In-theater debut puts ‘Wrath of Man’ at No. 1
“Wrath of Man,” a heist thriller starring Jason Statham, is leading box office charts with its $8.1 million debut.
It’s hardly the start to summer movie season, which typically kicks off the first weekend in May, that many theater owners were hoping would ignite with Marvel’s “Black Widow.” (Disney recently moved the release of its superhero tentpole from May 7 to July 9).
At the least, it’s something to keep film exhibitors afloat until moviegoing picks up with Disney’s “Cruella” and Paramount’s “A Quiet Place Part II” at the end of the month, followed by “F9,” the musical “In the Heights” and “The Hitman’s Bodyguard’s Wife” in June.
In North America, the box office has returned in fits and starts as COVID-19 vaccination rates rise and major movie markets, such as New York City and Los Angeles, loosen capacity restrictions in theaters.
In the meantime, receipts for “Mortal Kombat,” “Godzilla vs. Kong” and “Demon Slayer: Mugen Train” have been encouraging.
Sony Pictures opened “Here Today,” a comedy with Tiffany Haddish and Billy Crystal, in 1,200 North American venues. It pulled in $900,000 over the weekend, landing in seventh place on box office charts.
In its 10th weekend of release, ticket sales for Disney’s “Raya and the Last Dragon” increased 25% from the weekend prior. The animated kids movie, which is currently available to rent on Disney Plus for a premium fee, landed in fifth place and added another $1.8 million from 2,315 venues.
After three weeks on the big screen, the anime hit “Demon Slayer” slid to second place and pulled in $3 million. It has made $39 million in the U.S. and more than $435 million globally.
Falling not far behind, the Warner Bros. video game adaptation “Mortal Kombat” landed in the No. 3 spot with $2.3 million.
“Godzilla vs. Kong,” also from Warner Bros., came in fourth place with $1.9 million. With $422 million at the global box office, the monster mashup has surpassed revenues for its predecessor.