The summer movie season may be wheezing to a close, but it’s not dead yet. A couple of newcomers added a bit of life to the box office, with a creepy little horror flick slicing its way to the top.
Warner Bros.’ Weapons ripped an estimated $42.5 million out of moviegoers in North America this weekend to nail down the win. It earned another $27.5 million overseas to push its one-weekend global gross to a tidy $70 million. Sure, those numbers aren’t on par with, say, Superman or The Fantastic Four: First Steps. But for a relatively inexpensive horror flick? That’s the sort of box-office take that’ll put an unsettling smile on many a studio exec’s face.
Incidentally, R-rated horror films from Warner Bros. have been on a tear. Michael B. Jordan’s Sinners earned nearly $278.6 million stateside earlier this year, while Final Destination Bloodlines has banked a franchise-best $138.1 million since its May release.
The nostalgic power of Freakier Friday was no match for Weapons, but it still managed to scrape up $29 million domestically. Add in the $15.5 million it earned internationally, and the sequel (22 years in the making) has earned $44.5 million.
Two-time box-office winner The Fantastic Four: First Steps took a couple steps backward, sliding into third place with $15.5 million. Its overall domestic tally now stands at $230.4 million, and its global take has now reached $434.2 million. Impressive? Sure—even if it’s not quite enough to fund a new spaceship for Reed Richards and company. Indeed, most believe that the film hasn’t even broken even just yet. Perhaps Disney/Marvel can hold a Fantastic Four bake sale or something.
The Bad Guys 2 finished fourth with $10.4 million, giving it a $43.4 million total domestic take thus far. Another long-gestating sequel/reboot, The Naked Gun, closed out the top five with $8.4 million.
Looking down the list a bit, Angel Studios’ Sketch eked into the box office’s top 10 with a $2.5 million weekend. It deserved a better fate for its opening frame, in my opinion. So here’s hoping for a nice, long run. Meanwhile, My Mother’s Wedding finished 13th with a paltry $432,000. Wedding? That feels more like a box-office funeral.
2 Responses
It’s been years since I saw a horror flick in a theater, but I plan to watch Weapons. I was intrigued that PI’s review praised the movie as “well-crafted” and then said this: “But, in some ways, those artistic strengths demand a stronger wariness. A story that sticks with us (that contains troubling content) can hold a greater sway over our minds than soon-to-be-forgotten slop.”
Isn’t that a positive thing? Isn’t adult content more justifiable when it’s used in a good movie than when it’s thrown out there for cheap thrills? And shouldn’t we spend our time, money and attention on stories that stick with us — even in a disturbing way — instead of some soulless reboot that we’ll forget in 15 minutes?
Speaking of reboots, the new Naked Gun is surprisingly well done. I cracked up quite a few times, although that might say more about my lowbrow sense of humor than about the movie. If you like old-school spoofs like Airplane and Top Secret, check out The Naked Gun. Leslie Nielsen would be proud.
All I can say is that I’m glad I didn’t read your review of “Weapons” before I went to see it yesterday with a couple of friends. I had pointedly avoids anything more than capsule reviews. The horror website Bloody Disgusting headline was, “Zach Cregger’s Suburban Shocker Is a Dementedly Funny Crowd-Pleaser for Sickos.” Well, I guess that makes me a sicko. it was a long, slow burn of a film that kept looping back on itself until I started thinking, “Where is this movie GOING?” But when you finally find out where the movie is going, it really takes off and becomes totally whacked out. Unfortunately Bret Eckelberry’s review contained what amounted to spoilers. He concludes with a reference to the director’s previous film: “Frankly, when this kind of festering movie grime seeps into your head, it’s kinda hard to flush it back out.” Does this mean the movie is memorable? Most definitely. Does this mean the movie is going corrupt me? Absolutely not. Because at the end of the day I know IT’S ONLY A MOVIE. Call me a movie sicko if you like, but in real life I’m one of the nicest, most caring people you’d ever meet. And while I can accept movies like this on their own term, I also know that there is no such thing as witchcraft to be practiced.