Weekend Estimates: Us Appeals to a lot of us with $70 Million Opening

March 24, 2019

Us

Us made the most of its opening weekend with an estimated debut of $70.25 million, which is much higher than even the high end of expectations. If this opening holds, it would be the tenth-biggest March opening, but that’s a big if. It’s just behind 300 and just ahead of The Lorax, so I expect it to change a spot when Monday’s final numbers are released. The film should have reasonable legs going forward, as its reviews are a major asset, while it earned a B from CinemaScore, which is a good result for a horror film. Internationally, the film is opening ahead of Get Out, but far behind its domestic debut with an estimated $16.7 million in 47 markets. This includes the U.K., where it earned $3.7 million during its opening weekend. However, it only cracked $1 million in three other markets: France ($2 million); Germany ($1.4 million); and Spain ($1.2 million).

Captain Marvel is also beating expectations, albeit by a much more narrow margin. The film is projected to earn $35.02 million, to push its running tally to $321.50 million. In normal circumstances, this would be enough to give the film a coin-toss chance to reach $400 million domestically. However, this isn’t normal circumstances, as Avengers: Endgame opens in almost exactly a month. That should give Captain Marvel a boost, and Walt Disney might even give it the push to overtake Wonder Woman at the domestic box office. Internationally, the film is doing even better, earning $52.1 million in 54 markets this weekend for totals of $588.8 million internationally and $910.3 million worldwide. The film will have no trouble getting to $1 billion worldwide, making it the seventh film in the MCU to do so.

Wonder Park really bounced back after a very disappointing Friday and if estimates hold, it will grab third place with $9.0 million for a two-week total of $29.5 million. It could reach $50 million domestically, which wouldn’t be bad for a third-tier animated film. However, this one cost $100 million to make.

Five Feet Apart is right behind according to estimates at $8.75 million, but that might change when Monday’s final numbers show up. The film is well on its way to becoming a financial hit and it should break even early in its home market run, assuming it can find an audience internationally.

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World will round out the top five with an estimated $6.53 million. There is direct competition coming out next week, so it will likely lose a lot of its theater count, but the film is already a financial success, so that isn’t a big deal.

The biggest limited release hit of the week, at least of the ones we have estimates for, is Hotel Mumbai, which is estimated to earn just over $80,000 in four theaters for an average of $21,623. This might be enough to justify a full wide expansion on Friday.

- Weekend Box Office Chart

- Us Comparisons

Filed under: Weekend Estimates, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, Captain Marvel, Dumbo, Wonder Park, Us, Five Feet Apart, Hotel Mumbai, Marvel Cinematic Universe