IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Dergarabedian, Comscore’s senior media analyst. “I think this is a really solid debut. It shows there is a demand for family films on the small screen and the big screen.”
Blockbusters rounded out the top five with “Dune” in third place with $5.5 million, “No Time to Die” in fourth with $4.6 million and “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” in fifth with $4 million. Notably, “Venom 2” this weekend became only the second pandemic-era film to cross the $200 million mark at the domestic box office. The other was “Shang-Chi.”
More and more awards hopefuls are entering the specialty box office as well, and many are making their way into the top 10. This weekend Kenneth Branagh’s semi-autobiographical film “Belfast” made $1.8 million from 580 screens in its debut. In its second weekend, “Spencer,” featuring Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana, pulled in $1.5 million from 1,265 screens. And even in its fourth weekend, Wes Anderson’s “The French Dispatch” continues to do well, adding $1.8 million and bringing its total to $11.6 million.
Outside the top 10, the Julia Child documentary “Julia” opened on five screens to $20,796.
Next weekend, “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” faces off against the Will Smith awards hopeful “King Richard.”
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. “Eternals,” $27.5 million.
2. “Clifford the Big Red Dog,” $16.4 million.
3. “Dune,” $5.5 million.
4. “No Time to Die,” $4.6 million.
5. “Venom: Let There Be Carnage,” $4 million.
6. “Ron’s Gone Wrong,” $2.2 million.
7. “The French Dispatch,” $1.8 million.
8. “Belfast,” $1.8 million.
9. “Spencer,” $1.5 million.
10. “Antlers,” $1.2 million.