Glass keeps fragile hold on No. 1 at box office

LOS ANGELES — With the distraction of the Super Bowl, freezing temperatures affecting large portions of North America and only one big new release in theatres in Miss Bala, movie-going audiences largely took the weekend off from the theatres in what is estimated to be the lowestearning Super Bowl weekend in nearly two decades.

M. Night Shyamalan’s Glass kept a fragile hold on the No. 1 spot for the third time while The Upside stayed in a close second on this sleepy box office weekend. Studios on Sunday estimate that Glass has earned an additional $9.5 million in ticket sales, bringing its total earnings to $88.7 million.

STX’s The Upside added $8.9 million. The Kevin Hart and Bryan Cranston film has held very well in its four weeks in theatres, never dropping more than 30 per cent week to week. Its domestic grosses are already up to $75.6 million.

The weekend’s only big newcomer, Miss Bala, landed in third place with $6.7 million. Gina Rodriguez stars in the Catherine Hardwicke-directed actioner, which is a remake of a 2011 Mexican film. While on the lower end of projections for the Sony film, Miss Bala was also made for a modest $15 million. Still, with a dismal 27 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes, it will have its work cut out for itself to break even.

“The box office in 2019 hasn’t gotten its groove back yet,” said Comscore senior media analyst Paul Dergarabedian. “Januarys by and large are not known as blockbuster months and that has held true this year with the month being down 16 per cent.”

Aquaman slid into fourth place with $4.8 million and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse clung to fifth with $4.4 million.

Peter Jackson’s First World War documentary They Shall Not Grow Old opened on 735 screens after a few single-day showings to a robust $2.4 million, which was enough for it to crack the top 10. The Mads Mikkelsen survival thriller Arctic also opened in limited release to $56,463 from four locations.