‘Crazy Rich Asians’ keep hold on No. 1
NEW YORK » The opening weekend for “Crazy Rich Asians” was historic. Its second weekend was even more impressive.
The romantic comedy sensation slid just 6 percent from its chart-topping debut to again lead the box office with $25 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday. Almost as many people turned out over the weekend for “Crazy Rich Asians” as they did for its opening Friday-to-Sunday bow — an unheard of hold for a non-holiday release. Drops of close to 50 percent are common.
But propelled by reviews and an eagerness for a major Hollywood film led by Asian stars, “Crazy Rich Asians” is showing almost unprecedented legs.
The adaptation of Kevin Kwan’s bestselling novel, starring Constance Wu and Henry Golding, was helped by weak competition. STX Entertainment’s critically slammed R-rated puppet caper “The Happytime Murders” debuted with $10.1 million, a career-low wide release for star Melissa McCarthy. The robot-dog fantasy “A.X.L.,” from Global Road Entertainment, flopped with $2.9 million.
“There’s no greater indicator of the enthusiasm of an audience than a minimal drop in a second weekend,” said Paul Dergarabedian, of comScore. “This isn’t the product of opening-weekend hype. This is the product of a great movie resonating very strongly with all audiences. The movie has become a cultural phenomenon.”
“The Happytime Murders,” which cost approximately $40 million to make, came into the weekend with some of the worst reviews of the year, despite the pedigree of the Jim Henson Company. Weekend totals 1.“Crazy Rich Asians”: $25M 2.“The Meg”: $13M 3.“The Happytime Murders”: $10M 4.“Mission: Impossible — Fallout”: $8M 5.“Christopher Robin”: $6.3M 6.“Mile 22”: $6M 7.“Alpha”: $5.6M 8.“BlacKkKlansman”: $5.3M 9. “A.X.L.”: $2.9M 10. “Slender Man”: $2.8M