In A Daring Box-Office Heist, ‘The Bad Guys’ Makes Off With $24 Million and A Surprise No. 1 Debut
Farewell Fantastic Beasts, we hardly got a chance to know you. In what can only be called one of the most daring box-office heists of the spring, Universal’s new animated comedy, The Bad Guys, stole the weekend’s top spot in broad daylight, making off with a hefty $24 million haul. The multiplex larceny came at the expense of Warner Bros.’ latest big-budget Harry Potter spin-off, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, which nosedived to third place in its sophomore frame—an ominous sign for the long-running wizarding franchise. Meanwhile, two other new wide releases joined them at the top of the charts: the arty, mud-and-blood-soaked Viking saga The Northman and the Nicolas Cage meta-action-comedy The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.
Following in the family-friendly footsteps of Sing 2 and the more recent Sonic the Hedgehog 2, The Bad Guys is further proof that the spring has become a very hospitable time for kid-targeted titles. The PG-rated comedy from Universal and DreamWorks Animation about a gang of animal thieves who struggle to become model citizens defied industry predictions by bowing in first place despite stiff holdover competition. With a fresh 85% score from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and a straight-A grade from CinemaScore, The Bad Guys earned a hefty $5,988 per-screen average at 4,008 locations in its rookie weekend. The comedy, which features the voices of Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Zazie Beetz, Craig Robinson, and Awkwafina, also made off with plenty of loot overseas—$63.1 million worth, in fact, bringing its first-week cumulative global box office to a robust $87.1 million.
So that means Fantastic Beasts 3 ended up in second place, right? Not so fast. Actually, runner-up honors went to Sonic the Hedgehog 2, which took in $15.2 million in its third weekend of release. The Paramount videogame sequel slipped an expected -48% in its third frame, scoring a $3,997 per-screen average in 3,809 theaters. The PG-rated follow-up to 2020’s hit franchise launch featuring Jim Carrey, James Marsden, and the voice of Ben Schwartz as its eponymous blue cartoon critter, has now collected $145.8 million in its first three domestic sessions. Outside of North America, where Sonic 2 opened a week earlier, the kid-centric film has pulled in $142 million so far, bringing its current worldwide tally to $287.8 million.
Which brings us to the third-place finisher…yes, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore. In a precipitous fall-off from its brief reign as last week’s box-office champ, the PG-13-rated fantasy lost a lot of its magic and its mojo, taking in $14 million—a massive drop-off of -66.8% from the previous frame—notching a $3,300 per-screen average at 4,245 locations. The third chapter in Warner Bros.’ Harry Potter prequel cycle starring Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, and Jude Law as Dumbledore, has racked up an underwhelming $67.1 million in North America in its first two weeks. However, the silver lining is that the franchise’s international fanbase is still turning out: To date, Fantastic Beasts 3 has made $213.2 million at the foreign box office, bringing its worldwide cume to $280.3 million.
In fourth place was Focus Features’ The Northman with an impressive $12 million debut. The challenging R-rated Viking saga from indie auteur Robert Eggers (The Witch, The Lighthouse) resonated with critics, who gave the film an 89% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. But its warm reception from audiences was a bit of a surprise. Despite its reported $90 million price tag and starry cast that includes Alexander Skarsgard, Nicole Kidman, Ethan Hawke, Anya Taylor-Joy, Bjork, and Willem Dafoe, The Northman was hardly going to be a down-the-middle, sure-fire hit. Still, it managed to snag an impressive $3,710 per-screen average in 3,234 theaters. And it tacked on another $11.5 million overseas, bringing its first-week global tally to $23.5 million. Yes, it still has a long way to go to recoup its sizable budget, but its freshman performance still feels like a victory for audiences looking for smarter, more original and adult-oriented fare at the multiplex.
Rounding out the top five was the week’s third and final rookie wide release: Lionsgate’s The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent with $7.2 million. Piggybacking on the recent cult swirling around over-actor extraordinaire Nicolas Cage, the R-rated meta-action-comedy starring Cage as…himself (alongside Pedro Pascal and Tiffany Haddish) managed a $2,363 per-screen average in 3,036 theaters. The film clicked with reviewers, who handed the self-aware title an 88% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but Cage’s fans proved to be in on the insidest of inside jokes as well. Massive Talent found less traction overseas, however, adding just $2.4 million to its $9.6 million global box-office total.
