Boss Baby, Beauty whump Smurfs sequel
The Smurfs are feeling a little blue this weekend.
The third instalment in Sony’s animated series, Smurfs: The Lost Village, made its box-office debut in third place, with $14 million (U.S.) — far behind family-friendly holdovers The Boss Baby and Beauty and the Beast, according to studio estimates Sunday.
Featuring the voices of Demi Lovato and Joe Manganiello, Smurfs, which reportedly cost $60 million to make, has not charmed critics either. Its earnings were worse than the 2013 opening of Smurfs 2, which went on to gross $347.5 million worldwide despite a $17.5-million debut and a heftier $105 million price tag.
While the family films dominated, moviegoers had other options on a relatively quiet weekend. The tepidly reviewed buddy comedy Going in Style, starring Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine and Alan Arkin, opened in fourth place, with $12.5 million.
The faith-based drama The Case for Christ also launched with $3.9 million from 1,174 theatres.
The relative quiet at the box office is ending soon. The Fate of the Furious, the eighth instalment in the Fast and the Furious franchise, speeds into theatres next weekend, followed by Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 a few weeks later.
“There are a lot of box-office heavyweights looming on the horizon,” ComScore’s senior media analyst, Paul Dergarabedian, said.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theatres, according to comScore: 1. The Boss Baby, $26.3 million (U.S.) 2. Beauty and the Beast, $25 million 3. Smurfs: The Lost Village, $14 million 4. Going in Style, $12.5 million 5. Ghost in the Shell, $7.4 million 6. Power Rangers, $6.2 million 7. Kong: Skull Island, $5.8 million 8. Logan, $4.1 million 9. Get Out, $4 million 10. The Case for Christ, $3.9 million