‘Top Gun 2’ Soars Over Memorial Day Box Office With $124 Million Three-Day Haul, Tom Cruise’s Best Opening Ever
After 36 years, Tom Cruise’s daredevil Navy flyboy Pete Mitchell apparently still felt the need…the need for speed. And so, too, did nostalgic moviegoers who flooded the nation’s multiplexes over Memorial Day weekend to propel the star’s long-delayed sequel, Top Gun: Maverick, into the box-office stratosphere with a $124 million domestic haul between Friday and Sunday. When Monday’s receipts are factored in, look for that total to climb to $151 million—making the Paramount sequel the strongest debut of Cruise’s storied career by far. Meanwhile, 20th Century Studios’ The Bob’s Burgers Movie bowed over the holiday frame in third place with $12.6 million.
Originally slated to open in the summer of 2020, Top Gun: Maverick was always a big bet for the studio. Not just because of its sky-high $170 million price tag, but also because it was gambling on an aging audience’s memories of a film that hit theaters way back in 1986 (when the original made $8.2 million in its opening frame, on the way to a final domestic tally of $180.3 million). But as Maverick proved, box-office analysts should never underestimate the strong pull of nostalgia—a key contributor to the fact that a whopping 55% of the film’s ticketbuyers were aged 40 and over. With a $26,187 per-screen average in 4,735 theaters, Maverick’s $124 opening represented the fourth highest domestic debut of 2022 (bested only by a trio of superhero movies: Spider-Man: No Way Home’s $260 million, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ $187 million, and The Batman’s $134 million). Meanwhile, Top Gun 2’s projected $151 million gross over the four-day long weekend places it just shy of the all-time Memorial Day weekend box-office record, behind only The Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End's $153 million back in 2017. No matter how you parse it, Maverick, which also stars Miles Teller, Val Kilmer, Jon Hamm, and Jennifer Connelly, is a triumph for Paramount, which now has its fifth title to open in first place this year. It’s also a valedictory lap for Cruise, who can now be called one of Hollywood’s last remaining A-list stars thanks to the success of the Mission: Impossible franchise and now Maverick. A hit with both critics (who gave it a 97% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes) and moviegoers (who handed it a rare ‘A+’ CinemaScore grade), the title also soared overseas, where it took in $109.6 million (without the help of Russia and China, where it has not opened), bringing its first-week global tally to $260.6 million.
In the second place was Disney’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which had to settle for the runner-up spot after its three-week reign as the top-grossing movie in North America. The latest Marvel installment took in $16.4 between Friday and Sunday and $21.1 when Monday is factored in—a dip of -49.2% from the previous session. The Benedict Cumberbatch tentpole scored a $4,310 per-screen average at 3,805 locations, putting its four-week domestic box-office total to $375.5 million. The PG-13-rated blockbuster has fared even better overseas, where it has racked up $497.9 million in ticket sales. The film’s current worldwide total now stands at $873.4 million.
In third place was the holiday weekend’s only other newcomer of note, 20th Century Studios’ The Bob’s Burger Movie, which gobbled up $12.6 million between Friday and Sunday and $15 million after Monday is taken into account. The PG-rated spin-off feature from the long-running animated TV show had a $3,678 per-screen average in 3,425 theaters. The movie, which has earned an 86% fresh rating from reviewers, has barely opened overseas yet, earning a negligible $7,000 over its debut weekend.
In fourth was Focus Features’ Downton Abbey: A New Era with $5.9 million between Friday and Sunday and $7.5 million when Monday’s receipts are included. The PG-rated extension of the beloved upstairs-downstairs British TV series starring Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern, Michelle Dockery, and Maggie Smith, slipped a hefty -63.1% from the previous frame, scoring a $1,540 per-screen average at 3,830 locations. Its current North American take now stands at $30.1 million. Overseas, A New Era has taken in $40.5 million in its first two weeks, bringing its worldwide cume to $70.6 million.
