by Nathaniel R
| Weekend Box Office Estimates (June 1-3) |
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| W I D E 800+ screens |
L I M I T E D excluding prev. wide |
 Adrift |
 First Reformed |
| 1. Solo $29.2 (cum. $148.8) REVIEW, BEHIND THE SCENES |
1. 🔺 RBG $1.1 on 432 screens (cum. $7.8) REVIEW |
| 2. Deadpool 2 $23.3 (cum. $254.6) | 2. 🔺 First Reformed $455k on 91 screens (cum. $1) REVIEW |
| 3.🔺Adrift $11.5 *NEW* REVIEW |
3. 🔺 The Rider $243k on 224 screens (cum. $1.7) REVIEW |
| 4. Avengers: Infinity War $10.3 (cum. $642.8) REVIEW |
4. Disobedience $211k on 158 screens (cum. $3k) REVIEW |
| 5. Book Club $6.8 (cum. $47.3) REVIEW |
5. How Long Will I Love U $170k on 32 screens (cum. $501k) |
More bad news for Solo as it fell a terrible 65% in its second week and its also underperforming overseas where would be blockbuster "disappointments" often make up for their tepid reception at home. None of the new pictures got audiences revved up though Adrift did decent business and might eventually be profitable. But the studios were clearly scared of Solo's second weekend when they did their original summer scheduling. Little did they know!
The best hold in the top ten is Book Club which will hit $50 million domestic with ease...
That's the power of "Legends only!" casting and counterprogramming in that there's otherwise a dearth of movies aimed at older audiences in the summers.
The big news in limited release is still the documentary RBG which has now become the distributor Magnolia's highest grossing release ever, leap-frogging their former biggest hit, also a documentary, I Am Not Your Negro. The Ethan Hawke drama First Reformed is another noteworthy story, adding a few dozen screens in its third weekend and passing the million dollar mark. After a successful arthouse run the Rachels are finally running out of steam in their steamy Disobedience, though.
 Upgrade |
 On Chesil Beach |
| 6. Upgrade $4.4 *NEW* | 6. Pope Francis A Man of His Word $150k on 273 screens (cum. $1.5) |
| 7. Life of the Party $3.4 (cum. $46.3) | 7. 🔺 On Chesil Beach $142k on 89 screens (cum. $345k) |
| 8. Breaking In $2.8 (cum. $41.3) REVIEW |
8. 🔺 American Animals $140k on 4 screens *NEW* |
| 9. Action Point $2.3 *NEW* | 9. 🔺 The Seagull $130k on 52 screens (cum. $526k) REVIEW |
| 10. Overboard $1.9 (cum. $45.5) | 10. Beast $87k on 92 screens (cum. $629k) |
| 🔺 = new or expanding its theater count numbers (in millions unless otherwise noted) from box office mojo |
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Saoirse Ronan has had two quietly received releases in the wake of Lady Bird and both are in the top ten in limited release though neither are doing that much business.
A Quiet Place finally leaves the top ten in its ninth week with a $183 million gross to date but what a run. It's the fourth biggest hit of the year (thus far) and the only one of the top five that didn't have a pre-built audience waiting for it and didn't cost $100 million plus to make. On a $17 million budget it's grossed over $300 million globally. That's a lot of profit.
WHAT DID YOU SEE THIS WEEK? I finally got around to Tully and Deadpool 2. Loved the first, hated the latter and that isn't at all surprising so why did I wait so long with the former and why didn't I just skip the latter? The mysteries of moviegoing.