AP – The third instalment in the Denzel Washington-led Equalizer franchise topped the domestic box office this weekend with USD34.5 million according to studio estimates on Sunday. By the end of the Monday holiday, Sony expects that total will rise to USD42 million.
Labor Day signals the end of Hollywood’s summer movie season, which will surpass USD4 billion in ticket sales for the first time since the pandemic thanks in no small part to Barbie and Oppenheimer, which are still netting records even after seven weeks in theatres.
This weekend, Greta Gerwig’s Barbie officially became the biggest movie of 2023 with over USD1.36 billion globally, surpassing The Super Mario Bros Movie, while Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer sailed past USD850 million globally to become the No 3 movie of the year and Nolan’s third highest grossing. The Equalizer 3 arrived at a fraught time for Hollywood, with actors seven weeks into a strike for fair contracts with major entertainment companies and movie theatres bracing for a somewhat depleted fall season as a result.
The ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike meant Washington was unable to stump for the movie, which was directed by his frequent collaborator Antoine Fuqua and brings his vigilante character Robert McCall to Italy’s Amalfi coast. While the lack of a major star on a promotional tour would normally be considered a liability for a film’s box office potential, Equalizer 3 may be the rare exception that could withstand a rollout without Washington’s help simply because it’s a recognisable franchise.
“One of the biggest movie stars in the world took us out on a high note,” said senior media analyst for Comscore Paul Dergarabedian. “Studios often coast to Labor Day, but Sony was smart to choose this weekend to open The Equalizer 3.”
Sony opened the R-rated Equalizer 3 in over 3,900 locations in North America, including on IMAX and premium large format screens, where it opened in line with the previous two films which both went on to make over USD190 million globally. With co-financing from TSG and Eagle Pictures, the film carried a USD70 million production price tag. The film received generally positive reviews from critics (76 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes) and overwhelmingly positive reviews from audiences, who gave it an A on CinemaScore and a five-star PostTrak rating.
“It’s uncanny the consistency of the Equalizer franchise,” Dergarabedian said.
Overseas, it made USD26.1 million, contributing to a USD60.6 million global debut.
In second place, Barbie added USD10.6 million over the weekend in the United States (US) and Canada, pushing its domestic total to USD609.5 million. Warner Bros’ other main theatrical offering, Blue Beetle added USD7.3 million to take third. The DC superhero film has grossed USD56.6 million in three weekends in North America. Fourth place went to Sony’s Gran Turismo: Based on a True Story, which is projecting USD6.6 million through Sunday, down 62 per cent from its first place opening weekend, and USD8.5 million including Monday.
Oppenheimer landed in fifth place on the domestic charts with an estimated USD5.5 million (USD7.4 million including estimates for Monday) from 2,543 theatres. This brings its domestic total to USD310.3 million and its global take to USD851 million.
The Universal film opened in China last Wednesday, playing on 35,000 screens, where it is estimated to have made USD30.3 million in its first five days. A significant portion of that (USD9.3 million through Sunday) came from 736 IMAX screens.
IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond said in a statement that Oppenheimer‘s China debut showed that “it’s nowhere near finished dazzling audiences worldwide”. Gelfond added that its success also offers “a powerful demonstration of our surging market share around the world”.
That the 18-week summer movie season hit USD4 billion is significant for an industry still recovering from the pandemic and facing uncertainty in the fall if the actors and writers strikes continue. Before the pandemic, USD4 billion summers had become the standard for the industry and generally accounted for at least 40 per cent of the total box office for the year. Last summer netted out with USD3.4 billion.
And this summer had its share of hits, flops and surprises, with Barbenheimer accounting for over USD900 million of the USD4 billion haul.
“The summer box office is vitally important and a strong indicator of the health of the industry,” Dergarabedian said.
“Many were really sceptical that we could get to USD4 billion. We’re hitting it literally in the final days of the summer. It’s a reminder that any hit or miss makes a profound impact on the bottom line.” – Lindsey Bahr
