Weekend Wrap-Up: War Goes Well for Apes Earning $56.26 million

July 18, 2017

War for the Planet of the Apes

The weekend box office chart didn’t hold a lot of surprises. War for the Planet of the Apes earned first place with a slightly better than predicted result of $56.26 million, while most of the rest of our predictions were also close enough to be considered victories. Overall, the box office plummeted 21% from last weekend reaching $163 million. This was also a little lower than the same weekend last year. The emphasis is on “little”, as it only dropped by 0.062% or about $100,000. On its own, this would be nothing to worry about. However, 2017’s lead over 2016 has completely evaporated and the year is now 0.19% or $12 million behind last year’s pace at $6.21 billion to $6.22 billion. We’ve lost about $200 million this summer compared to last year and I don’t see that turning around any time soon.

War for the Planet of the Apes opened with $56.26 million, which is a huge drop-off from Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. The film’s 95% positive reviews and its A minus from CinemaScore could give it good legs, but Dunkirk’s buzz is blowing up, so it could be much stronger competition than earlier anticipated. Even so, an opening like this does put it on track to earn a sizable profit during its home market run.

Spider-Man: Homecoming fell faster than expected, down 62% to $44.21 million over the weekend for a total of $207.28 million after ten days of release. This is worse than its reviews would indicate, so I would chalk this drop-off to the Fanboy Effect. It is the first Spider-Man in the MCU, so fans of either franchise would rush out to see this movie opening weekend. This will probably mean making $300 million domestically out of reach, but it could come close enough that the studio will give it a push over the top. Regardless, it has already made enough money worldwide to pay for its entire production and by the time it is out of theaters, it might be in the black.

Despicable Me 3 held up a little better predicted with $19.36 million over the weekend for a total of $188.40 million after three weeks of release. The film will crack $200 million during the coming weekend, which is amazing for a film that cost $75 million to make.

Baby Driver was next with $8.71 million over the weekend for a total of $73.12 million after three weeks of release. It likely won’t reach $100 million, but it will come close enough to be a financial success.

The Big Sick only managed fifth place with $7.53 million over the weekend for a total of $15.97 million including its three-week limited release run. I was really expecting more, especially with its reviews. That said, distribution rights only cost $12 million and its marketing budget was around $20 million, so this isn’t a disaster. It could match that figure domestically, while it has a shot at finding a bigger audience on the home market.

Wonder Woman remains on pace to at least come close to $400 million, so we will keep track of it as it completes its journey. This past weekend, the film earned $6.80 million lifting its running tally to $380.60 million after seven weeks of release. As long as its theater count doesn’t collapse over the next few weeks, it has a better than 50/50 chance of getting to $400 million. Its ability to hold onto theaters will depend heavily on the quality of the new competition each week.

Wish Upon opened in seventh place with $5.47 million during its debut weekend. This is on the low end of expectations, but it could have been worse. I don’t expect much in terms of legs, not with 19% positive reviews and a mere C from CinemaScore. On the other hand, it didn’t cost a lot to make, so it should at least match its $12 million production budget domestically and it could break even during its home market run.

- Weekend Box Office Chart

- War for the Planet of the Apes Comparisons
- The Big Sick Comparisons
- Wish Upon Comparisons

Filed under: Weekend Wrap-up, Wonder Woman, Baby Driver, War for the Planet of the Apes, Despicable Me 3, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Dunkirk, The Big Sick, Wish Upon, Spider-Man, Marvel Cinematic Universe