‘Logan’ claws its way to the top of the heap
Hugh Jackman’s swan song as Wolverine is shaping up to be a global powerhouse.
Twentieth Century Fox’s “Logan” may be Hugh Jackman’s final portrayal of the iconic X-Men character Wolverine, but the man with the adamantium claws isn’t going out without a fight.
The film earned an estimated $85.3 million from Friday to Monday, obliterating its box office competition and relegating Jordan Peele’s socially conscious horror film “Get Out” to second place despite earning $26.1 million, just a 22% drop from opening weekend.
Directed by James Mangold, “Logan” adapts the “Old Man Logan” comic, following an aged Wolverine and ailing Professor X (Patrick Stewart) as they cross paths with a young mutant who will change their lives.
The R-rated film’s take is the biggest opening weekend of 2017 and the fourthbest R-rated debut of all time.
According to the studio, the key to the movie’s success comes in the execution of its vision, blending the visceral with the personal.
“[Mangold] and [Jackman] came in long ago and pitched their version of the film, that was definitely going to be R-rated, that it was going to be a very personal story, and that’s exactly the movie that we have,” said Chris Aronson, head of domestic distribution for Fox. “I think they did a beautiful job of telling that story, and both critics and audiences have responded.”
In addition to its domestic take, “Logan” earned an estimated $152.5 million internationally, according to the studio, bringing the film’s worldwide opening weekend estimate to $237.8 million.
The big weekend for “Logan” comes despite the picture’s relatively modest superhero budget, a mere $97 million, not including marketing costs. In comparison, 2016’s “X-Men: Apocalypse” was budgeted at $178 million and made just $79.8 million in its four-day Memorial Day weekend debut.
Lionsgate’s “The Shack” outpaced expectations to bring in an estimated $16.1 million in its opening weekend, good enough for third at the box office. An adaptation of the Christian novel of the same name, it stars Sam Worthington as a man who meets three iterations of God after the death of his daughter.
Warner Bros.’ “The Lego Batman Movie” landed in fourth place, with the animated comedy adding $11.6 million to its four-week haul, bringing its domestic take to $148.6 million.
The weekend’s other new release, Open Road’s teen drama “Before I Fall,” rounded out the top five, earning about $4.9 million for its eponymous adaptation of the novel about a girl (Zoey Deutch) repeatedly forced to relive the final day of her life.
Lionsgate’s “John Wick: Chapter 2” landed at No. 6 in its fourth week of release. Keanu Reeves’ quietly competent killer brought in $4.7 million for a total of $82.8 million.
The Oscars, meanwhile, continue to drive audiences to the theaters.
Fox’s “Hidden Figures,” a film centered on the black female mathematicians working at NASA in the 1960s, finished in seventh place with $3.8 for the weekend and $158.7 million domestically. Lionsgate’s hit Hollywood musical “La La Land” may have lost best picture but took in $2.9 million for 10th place and $145.6 million overall.
“Moonlight,” the best picture winner, expanded its theatrical run to more than 1,500 screens for its highestgrossing weekend, earning $2.5 million. The film has earned more than $25 million at the box office, despite a production budget of only $1.5 million.