It’s not easy being a vigilante killer. Robert McCall, a.k.a. the Equalizer, knows that as well as anyone.
But making a killing at the box office? Well, The Equalizer 3 makes it look easy.
The Equalizer 3 blasted its way to No. 1 during the three-day Labor Day weekend, earning an estimated $42.3 million in North America. That’s the second-highest total ever for the holiday, trailing just the $94.6 million that Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings made during Labor Day weekend in 2021.
Add in its overseas grosses, and The Equalizer 3 has already earned $68.4 million.
But while McCall’s Labor Day toils certainly paid off, he has a lot more work ahead if he hopes to topple Barbie.
Sure, Barbie finished a distant second this weekend to The Equalizer 3, collecting $13.1 million over the three-day holiday. But given that the namesake doll has been around since 1959, it’s no surprise that its movie would also play the long game. And let’s be honest, this Barbie’s got legs. There hasn’t been a weekend where it hasn’t finished No. 1 or No. 2 since mid-July, and over that time Barbie has earned a staggering $612 million. Her global take is just shy of $1.4 billion.
Barbie has always liked pink. But this year, it’s all about the green.
Speaking of colors, let’s move to blue—Blue Beetle, that is, which banked $9.2 million in North America to push its overall domestic take to $58.5 million. Add in its worldwide receipts, and Blue Beetle has now earned a grand total of $104.4 million. That may sound big, but for a superhero movie, that bank statement looks rather insect-sized itself. Blue Beetle’s lack of success must (ahem) bug the movie’s accountants.
Last week’s champ, Gran Turismo, looks like it blew a tire on its second lap, skidding to $8.6 million and falling all the way to fourth place.
Oppenheimer closed out the top five with $7.5 million. It’s now earned $308.7 million domestically. But the Christopher Nolan historical epic saved its biggest bang for overseas. Helped by a $30.7 million five-day opening in China, Oppenheimer has now collected $853.2 million worldwide—making it the second-biggest R-rated film ever. What’s No. 1? Joker from 2019, which banked nearly $1.1 billion.
Might Oppenheimer become a billionheimer in its own right? Time will tell.
One Response
-Well as sure heck not watching barbie or its obvious agenda. I love denzel washington and hoe refreshingly unhollyweird agenda free faith and God honoring focused he is but think equalizer is a little violent, though if had to choose between that and barbie would definitely choose equalizer. The only other movies maybe would watch is the gran turismo one.