Pennywise Hopes to Scare Off 'Hustlers' for Repeat at Weekend #1
SATURDAY AM UPDATE: STXfilms' Hustlers is living up to the top end expectations and over performing to the tune of an exception $13.1 million with the studio currently anticipating a $32 million three-day debut. The film received a "B-" CinemaScore from opening day audiences.
Meanwhile, WB's The Goldfinch has flown the coop, bringing in a paltry $870,000 on Friday and currently looking as if it won't even be able to top $3 million for the three-day from 2,542 locations. Should that happen, we're talking about one of the ten worst openings ever for a film debuting in over 2,500 theaters. The film received a "B" CinemaScore from opening day audiences.
You can check out all of the Friday estimates right here and we'll be back tomorrow morning with a complete look at the weekend.
FRIDAY AM UPDATE: STXfilms's Hustlers is off to a fantastic start, bringing in an estimated $2.5 million from Thursday night previews. The performance outperformed Girls Trip, which took in $1.7 million from during previews ahead of a $31.2 million opening as well as ahead of the $2 million Bad Moms took in ahead of a $23.8 million opening in 2016. Our third pre-weekend comp was last year's Ocean's Eight, which brought in $4 million from previews ahead of a $41.6 million opening, which keeps Hustlers well on track to live up to our forecast.
We'll take a closer look at things tomorrow morning once Friday estimates come in. For now you can check out our weekend preview below.
WEEKEND UPDATE: This weekend will likely see Warner Bros. and New Line's It: Chapter Two enjoy a second weekend at #1, but at the same time STX is looking for much needed success from their newest release, Hustlers. The Jennifer Lopez-led crime feature is looking to not only deliver a live-action record opening for the star, but also a record opening for the studio should it top the $23.8 million opening for Bad Moms back in 2016. Meanwhile, WB's The Goldfinch is looking as if it will fall short of a double digit debut following disappointing reviews coming out of the Toronto Film Festival.
Looking to finish atop the weekend box office for a second straight weekend is Warner Bros. and New Line's It: Chapter Two. The sequel to the 2017 smash hit delivered a strong, $91 million debut last weekend and should experience a drop around -59% or so this weekend, which is to be expected for a horror film, especially one that opened as large as this one did. Should our forecast hold we're looking at a three-day performance around $37 million, pushing the film's domestic cume to $150 million by the end of the weekend.
While that should be enough for It to top the weekend, STX's Hustlers is bringing some serious heat following its Toronto Film Festival debut, which has since led to an 88% RottenTomatoes rating and we're seeing signals it will over perform against expectations. The film stars Jennifer Lopez alongside a strong supporting cast including Constance Wu, Julia Stiles, Keke Palmer and Cardi B and while the studio is anticipating a debut around $25 million, we're forecasting a $27+ million performance if not higher.
IMDb page view data shows Hustlers out-pacing Bad Moms ($23.8m opening) and Girls Trip ($31.2m opening) over the two weeks leading up to release and while it is pacing behind Ocean's Eight ($41.6m opening), it's not so far behind as to suggest it won't hit our forecast. In fact, we won't be the least bit surprised to see it push over $30 million and possibly challenge It should the horror film suffer a larger dip than expected.
In third look for WB's The Goldfinch, an adaptation of Donna Tartt's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, set to debut in 2,542 locations. While The Goldfinch also debuted in Toronto, unlike Hustlers, it wasn't met with a similar, positive reaction. Reviews for the film were largely negative, leading to a 29% RottenTomatoes score with most critics complimenting Roger Deakins's cinematography while calling the film overlong and narratively flat. Studio expectations are for an opening anywhere from $7-12 million and we're leaning toward the lower end of those expectations, anticipating a performance around $8 million, though we wouldn't be surprised if the source material alone pushes it closer to $10 million.
From there, several films are lining up over the next five slots, with expected performances ranging from $2-3 million. Among those five is Disney's The Lion King, which is entering its ninth week in release and looking as if it will finally fall outside the top five with $2.7 million. Should that forecast hold we expect it to push the film's domestic cume over $533 million, enough to top Rogue One and become the 12th largest domestic release of all-time.
In limited release, Purdie will launch Out of Liberty in 35 locations; China Lion will open Fagara in 13 locations; Neon will debut their Sundance 2019 acquisition Monos in five theaters; and IFC will debut The Sound of Silence in two theaters.
This weekend's forecast is directly below. This post will be updated on Friday morning with Thursday night preview results followed by Friday estimates on Saturday morning, and a complete weekend recap on Sunday morning.
Discuss this story with fellow Box Office Mojo fans on Facebook. On Twitter, follow us at @boxofficemojo.
