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'Finding Dory' Courtesy of Pixar |
Steven Spielbeg's 'The BFG' bombs in North America over the July 4th weekend, while 'Legend of Tarzan' is still in trouble despite coming in ahead of expectations; 'The Purge: Election Year' rallies early financial success.
Disney is weathering a lopsided Fourth of July at the North American box office between two of its films, ruling champ Finding Dory and Steven Spielberg's pricey misfire, The BFG.
Pixar and Disney's Finding Dory is swimming ahead of the competition to stay at No. 1 in its third weekend, no small feat considering both BFG andThe Legend of Tarzan are big-budget tentpoles designed to set off major fireworks. But neither of the two latter films materialized into mega-holiday players, although Tarzan isn't a complete disaster.
Finding Dory earned $41.9 million from 4,305 theaters for the three-day weekend, putting its Friday-Monday gross north of $50 million. (Four-day numbers will be released Monday morning.) The continued appeal of the animated film no doubt made life tough for The BFG, which is likewise a family play. Dory also dominated overseas, grossing another $34.4 million.
Finding Dory's domestic total through Sunday is a sizeable $272.2 million, while globally it has earned $538.2 million, tying with Finding Nemo to rank as the No. 5 animated title of all time, not accounting for inflation.
Warner Bros. and Village Roadshow's The Legend of Tarzan is holding at No. 2 in North America with a three-day gross of $38.1 million from 3,561 theaters and estimated four-day gross of $44 million. While that's better than expected, it's still a problematic number considering the movie's $180 million production budget.
The holiday's clear financial winner is Universal's The Purge: Election Year, which cost just $10 million to make. The horror threequel is guaranteed a third-place finish with a three-day tally of $30.9 million from 2,796 theaters and an estimated four-day haul of $34 million-plus. Blumhouse and Platinum Dunes produced Election Year for Universal, and it's one of the few franchise installments to not suffer from sequelitis.
Disney and Spielberg's BFG, with a net budget of $140 million, is bombing in North America, where the family film earned $19.6 million for the three-day weekend from 3,357 locations. The movie's four-day debut is projected to come in at $23.6 million.
Both The BFG and Tarzan hope to make up ground at the international box office, but since both have staggered rollouts their fate overseas won't immediately be known.
Legend of Tarzan opened in its first 19 markets this weekend, grossing $18.8 million, including a first-place finish in Russia with $3 million and a second-place finish in South Korea with $4 million. David Yates directed the action-adventure film, which stars Alexander Skarsgard in the title role opposite Margot Robbie, Samuel L. Jackson, Djimon Hounsou, Jim Broadbent and Christoph Waltz.
In North America, Tarzan earned an A- CinemaScore, although reviews were less kind. The movie skewed slightly female (51 percent), while nearly 70 percent of the audience was over the age of 25.
"We thought we'd be in the $35 million range for the four days, but we've come in higher each day," said Warner Bros. domestic distribution chief Jeff Goldstein, who credits strong exits and the A- CinemaScore. "And movie was always meant to be a big player internationally."
Conversely, The BFG flailed in its North American debut despite solid reviews and an A- CinemaScore, not to mention a high-profile world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May. It's the first time Spielberg has directed a movie for Disney, which partnered with Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment and Walden Media.
The BFG is based on Roald Dahl's beloved book of the same name about a man-eating giant (Mark Rylance) who softens upon meeting a young orphan girl (Ruby Barnhill). Families made up the bulk of the audience (60 percent), while it skewed even more female than Tarzan (54 percent).
"All of us are very very proud of the film. And are encouraged in the way people responded, from the first screening at Cannes to strong reviews to the CinemaScore," said Disney distribution exec VP Dave Hollis. "And we are hoping for resilient weekday business because of the availability of the family audience, plus strong business internationally."
Overseas, The BFG debuted in its first two markets, Australia and Russia, earning $2 million and $1.9 million, respectively, for a total $3.9 million.
Helmed by James DeMonaco, The Purge: Election Year earned a B+, a good grade for a horror film. Sequel The Purge: Anarchy debuted to $29.8 million in late July 2014, while The Purge opened to an impressive $35.1 million in June 2013.
The Purge hasn't begun to roll out in earnest overseas, although Universal and Illumination Entertainment enjoyed a good weekend with The Secret Life of Pets, which took in another $11.9 million from six markets for an early international total of $29.6 million. The animated family film opens in North America on July 8.
Also overseas, Universal and Legendary's Warcraft appeared D.O.A. in Japan, where it debuted to $273,000. The video game adaptation, which stalled in the U.S., is all but done with its global run, having earned $422.1 million globally. The vast majority, or $220.1 million, came from China, so it's not clear whether the movie will break even.
In North America, Fox's Independence Day: Resurgence rounded out the top five, grossing $16.5 million for the three days (a 60 percent decline from opening weekend). The sequel is projected to gross $20.1 million for the four days, putting its domestic total at $76.3 million through Monday.
Dwayne John and Kevin Hart's Central Intelligence continued to hold well, falling 32 percent for the three-day weekend to an estimated $12.3 million for a domestic total of $91.8 million and placing No. 6. Overseas, the action comedy grossed $13.8 million for a foreign total of $30.3 million and worldwide tally of $122.1 million.
Sony's shark movie The Shallows, starring Blake Lively, also held nicely, earning $9 million for the three days and a projected $10.7 million for the four days. Through Monday, the film's domestic total is an estimated $37 million.
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