It’s not necessarily a surprise thatStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalkerhas come out on top in the Friday box office race as well as its first Friday in theaters. No, we always knew this final entry in theStar WarsSkywalker saga would be a box office juggernaut. Instead, what’s surprising is how well it’s managing to do given it was met with severe criticism earlier in the week which threatened to keep audiences at home.
As it heads into its first weekend in theaters,Rise of Skywalkerhas racked up $90 million in domestic sales as well as a B+ CinemaScore. This total includes its whopping $40 million indomestic opening night screeningsfrom Thursday night. Opening in 4,406 locations nationwide, the Disney/Lucasfilm pic averaged $20,427 per theater. This per-theater average is one of the many harbingers of inevitable success for the movie but it still has a big battle ahead if it wants to have the same kind of success and the previousStar Warssequel trilogy movies.
For comparison, back in 2015Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens— a helluva record-breaking movie for the franchise and for that year — racked up $119 million domestic during its Friday opening. Even the now-hotly-contestedStar Wars: The Last Jedifared slightly better on its Friday opening thanRise of Skywalker, reeling in $104 million domestic in 2017. Now, is this a signRise of Skywalkeris doomed? Absolutely not. We should see a spike in domestic totals as folks use their precious weekend time to check it out rather than scramble to the theater after work. But still…still.
As for the other new movie coming into the box office race this week, a little movie musical adaptation known asCats, well, let’s just say audiences are making the Jellicle choice to see other movies right now. Also, if you don’t get that reference to the Jellicles, then you might be one of the many people opting out of seeingCats. TheTom Hooper-directed adaptation ofAndrew Lloyd Webber’s wildly-popular, long-running musical boasts a star-studded cast —Judi Dench,Ian McKellen,Idris Elba,Jennifer Hudson,James Corden, etc. — and some big visuals but only managed to pull in $2.6 million domestic on Friday. Pairing with the low Friday take is a C+ CinemaScore and a per theater average of just $775 with the film showing in 3,380 theaters nationwide. This is a deeply troubling start for a film with a reported budget of $95 million, to put it mildly.
Also opening wide this weekend isBombshellstarringNicole Kidman,Charlize Theron, andMargot Robbie. This ripped-from-the-headlines movie is based on the exposure of Fox News headRoger Ailesas an alleged sexual abuser of his female staff, including former employeesMegyn Kelly(played by Theron) andGretchen Carlson(played by Kidman). Directed byJay Roach(Trumbo), the Lionsgate release is sitting at number five in the chart with $1.83 million earned. Despite the early awards season buzz (it currently has two Golden Globe noms and four SAG noms), this is a fairly grim opening as the movie goes into a nationwide release.Bombshellis currently in 1,480 locations nationwide and is averaging $1,236 per theater.
As for the other two slots in the Friday chart, last weekend’s number one,Jumanji: The Next Level, is now at number two with $7.1 million earned domestically. Despite the 64% week-to-week dip, this brings its nationwide total up to $83 million as theDwayne Johnson-led action-adventure flick heads into its second weekend. At number three is Thankgiving weekend heavyweightFrozen II. The Disney animated movie is holding on with $3.3 million added to its domestic earnings. Going into this final weekend before Christmas, the ice-covered charmer of a Disney release now has $377.5 million in total domestic sales.
So, are you planning on seeing a movie this weekend? If you’ve made it this far and still need some guidance, check out our reviews forStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,Cats, andBombshellto help you decide.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
$90,000,000
Jumanji: The Next Level
$7,100,000
$82,911,365
$3,300,000
$377,533,961
$2,620,000
$1,830,000
$2,239,281