Meanwhile, WB's The Goldfinch has flown the coop, bringing in a paltry $870,000 on Friday and currently looking as if it won't even be able to top $3 million for the three-day from 2,542 locations. Should that happen, we're talking about one of the ten worst openings ever for a film debuting in over 2,500 theaters. The film received a "B" CinemaScore from opening day audiences.
You can check out all of the Friday estimates right here and we'll be back tomorrow morning with a complete look at the weekend.
FRIDAY AM UPDATE: STXfilms's Hustlers is off to a fantastic start, bringing in an estimated $2.5 million from Thursday night previews. The performance outperformed Girls Trip, which took in $1.7 million from during previews ahead of a $31.2 million opening as well as ahead of the $2 million Bad Moms took in ahead of a $23.8 million opening in 2016. Our third pre-weekend comp was last year's Ocean's Eight, which brought in $4 million from previews ahead of a $41.6 million opening, which keeps Hustlers well on track to live up to our forecast.
We'll take a closer look at things tomorrow morning once Friday estimates come in. For now you can check out our weekend preview below.
WEEKEND UPDATE: This weekend will likely see Warner Bros. and New Line's It: Chapter Two enjoy a second weekend at #1, but at the same time STX is looking for much needed success from their newest release, Hustlers. The Jennifer Lopez-led crime feature is looking to not only deliver a live-action record opening for the star, but also a record opening for the studio should it top the $23.8 million opening for Bad Moms back in 2016. Meanwhile, WB's The Goldfinch is looking as if it will fall short of a double digit debut following disappointing reviews coming out of the Toronto Film Festival.
Looking to finish atop the weekend box office for a second straight weekend is Warner Bros. and New Line's It: Chapter Two. The sequel to the 2017 smash hit delivered a strong, $91 million debut last weekend and should experience a drop around -59% or so this weekend, which is to be expected for a horror film, especially one that opened as large as this one did. Should our forecast hold we're looking at a three-day performance around $37 million, pushing the film's domestic cume to $150 million by the end of the weekend.
While that should be enough for It to top the weekend, STX's Hustlers is bringing some serious heat following its Toronto Film Festival debut, which has since led to an 88% RottenTomatoes rating and we're seeing signals it will over perform against expectations. The film stars Jennifer Lopez alongside a strong supporting cast including Constance Wu, Julia Stiles, Keke Palmer and Cardi B and while the studio is anticipating a debut around $25 million, we're forecasting a $27+ million performance if not higher.
IMDb page view data shows Hustlers out-pacing Bad Moms ($23.8m opening) and Girls Trip ($31.2m opening) over the two weeks leading up to release and while it is pacing behind Ocean's Eight ($41.6m opening), it's not so far behind as to suggest it won't hit our forecast. In fact, we won't be the least bit surprised to see it push over $30 million and possibly challenge It should the horror film suffer a larger dip than expected.
In third look for WB's The Goldfinch, an adaptation of Donna Tartt's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, set to debut in 2,542 locations. While The Goldfinch also debuted in Toronto, unlike Hustlers, it wasn't met with a similar, positive reaction. Reviews for the film were largely negative, leading to a 29% RottenTomatoes score with most critics complimenting Roger Deakins's cinematography while calling the film overlong and narratively flat. Studio expectations are for an opening anywhere from $7-12 million and we're leaning toward the lower end of those expectations, anticipating a performance around $8 million, though we wouldn't be surprised if the source material alone pushes it closer to $10 million.
From there, several films are lining up over the next five slots, with expected performances ranging from $2-3 million. Among those five is Disney's The Lion King, which is entering its ninth week in release and looking as if it will finally fall outside the top five with $2.7 million. Should that forecast hold we expect it to push the film's domestic cume over $533 million, enough to top Rogue One and become the 12th largest domestic release of all-time.
In limited release, Purdie will launch Out of Liberty in 35 locations; China Lion will open Fagara in 13 locations; Neon will debut their Sundance 2019 acquisition Monos in five theaters; and IFC will debut The Sound of Silence in two theaters.
This weekend's forecast is directly below. This post will be updated on Friday morning with Thursday night preview results followed by Friday estimates on Saturday morning, and a complete weekend recap on Sunday morning.
- It: Chapter Two (4,570 theaters) - $37.3 M
- Hustlers (3,250 theaters) - $27.0 M
- The Goldfinch (2,542 theaters) - $8.0 M
- Good Boys (2,733 theaters) - $3.1 M
- Angel has Fallen (3,076 theaters) - $3.1 M
- The Lion King (2,365 theaters) - $2.7 M
- Overcomer (2,293 theaters) - $2.5 M
- Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw (2,049 theaters) - $2.1 M
- The Peanut Butter Falcon (1,490 theaters) - $1.5 M
- Dora and the Lost City of Gold (1,348 theaters) - $1.3 M
Discuss this story with fellow Box Office Mojo fans on Facebook. On Twitter, follow us at @boxofficemojo.