Rounding out the top five was Universal’sThe Bad Guys with $4.6 million between Friday and Sunday and just under $6.2 million when Monday’s business is included. In its sixth weekend, the PG-rated animated comedy about a gang of animal thieves who struggle to become model citizens decreased -24.6% from the previous session, managing a $1,572 per-screen average in 2,944 theaters. The movie, which features the voices of Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Zazie Beetz, Craig Robinson, and Awkwafina, has now pulled in a combined $82.9 million domestically and another $116.2 from overseas, bringing it global box-office cume to $199.1 million.
Originally slated to open in the summer of 2020, Top Gun: Maverick was always a big bet for the studio. Not just because of its sky-high $170 million price tag, but also because it was gambling on an aging audience’s memories of a film that hit theaters way back in 1986 (when the original made $8.2 million in its opening frame, on the way to a final domestic tally of $180.3 million). But as Maverick proved, box-office analysts should never underestimate the strong pull of nostalgia—a key contributor to the fact that a whopping 55% of the film’s ticketbuyers were aged 40 and over. With a $26,187 per-screen average in 4,735 theaters, Maverick’s $124 opening represented the fourth highest domestic debut of 2022 (bested only by a trio of superhero movies: Spider-Man: No Way Home’s $260 million, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ $187 million, and The Batman’s $134 million). Meanwhile, Top Gun 2’s projected $151 million gross over the four-day long weekend places it just shy of the all-time Memorial Day weekend box-office record, behind only The Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End's $153 million back in 2017. No matter how you parse it, Maverick, which also stars Miles Teller, Val Kilmer, Jon Hamm, and Jennifer Connelly, is a triumph for Paramount, which now has its fifth title to open in first place this year. It’s also a valedictory lap for Cruise, who can now be called one of Hollywood’s last remaining A-list stars thanks to the success of the Mission: Impossible franchise and now Maverick. A hit with both critics (who gave it a 97% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes) and moviegoers (who handed it a rare ‘A+’ CinemaScore grade), the title also soared overseas, where it took in $109.6 million (without the help of Russia and China, where it has not opened), bringing its first-week global tally to $260.6 million.
In the second place was Disney’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which had to settle for the runner-up spot after its three-week reign as the top-grossing movie in North America. The latest Marvel installment took in $16.4 between Friday and Sunday and $21.1 when Monday is factored in—a dip of -49.2% from the previous session. The Benedict Cumberbatch tentpole scored a $4,310 per-screen average at 3,805 locations, putting its four-week domestic box-office total to $375.5 million. The PG-13-rated blockbuster has fared even better overseas, where it has racked up $497.9 million in ticket sales. The film’s current worldwide total now stands at $873.4 million.
In third place was the holiday weekend’s only other newcomer of note, 20th Century Studios’ The Bob’s Burger Movie, which gobbled up $12.6 million between Friday and Sunday and $15 million after Monday is taken into account. The PG-rated spin-off feature from the long-running animated TV show had a $3,678 per-screen average in 3,425 theaters. The movie, which has earned an 86% fresh rating from reviewers, has barely opened overseas yet, earning a negligible $7,000 over its debut weekend.
In fourth was Focus Features’ Downton Abbey: A New Era with $5.9 million between Friday and Sunday and $7.5 million when Monday’s receipts are included. The PG-rated extension of the beloved upstairs-downstairs British TV series starring Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern, Michelle Dockery, and Maggie Smith, slipped a hefty -63.1% from the previous frame, scoring a $1,540 per-screen average at 3,830 locations. Its current North American take now stands at $30.1 million. Overseas, A New Era has taken in $40.5 million in its first two weeks, bringing its worldwide cume to $70.6 million.
Rounding out the top five was Universal’sThe Bad Guys with $4.6 million between Friday and Sunday and just under $6.2 million when Monday’s business is included. In its sixth weekend, the PG-rated animated comedy about a gang of animal thieves who struggle to become model citizens decreased -24.6% from the previous session, managing a $1,572 per-screen average in 2,944 theaters. The movie, which features the voices of Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Zazie Beetz, Craig Robinson, and Awkwafina, has now pulled in a combined $82.9 million domestically and another $116.2 from overseas, bringing it global box-office cume to $199.1 million.
