‘Aquaman’ Swims To The Top Of The Weekend Box Office For The Second Week
The final weekend of 2018 came and went, andAquamancontinued to sit at the top of the box office. January tends to be a dumping ground for studios, so it’s unlikely that James Wan’s submerged superhero will be washed away anytime soon – unless audiencesreallyget a craving forEscape Room. The rest of the weekend box office remained predictable:Mary Poppins Returnsheld on at second, andBumblebeeis stuck at third.
Christmas is usually a big time for movies, but the holiday is gone, and all we have left now is New Year’s, which doesn’t exactly set the box office on fire. The final weekend of 2018 once again belonged toAquaman, which is unsurprising. Still, while I think we all knewAquamanwould make money, who knew it would outperformJustice League? As Box Office Mojoreports,Aquaman"delivered the smallest second weekend drop in the DC Extended Universe, dipping just -23.5% for a $51.55 million second weekend, pushing the film’s domestic cume over $188 million. The film now ranks as the eleventh largest domestic release based on a DC Comic after just ten days in release." On top of that,THRadds that the movie will make more than “$900 million by the end of its run and become the biggest Warner Bros./DC title since Christopher Nolan’sThe Dark Knight Risesearned $1.09 billion in 2012, not adjusted for inflation.” My man!
Mary Poppins ReturnsandBumblebeestayed more or less the same, withMary Poppinsimproving slightly, proving word of mouth is drawing more people in, andBumblebeedropped a bit, proving word of mouth isn’t really helping. Go figure.Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Versesaw a larger-than-expected audience drop last weekend, but holds at number 4 (what are you doing, people? Go see this).
Outside of the world of blockbusters, Clint Eastwood’sThe Muleis doing much better than expected, hauling in $60 million so far. Adam McKay’s Dick Cheney biopicViceis now distributor Annapurna’s “highest grossing domestic release of all-time”, taking $17.7 million – but don’t expect it to be as big a hit as McKay’s last movie,The Big Short. Here are the current top 10 films at the box office, again viaBox Office Mojo.
- Aquaman2. Mary Poppins Returns3. Bumblebee4. Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse5. The Mule6. Vice7. Holmes and Watson8. Second Act9. Ralph Breaks the Internet10. Dr. Seuss' The Grinch
Looking to the future, this Friday will see the release of PG-13 horror flickEscape Room, which will probably do okay thanks to a low budget. The following weekend we’ll finally get to see the delayed Keanu Reeves sci-fi flickReplicasandA Dog’s Way Home. Don’t expect either of those to break records. The only clear box office winner in the not-too-distant future isGlass, Night Shyamalan’s sequel to bothUnbreakableandSplit.Early trackingindicates the flick is going to do very well when it opens January 18.
