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Disney’s “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” once again topped the domestic box office as Western drama “Cry Macho” by Clint Eastwood and R-rated action thriller “Copshop” by Gerard Butler took center stage. collapsed in their early days, underscoring the disparity between the genres of films people are willing to venture out to see during the pandemic.
“Shang-Chi,” the first Marvel superhero adventure to feature an Asian star and a predominantly Asian cast, raised $ 21 million in its third weekend of release, marking a drop of just 39% from compared to the previous weekend. The film has generated an impressive $ 176.9 million at the domestic box office to date.
Ticket sales for “Shang-Chi” are particularly noteworthy as the film, which opened earlier this month, made more money between Friday and Sunday than this weekend’s two new domestic releases. – “Cry Macho” and “Copshop” – combined. These films failed to connect in theaters because they targeted older moviegoers, a demographic that has been reluctant to return to multiplexes with the delta variant of the spread of COVID-19. For “Cry Macho”, 89% of ticket buyers were over 35 years old.
“Cry Macho,” the latest cinematic effort from Eastwood, the 91-year-old director of “Gran Torino,” “Million Dollar Baby,” and “American Sniper,” fell short of expectations and landed in third place with a dismal 4.5 million dollars. from 3,967 screens. The budgeted $ 33 million “Cry Macho” is the latest Warner Bros. release, after “Malignant” and “Reminiscence,” to stumble at the box office in its simultaneous premiere on HBO Max.
At # 6, STX and Open Road’s “Copshop” did even worse, bringing in an anemic $ 2.3 million at 3,005 locations. Both films were aimed at a similar audience, which could have cannibalized the sales of the few customers who bought tickets.
Speaking of ‘Cry Macho,’ David A. Gross, who heads film consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research, says, “This is a weak opening in the face of two daunting obstacles: Older moviegoers are not yet ready to go. come back in force to the cinema., and the film is available at home.
He adds, “But with mild reviews, even under normal circumstances the film would open below par for a Western drama by Clint Eastwood.”
While movies aimed at adult audiences have been a tough sell, CGI’s heavy adventures have been the mainstay of movie marquees. Since its premiere only in theaters during the Labor Day holidays, “Shang-Chi” appears to become the first pandemic-era release to cross $ 200 million in North America. In one notable reference, “Shang-Chi” topped Universal’s “F9: The Fast Saga” ($ 172 million) to become the second highest grossing film of the year in the US and Canada. In the coming days, “Shang-Chi” is set to dethrone its other Marvel Cinematic Universe installment “Black Widow” ($ 183 million) as the highest grossing film of 2021.
Unlike “Shang-Chi”, people didn’t have to go to their local multiplex to watch “Black Widow”. The comic book adaptation, starring Scarlett Johansson, was available to rent on Disney Plus the same day it debuted in theaters. Disney reported that “Black Widow” made $ 125 million from Disney Plus Premier Access. Even with the extra cash from viewers online, Disney has maintained its commitment to the big screen, at least until the end of the year. The studio recently announced that the rest of its 2021 movie roster, including Marvel’s “Eternals” and Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story” remake, will play exclusively in theaters.
“Disney’s recent decision to release its films in theaters before streaming is another indication that after exploring different possibilities, theatrical release remains the best approach,” said Gross.
Elsewhere at the domestic box office, Disney and 20th Century “Free Guy” continued to beat expectations, grossing $ 5.2 million at 3,288 theaters between Friday and Sunday. On its sixth weekend of release, “Free Guy” secured second place ahead of newcomers “Cry Macho” and “Copshop” and the leftovers “Candyman” and “Malignant”. In a win for the original fare, the sci-fi comedy directed by Ryan Reynolds grossed $ 108.6 million in North America and $ 298 million worldwide.
Universal’s horror film “Candyman” landed in fourth place with $ 3.5 million from 2,820 locations. After a month in theaters, the R-rated slasher film, starring Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, has raised $ 53 million in the US and Canada. Warner Bros. ‘ The rampant thriller “Malignant” topped the top five with $ 2.6 million on 3,501 screens, bringing its 10-day national count to a dismal $ 9.8 million.
In limited edition, Searchlight’s “The Eyes of Tammy Faye” got off to a smooth start, pocketing $ 675,000 in 450 locations. This bonus – amounting to $ 1,500 per room – was enough to take 10th place on the box office charts. The film, which dramatizes the rise and fall of controversial televangelists Tammy Faye Bakker (Jessica Chastain) and Jim Bakker (Andrew Garfield), plans to expand its footprint to more than 1,000 theaters by next weekend. Michael Showalter (“The Big Sick”) directed “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” a drama that hopes to find itself in the awards race in the coming months.
Given that adult audiences have been more reluctant to go to the movies, it’s no surprise that the specialty box office remains struggling. Focus Features opened “Blue Bayou” in 477 theaters and grossed $ 315,000 in total, a disappointing $ 660 for each location. Elsewhere, IFC has opened “The Nowhere Inn,” a satirical mock-documentary starring St. Vincent and Carrie Brownstein. The film grossed $ 20,000 in 46 theaters, an average of $ 435 per location.
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