide; UK $7.9m; Germany $5.7m; France $5.6m; Australia $4.9m; Saudi Arabia $4m.
- Barbie – Warner Bros
Down 16% in the tenth weekend taking $3.2m #5 and $630.45m.
Played in IMAX screens for the first time for one week only.
84th biggest tenth weekend between Rushmore and Gremlins (close to Minions: The Rise of Gru, The Greatest Showman, Aladdin (2019) and Guardians of the Galaxy)
11th biggest film between Jurassic World and The Avengers; 30th biggest inflated between Independence Day and Ghostbusters (1984); 1st biggest 2023 film ahead of The Super Mario Bros. Movie; biggest Warner Bros film ahead of The Dark Knight ($533.72m)
What helped Barbenheimer is the audience of the two films are almost a mirror image of each other. Barbie’s audience is 66.2% female and 74.6% under 29, while Oppenheimer is 70.7% male and 52.9% over 30. The two films complimented each other Barbenheimer probably helped Oppenheimer far more than Barbie, as while Barbie’s audience also went to see Oppenheimer, not as many Oppenheimer probably went to see Barbie.
What will be interesting to see is lessons will be learnt from Barbenheimer studios realise two films playing to very different demographics can perform strongly, This, of course, was the case 30 years ago when studios would open films like Sleepless in Seattle the week after Jurassic Park and the two films would play strongly together.
Studios Top 5 2023; Universal $1.45bn; Disney $1.29bn; Warner $1.1bn; Sony $709.5m; Paramount $705.3m.
Took $3.4m from 73 territories and $797m and $1.427bn worldwide U.K. $122.5m; Germany $58.6m; Australia $56.5m; Mexico $54.3m; France $50m; Brazil $43.8m; Spain $36.9m; Italy $36.3m; China $35.2m; Holland $21.6m and Argentina $15.5m.
14th biggest worldwide between Frozen II and Avengers: Age of Ultron; biggest worldwide 2023 ahead of The Super Mario Bros. Movie ($1.359bn); Biggest Warner Bros film worldwide ahead of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II ($1.31bn) and Aquaman ($1.14bn).
- Oppenheimer – Universal Pictures
Down 22% in the tenth weekend taking $1.62m #10 and $321.2m.
266th biggest tenth weekend between The Waterboy and Hook (close to Get Out, Signs, The Martian and Inside Out).
86th biggest between Shrek the Third and Transformers; 220th biggest inflated between Pearl Harbor and Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides; 5th biggest 2023 between Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 and The Little Mermaid; 12th biggest Universal Pictures film between Minions and Meet the Fockers.
Tenth weekends
2020’s Tenet up 1.9% $929,760 #5 $55.16m of $58.5m and $365.3m WW; dropped 28.4% in the ninth weekend taking $912,468; held #1 for 5 weeks and stayed in top 10 for 13 weeks.
2017’s Dunkirk was down 55.6% $582,713 #15 $186.29m of $188.045m and $525.24m WW; down 29.6% in the eighth weekend taking $1.31m held #1 for 2 weeks and stayed in the top 10 for 9 weeks.
2014’s Interstellar was down 52.8% $1.16m #17 $184.8m of $188.02m and $677.89m WW; down 18.1% in the ninth weekend taking $2.46m stayed in the top 10 for 6 weeks.
2010’s Inception dropped 29.8% $1.96m #9 $285.12m of $292.57m and $825.79m WW; dropping 38.7% in the ninth weekend $2.8m held #1 for 3 weeks and staying in the top 10 for 11 weeks.
2008’s The Dark Knight dropped 29.4% $2.91m #9 $521.89m of $533.34m and $1.003bn WW; dropped 25.1% in the ninth weekend $4.12m held #1 for 4 weeks and stayed in the top 10 for 10 weeks.
2012’s The Dark Knight Rises dropped 42% $1.26m #14 $443.12m of $448.13m and $1.081bn WW; dropped 32.2% in the ninth weekend $2.18m; held #1 for 3 weeks and stayed in the top 10 for 8 weeks.
2020’s Tenet ($205m budget) took $365.3m worldwide; 2017’s Dunkirk ($150m+ budget) took $527m worldwide; 2014’s Interstellar ($165m+ budget) took $773.43m worldwide; 2010’s Inception ($160m+ budget) took $870.1m worldwide.
Took $6.95m (dropped 36%) from 81 territories $604.8m total and $926m worldwide; UK $73.5m; China $57.4m; Germany $48.8m; France $42m; Italy $28.3m; Australia $26.6m; S. Korea $25.3m; Spain $22.1m and Holland $20.5m.
