Spielberg’s ‘Ready Player One’ tops holiday box office

LOS ANGELES » Steven Spielberg has found his way back to the top of the box office with the action-adventure “Ready Player One,” while Tyler Perry has scored again with “Acrimony.”

Studio estimates on Sunday say Spielberg’s virtual reality-focused film earned a solid $53.2 million in its first four days in theaters from 4,234 locations since opening Wednesday night, with $41.2 million of that coming from the three-day weekend.

Not adjusted for inflation, it’s Spielberg’s best opening in a decade following “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” which launched with $100.1 million in 2008. Aside from “The BFG,” Spielberg has lately favored smaller historical dramas instead of the big-scale blockbusters of his heyday.

Based on Ernest Cline’s popular novel and chock-full of references to 1980s pop culture, including some nods to Spielberg’s own films, “Ready Player One” is a return to the popcorn filmmaking that he became known for. With that includes a reportedly hefty $175 million price tag, which does not account for marketing costs.

Audiences gave the film an A- CinemaScore, and reviews have been warm, too (it’s sitting at a 76 percent on Rotten Tomatoes). Those who turned out this weekend were mostly male (59 percent) and over the age of 25 (56 percent).

“It’s great to be in the Steven Spielberg business,” said Jeff Goldstein, Warner Bros.’ president of domestic distribution. “We always believed that this movie itself would carry the day and that’s really what happened. We’ve seen all around the globe that the word of mouth is really propelling it.”

Goldstein said while advance ticket sales were solid, the walk-up business was particularly robust on Friday and Saturday.

Internationally, the film exceeded the studio’s expectations with $128 million from 62 territories, including $61.7 million from China (the biggestever opening in the country for Warner Bros.). Globally it grossed $181.3 million.