Friday Box Office Analysis

By Kim Hollis

August 17, 2019

I dunno, they don't look good.

New at BOP:
Share & Save
Digg Button  
Print this column
We have a few new films this weekend, and one of them even did well! Talk about your unexpected news!

Yes, our top film for Friday was Good Boys, the raunchy comedy featuring Jacob Tremblay (Room) and produced by Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg. It semi-follows the tradition of Superbad, but takes the joke even a few years younger. Presumably there are dick jokes and stuff that's funny because it's kids cursing, but reviews say it has heart, too. Audiences rewarded it to the tune of $8.3 million yesterday, which does include $2.1 million from Thursday night previews. I'd estimate about $20 million for the weekend, which matches the production budget.

Comedy hasn't performed well over the last couple of years, so I think Good Boys is the type of movie that might maintain some life in the coming weeks. People need a laugh and we finally have a well-reviewed, buzzy film to get people into theaters. Next weekend brings Angel Has Fallen, Overcomer, and Ready or Not, so there's definitely room to grow (though I wouldn't recommend sleeping on Ready or Not - it looks terrific).

The second best of the weekend's new films is 47 Meters Down: Uncaged, which earned just $3.2 million. That's actually not that far off from the first movie, which managed $4.4 million on its first Friday, but there's also not any real expansion here. Honestly, it's going to make the majority of its profit from home video anyway, so $8 million here is just fine.




Advertisement



No one cared about The Angry Birds Movie 2, probably because Angry Birds isn't much of a thing any longer. I'm sure kids would be all over a Fortnite movie, though maybe it's past its prime as well. It's hard to keep up. Anyway, The Angry Birds movie earned just $2.8 million yesterday and should come in with $9 million or less.

I don't know that we should expect a ton of earnings from Blinded By the Light, even if it has terrific reviews and a positive, upbeat message. From director Gurinder Chadha, this film about a young man inspired by Bruce Springsteen earned $1.4 million yesterday and should finish with $5.2 million for the weekend.

It was clear from the treatment by United Artists that they had no faith or confidence in Where'd You Go, Bernadette. Despite being directed by Richard Linklater and starring Cate Blanchett in the lead role, it seems to be a total miss. Critics are savaging it. Its $1.2 million yesterday should translate to less than $4 million overall for the weekend. Linklater doesn't miss often, but then again, he doesn't work with adapted screenplays often, either.

In other updates, Hobbs & Shaw will cross $125 million this weekend, but it's the international results that matter with that film. The Lion King will probably not quite cross $500 million, but it's pretty darned close. Spider-Man: Far from Home will also hit $375 million.


     


 
 

Need to contact us? E-mail a Box Office Prophet.
Tuesday, March 19, 2024
© 2024 Box Office Prophets, a division of One Of Us, Inc.