Finally, sticking around (and still thriving) just outside of the top five was A24’s weird and wacky Everything Everywhere All at Once. Two weeks after expanding nationwide from a more bespoke limited release, the R-rated indie about a woman (Michelle Yeoh) who enters a visually daffy multiverse, added another $5.4 million. In its fifth weekend, the ‘little-movie-that-could’’s business slipped just 12.3% from the previous frame and scored a $2,543 per-screen average at 2,133 locations. Its total domestic haul is now an eyebrow-raising $26.9 million—far more than anyone had predicted for such an idiosyncratic film.
Following in the family-friendly footsteps of Sing 2 and the more recent Sonic the Hedgehog 2, The Bad Guys is further proof that the spring has become a very hospitable time for kid-targeted titles. The PG-rated comedy from Universal and DreamWorks Animation about a gang of animal thieves who struggle to become model citizens defied industry predictions by bowing in first place despite stiff holdover competition. With a fresh 85% score from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and a straight-A grade from CinemaScore, The Bad Guys earned a hefty $5,988 per-screen average at 4,008 locations in its rookie weekend. The comedy, which features the voices of Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Zazie Beetz, Craig Robinson, and Awkwafina, also made off with plenty of loot overseas—$63.1 million worth, in fact, bringing its first-week cumulative global box office to a robust $87.1 million.
So that means Fantastic Beasts 3 ended up in second place, right? Not so fast. Actually, runner-up honors went to Sonic the Hedgehog 2, which took in $15.2 million in its third weekend of release. The Paramount videogame sequel slipped an expected -48% in its third frame, scoring a $3,997 per-screen average in 3,809 theaters. The PG-rated follow-up to 2020’s hit franchise launch featuring Jim Carrey, James Marsden, and the voice of Ben Schwartz as its eponymous blue cartoon critter, has now collected $145.8 million in its first three domestic sessions. Outside of North America, where Sonic 2 opened a week earlier, the kid-centric film has pulled in $142 million so far, bringing its current worldwide tally to $287.8 million.
Which brings us to the third-place finisher…yes, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore. In a precipitous fall-off from its brief reign as last week’s box-office champ, the PG-13-rated fantasy lost a lot of its magic and its mojo, taking in $14 million—a massive drop-off of -66.8% from the previous frame—notching a $3,300 per-screen average at 4,245 locations. The third chapter in Warner Bros.’ Harry Potter prequel cycle starring Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, and Jude Law as Dumbledore, has racked up an underwhelming $67.1 million in North America in its first two weeks. However, the silver lining is that the franchise’s international fanbase is still turning out: To date, Fantastic Beasts 3 has made $213.2 million at the foreign box office, bringing its worldwide cume to $280.3 million.
In fourth place was Focus Features’ The Northman with an impressive $12 million debut. The challenging R-rated Viking saga from indie auteur Robert Eggers (The Witch, The Lighthouse) resonated with critics, who gave the film an 89% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. But its warm reception from audiences was a bit of a surprise. Despite its reported $90 million price tag and starry cast that includes Alexander Skarsgard, Nicole Kidman, Ethan Hawke, Anya Taylor-Joy, Bjork, and Willem Dafoe, The Northman was hardly going to be a down-the-middle, sure-fire hit. Still, it managed to snag an impressive $3,710 per-screen average in 3,234 theaters. And it tacked on another $11.5 million overseas, bringing its first-week global tally to $23.5 million. Yes, it still has a long way to go to recoup its sizable budget, but its freshman performance still feels like a victory for audiences looking for smarter, more original and adult-oriented fare at the multiplex.
Rounding out the top five was the week’s third and final rookie wide release: Lionsgate’s The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent with $7.2 million. Piggybacking on the recent cult swirling around over-actor extraordinaire Nicolas Cage, the R-rated meta-action-comedy starring Cage as…himself (alongside Pedro Pascal and Tiffany Haddish) managed a $2,363 per-screen average in 3,036 theaters. The film clicked with reviewers, who handed the self-aware title an 88% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but Cage’s fans proved to be in on the insidest of inside jokes as well. Massive Talent found less traction overseas, however, adding just $2.4 million to its $9.6 million global box-office total.
Finally, sticking around (and still thriving) just outside of the top five was A24’s weird and wacky Everything Everywhere All at Once. Two weeks after expanding nationwide from a more bespoke limited release, the R-rated indie about a woman (Michelle Yeoh) who enters a visually daffy multiverse, added another $5.4 million. In its fifth weekend, the ‘little-movie-that-could’’s business slipped just 12.3% from the previous frame and scored a $2,543 per-screen average at 2,133 locations. Its total domestic haul is now an eyebrow-raising $26.9 million—far more than anyone had predicted for such an idiosyncratic film.
