Weekend Wrap-Up: Blade Runner Tops Chart with $32.75 million, but is it Enough?

October 10, 2017

Blade Runner 2049

October started on a soft note with none of the new releases meeting expectations over the weekend. Blade Runner 2049 led the way with $32.75 million, which would have been fine, had the movie not cost $155 million to make. (That’s $185 million on the screen, $155 million cost for the studio, after you take into account tax breaks, etc.) Neither The Mountain Between Us, nor My Little Pony: The Movie made much of an impact at the box office, but at least neither of them bombed. The biggest news was It hitting $300 million. Overall, the box office did climb compared to last weekend, growing 16% to $105 million. This is just 1.2% higher than the same weekend last year, but at this point, a win is a win. Year-to-date, 2017 is 5.1% or $440 million behind 2016 at $8.19 billion to $8.64 billion. We really needed a big win this weekend to put a dent in that number. Unless November and December are really big months, 2017 has already lost the year-over-year competition.

Blade Runner 2049 had broken October records when it came to presales, but it seems only those excited to see a Blade Runner sequel enough to buy tickets in advance really showed up to the theaters. It still easily won first place with $32.75 million during its opening weekend. The movie earned amazing reviews and an A minus from CinemaScore, so it should have strong legs. However, in order for a film to be a big blockbuster in this day and age, a film needs to be what is called a four-quandrant picture, that is to say, it needs to attract men and women, young and old. In this case, 71% of the audience was male and 53% of the audience was males over 25 years old. Like I said, a movie needs to be a four-quandrant picture to be a blockbuster and 53% coming from one quadrant isn’t good news. Hopefully the film will have strong legs and will do well internationally, but this is a softer than expected start.

The Mountain Between Us only managed $10.55 million during its opening, which is good enough for a film that cost a reported $35 million to make. The film’s reviews are only 44% positive, but it earned an A minus from CinemaScore, so that’s a positive sign. It will still need help internationally and / or on the home market to break even.

It added $9.97 million during its fifth weekend of release to its running tally, which now sits at $305.25 million after a month of release. It is practically the only good news we’ve had at the box office for the past two months and it is single-handedly keeping 2017 competitive with 2016.

My Little Pony: The Movie only managed fourth place with $8.89 million. Its reviews are mixed, while it earned an A minus from CinemaScore. This is a film that will likely do more business on the home market rather than in theaters.

Kingsman: The Golden Circle rounded out the top five with $8.68 million over the weekend for a three-week total of $80.54 million. It still has a shot at $100 million domestically, but it will need longer trailing legs to get there. 2017 could use more good news, so we’re keeping our fingers crossed.

Victoria and Abdul landed in eighth place with $4.17 million on 732 screens over the weekend for a running tally of $5.99 million. Its reviews are merely good and not great. It is performing better than its reviews, so audiences are liking it more than critics. Furthermore, its theater average is $5,699, which means it still has some room to grow.

- Weekend Box Office Chart

- Blade Runner 2049 Comparisons
- The Mountain Between Us Comparisons
- My Little Pony: The Movie Comparisons

Filed under: Weekend Wrap-up, The Mountain Between Us, Blade Runner 2049, Kingsman: The Golden Circle, My Little Pony: The Movie, It, Victoria and Abdul