Friday Estimates: Deadpool Stumbles a Bit, but Still Earns $53.3 million

May 19, 2018

Deadpool 2

Deadpool 2 dominated the box office chart on Friday earning $53.3 million. However this is weaker than expected after it broke the record for previews by an R-rated film. After the film crushed that record, it looked like it would earn $150 million during its opening weekend. However, after earning $53.3 million on Friday, it looks like it won’t even match the original Deadpool’s opening weekend haul of $132.43 million. Granted, it should be close with $132 million and this is still a fantastic start, but it could be a bad omen for its legs. On the other hand, the film’s reviews are more than 80% positive and it earned a solid A from CinemaScore. We won’t know if the reviews and word-of-mouth will overtake the Fanboy Effect until the weekend estimates arrive tomorrow helping the film top its predecessor, but it is usually safe to bet on the Fanboy Effect.

Infinity War’s Friday haul was $7.25 million, a 55% decline from last Friday. However, the direct competition has a lot to do with that and I think the film will bounce back on Saturday and earn just over $30 million over the full weekend. This will leave the film about $3 million shy of $600 million after 24 days of release. It will likely take till its 26th day of release to get to $600 million, making it the second fastest film to get there.

I wasn’t expecting Book Club to be a major hit, but its previews were good and reportedly its presales were much better than anticipated. Some were saying it would earn more than $20 million during its opening weekend. Well, Friday’s estimates are in and the film managed $4.73 million on its opening day, which is a little better than what I was originally expecting, but not enough to hit $20 million over the weekend. In fact, even with good reviews and an A minus from CinemaScore, it is still on pace for just $13 million to $14 million. This isn’t a disaster, but it isn’t a fantastic start either.

Speaking of disasters, Show Dogs only managed $1.4 million on Friday, putting it on pace for $5 million over the weekend. This is among the worst wide openings of all time. Its reviews are simply terrible, while its CinemaScore was weak for a family film at A minus. I don’t think theater owners will be willing to keep the movie in theaters long enough for its word-of-mouth to make a difference.

- Friday Box Office Chart

- Deadpool 2 Comparisons
- Book Club Comparisons
- Show Dogs Comparisons

Filed under: Friday Estimates, Avengers: Infinity War, Deadpool 2, Show Dogs, Book Club