NEW YORK (AP) — Critics panned it and audiences didn’t rate it much better. But despite the turmoil, Mel Gibson’s “Flight Risk” Sunday managed to open No. 1 at the box office with $12 million, according to studio estimates.
In a quiet weekend, even for January’s typically sensational movies, the top spot went to Lionsgate, a thriller starring Mark Wahlberg as an air marshal (Michelle Dockery) and a fugitive in Alaska. (Topher Grace) was blowing up. But it wasn’t a particularly fruitful follow-up to Gibson’s direction until 2016. “Hacksaw Ridge.” Reviews (21% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and audience scores (a “C” CinemaScore) were terrible.
President Donald Trump Recently Gibson was named “Special Ambassador”. In Hollywood, with Jon Voight and Sylvester Stallone.
Heading into the weekend, Hollywood was more focused on him. Sundance Film Festival And on Thursday Oscar nominationWhich was postponed twice. Wildfires in the Los Angeles area.
The weekend was also a small test of whether another common Oscar “bump” that can sometimes follow nominations still exists. Most of the contenders have completed most of their theatrical runs by now and are more likely to see improvements in VOD or streaming.
But the most daring gambit of the weekend was to push the A24. “The Brutalist” by Brady Corbett The three-and-a-half-hour epic was nominated for 10 Academy Awards, in wide release. Although some executives initially welcomed “The Brutalist,” which is running intermittently, as “undistributable,” Corbett says, A24 took the film to the Venice Film Festival and did solid business. managed, raising $6 million in limited release. .
In wide release, it grossed $2.9 million — far from blockbuster money but still the best weekend for “The Brutalist.”
Audiences were modest for another Best Picture nominee: Ramel Ross’ “Knuckle Boys.” Innovatively shot almost entirely in first-person POV, the Amazon MGM Studios release grossed just $340,171 at 540 locations after expanding to 300 theaters.
is coming One of the lowest Martin Luther King Jr. weekends in yearsno new releases made a big impact.
Steven Soderbergh’s “Presence,” A well-reviewed horror film shot from the perspective of a ghost inside a suburban house, it debuted with $3.4 million at 1,750 locations. Released by Neon and picked up at last year’s Sundance, the film was made for just $2 million.
The top spots otherwise went into holdover. The Walt Disney Company “Mufasa: The Lion King” In its sixth weekend of release, it scored $8.7 million to finish in second place. After a slow start, the Barry Jenkins-directed film has grossed $626.7 million worldwide.
“one of these days” The Keke Palmer and SZA-led comedy from Sony Pictures, which held up well in its second weekend, fell just 32% with $8 million in ticket sales. In recent years, few comedies have found success on the big screen, but “One of These Days” proved to be an exception.
According to Comscore, ticket sales are projected for Friday through Sunday at theaters in the US and Canada. Final domestic data will be released on Monday.
1. “Flight Risk,” $12 million.
2. “Mufasa: The Lion King,” $8.7 million.
3. “One of These Days,” $8 million.
4. “Sonic the Hedgehog 3,” $5.5 million.
5. “Moana 2,” $4.3 million.
6. “Presence,” $3.4 million.
7. “Wolfman,” $3.4 million.
8. “A Complete Unknown,” $3.1 million.
9. “Den of Thieves 2: Pantera,” $3 million.
10. “The Brutalist” $2.9 million.
