The ComingSoon.net Box Office Report has been updated with studio estimates for the weekend. Click here for the full box office estimates of the top 12 films and then check back on Monday for the final figures based on actual box office.
One of the more anticipated movies of the summer, Legendary Pictures’ reboot of the classic Toho Studios movie monster Godzilla (Warner Bros.) roared into theaters on Thursday night with a killer showing of $9.3 million from Thursday previews. That was added into the Friday gross of $38.5 million, which was on par with some of the other recent openers, but even with a slight drop on Saturday, it was still able to become the third movie to open with over $90 million in the past two months–following Captain America: The Winter Soldier and The Amazing Spider-Man 2–with an estimated $93.2 million take for the weekend.
Overseas, Godzilla had the biggest international opening of the year, bringing in $103 million in 64 markets with 3D screenings making up a whopping 51% of its weekend gross. Combined with the domestic earnings, Godzilla has already earned $196.2 million worldwide.
$14.1 million of Godzilla‘s domestic opening weekend came from its 352 IMAX screenings, the third-best showing for the format after last year’s Iron Man 3 and the previous summer’s The Avengers, while doing better in the format than last summer’s Star Trek Into Darkness. Internationally, IMAX accounted for $7.5 million of Godzilla‘s grosses on 186 screens.
Reportedly budgeted at $160 million, Edwards’ movie received a B+ CinemaScore from exit polls, and while reviews and word-of-mouth have been mixed, it should offer some strong competition for X-Men: Days of Future Past over Memorial Day weekend.
Universal’s mega-hit comedy Neighbors, starring Seth Rogen, Zac Efron, Rose Byrne and Dave Franco, held fairly well against the fire-breathing behemoth, dropping to second place with $26 million, down 47%, to bring its total to $91.5 million as it aims to become the 10th or 11th movie of 2014 to cross the $100 million mark. Neighbors has also been doing well internationally where it brought in $13.5 million for an overseas total of $53.8 million.
Sony Pictures’ The Amazing Spider-Man 2 took a slightly less dramatic plunge in its third weekend, dropping to third place with $16.8 million (down 53%) as it brought its domestic total to $172.2 million. Internationally, the movie took in another $31.5 million to bring its overseas total to $461 million, as its worldwide gross crossed the $600 million mark with $633 million. China alone took in another $13.5 million this weekend to bring the country’s total for the movie up to $78.5 million.
Despite a lot of effort by and support from the studio, the Jon Hamm baseball movie Million Dollar Arm (Walt Disney Pictures), based on a true story, failed to find much of an audience going against Godzilla, as it opened in fourth place with $10.5 million from 3,019 locations, less than $4,000 per site.
Fifth place went to The Other Woman (20th Century Fox), the sleeper comedy starring Cameron Diaz and Leslie Mann, which added another $6.3 million this weekend to bring its domestic total to $71.6 million. It added another $8.2 million internationally this weekend to bring its overseas total to $79.8 million.
TriStar Pictures’ spiritual hit Heaven is for Real (Sony) took sixth place with $4.4 million, the adaptation of the bestselling book having racked up $82.3 million since opening in April.
Still holding ground in the Top 10 since opening in April, the animated sequel Rio 2 (20th Century Fox) added another $3.8 million this weekend to take seventh place with a total domestic gross of $118 million.
Marvel Studios’ Captain America: The Winter Soldier (Disney) crossed the $700 million mark globally this weekend as it fell just below Rio 2 domestically for eighth place with just under $3.8 million. The sequel’s domestic gross of $250.6 million is edging closer to The LEGO Movie to become the top grossing movie of the year.
Combined, the Top 10 grossed approximately $168 million, which is $20 million more than the same weekend last year when J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek Into Darkness opened early on Thursday in 3,868 theaters and ended up with $70 million for the weekend.
Just outside the Top 10, Fox Searchlight’s period drama Belle and Jon Favreau’s foodie comedy Chef (Open Road Entertainment) each expanded into more theaters to break into the Top 15 and with the right expansion, one or both could be making their way into the Top 10 by the end of the month.
James Gray’s own period drama The Immigrant (The Weinstein Company), starring Joaquin Phoenix, Marion Cotillard and Jeremy Renner, opened in three theaters in New York and L.A. to the tune of $45 thousand or $15 thousand per site. Another immigrant movie of sorts, Cedrick Klapisch’s Chinese Puzzle, starring Romain Duris and Audrey Tautou, opened in 2 theaters where it took in $24 thousand.
Click here for the full box office estimates of the top 12 films.