Has taken $181.2m worldwide IMAX
68th biggest worldwide between Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and LOTR: The Two Towers; 3rd 2023 worldwide between The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3; 2nd biggest R-rated between Joker and Deadpool 2; 12th biggest Universal Pictures worldwide between Minions: The Rise of Gru and The Secret Life of Pets.
- Dumb Money – Sony Pictures
Took $2.5m #8 up 1,031% and $2.81m from 616 screens adding 608 screens from last weekend before expanding into 2,500+ screens next weekend.
A disappointing expansion for the film which will likely see a disappointing further expansion next weekend as it was always going to be a hard sell for the audience.
The film is based on the book The Antisocial Network by Ben Mezrich, he previously wrote The Accidental Billionaires, which became 2010’s The Social Network (opened $22.4m taking $96.96m and $224.92m.
Other financial films include.
2015’s The Big Short opened $705,527 from 8 screens and $10.53m expanded taking $70.25m and $133.4m worldwide
2014’s The Wolf of Wall Street opened $18.36m taking $116.9m and $392m worldwide.
2000’s Boiler Room opened $5.74m taking $16.97m and $28.78m worldwide
1987’s Wall Street opened $4.1m taking $43.84m
2010’s Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps opened $19.01m taking $52.47m and $134.74m WW
2011’s Margin Call opened $169,289 56 screens taking $5.35m and $19.5m WW
1990’s Bonfire of the Vanities opened $4.21m taking $15.69m
2019’s Hustlers opened $33.18m taking $104.96m and $157.56m WW
1983’s Trading Places opened $7.34m taking $90.4m
UK Box Office Top 10
UK Box Office Preview
Gareth Edwards’s The Creator has received positive reviews, but the question is will audiences see the adult sci-fi film, the last weekend of September and first weekend of October has been a lucrative time for adult dramas with The Martian (£6,531,734); Gone Girl (£4,109,628); Looper (£2,427,994) and recently with No Time to Die (£25,916,476).
2019’s Ad Astra opening with £2,265,387 taking £6,079,432 is a more likely comparison along with Neill Blomkamp’s District 9 opening £2,288,378 taking £8,875,093; 2016’s Arrival of £2,924,059 taking £9,144,719; 2013’s Elysium £3,127,005 taking £8,679,403; 1997’s Contact £923,561 (£1,808,546 inflated) taking £3,231,287 (£6,327,606 inflated).
Others include.
2014’s Interstellar £5,378,220 taking £20,852,599
2013’s Gravity £6,238,375 taking £32,756,514
Adult sci-fi films have often struggled to find an audience like 2003’s Solaris £313,804 taking £663,508; 2007’s Sunshine £1,021,063 taking £3,175,911 and 2015’s Ex Machina £1,093,952 taking £2,890,149.
The Creator is likely to perform stronger in the UK than the US opening ahead of Saw X while in the US Saw X will likely open ahead of The Creator as tracking has been so
ft and similar to 65 £1,270,409 UK opening/$12.32m US; The Creator will perform strongly in IMAX/PLF
While Saw X will play to its fanbase likely to open similarly to Jigsaw (£1,851,249 #2 taking £4,855,609) rather than Spiral (£779,107 #4 taking £1,496,103).
Ken Loach’s The Old Oak will open similarly to 2019’s Sorry We Missed You opened £364,849 #9 from 178 screens taking £1,256,782 and 2016’s I, Daniel Blake £444,800 #9 from 94 screens taking £3,293,046. If it opens on a similar number of screens.
A Haunting in Venice will be the best holdover taking £800-£950k with The Nun 2 and The Equalizer 3 down 50%+ due to The Creator and Saw X, while Expend4bles drop 60-%+ as its Expend4bles and Dumb Money will also drop heavily as has showtimes heavily reduced.
After 11 weeks of release, it will likely be the final week for both Barbie and Oppenheimer in the top 10, with Barbie overtaking Spectre to become the fifth biggest film in the UK.
Top 10 BO will likely be the lowest since 2013 when #1 Prisoners £1,365,527; two years ago, #1 No Time to Die £25,916,476.
- Opening in three weeks
- Five Nights At Freddy’s – Universal Pictures (Wednesday)
Supernatural horror based on the video game starring Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail, Piper Rubio and Matthew Lillard and directed by Emma Tammi, produced by Blumhouse Productions.
It was originally developed at Warner Bros in 2015 but In 2017 Blumhouse Productions acquired it and Chris Columbus was attached to direct, he was replaced by Emma Tamm in 2022.
- Cat Person – Studiocanal
Black comedy thriller based on a 2017 short story by Kristen Roupenian starring Emilia Jones, Nicholas Braun, Hope Davis, and Isabella Rossellini and directed by Susanna Fogel.
It had a world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival receiving mixed reviews.
Susanna Fogel previously wrote the screenplay for 2019’s Booksmart and directed 2018’s The Spy Who Dumped Me.