‘ Honest Thief’ tops box office
Ticket sales came in slightly ahead of Christopher Nolan’s ‘ Tenet’
Liam Neeson’s thriller Honest Thief limped to first place at the US box office, debuting at $ 3.7 million ( Dh13.59 million). Those ticket sales, among the lowest ever to land at No 1, came in slightly ahead of Christopher Nolan’s
Tenet and Robert De Niro’s family comedy War With Grandpa. Tenet, nowin its seventh week of release, grossed $ 1.6 million, bringing its US haul to $ 50.6 million. The sci- fi epic, from Warner Bros, continues to fare better overseas.
Tenet generated $ 5 million at the international box office for a global haul of $ 333.9 million. Overall, itwas another quiet weekend at theweekend box office as theatres that reopened have resorted to reduce hours of operation or closing down again entirely due to low attendance. Apprehension among moviegoers, coupled with the lack of new potential blockbusters are to blame for lacklustre ticket sales.
Theatre owners argue that it’s not fear keeping people from going to the movies, it’s the dearth of fresh product from major studios. But Hollywood companies have been reluctant to unveil their biggest movies because cinemas in major markets like New York and Los Angeles, which account for a bulk of ticket sales for any given movie, aren’t open.
A potential bright spot: New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Saturday gave movie theatres outside of the city permission to reopen at reduced capacity starting on October 23. It remains to be seen whether the news will encourage studios to start unveiling major movies. Honest Thief releases in UAE cinemas on Thursday.