The odds were once again in Katniss Everdeen’s favor at the box office, but her franchise is hardly going out with a bang.
In the top spot this weekend is The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 (read our review), which brought in $101 million during its first three days. That’s obviously nothing to sneeze at (it’s the first $100+ million debut this year since Minions in July), but for a series that saw its earliest installments reach the heights of over $150 million, this has to be considered a minor disappointment. Part 2 scored the lowest opening for the Hunger Games films, failing to eclipse its predecessor’s $121.8 million from last year (despite being billed as the grand finale everything led up to).
Seeing The Hunger Games lose some of its box office luster at this stage is a little puzzling, and many will be trying to figure out what caused interest to diminish. The reviews were mostly positive (though not as strong as 2013’s Catching Fire), and star Jennifer Lawrence is still a viable headliner. Perhaps the mixed reception to last year’s Mockingjay – Part 1 led some to jump ship, or the fact that it was sandwiched between Spectre and Star Wars: The Force Awakens (two massive blockbusters) had something to do with its “event” status not holding much weight. Still, Mockingjay is hardly a flop. Its tally is already at $247 million worldwide and its run has only just begun.
At #2 is Spectre. The latest James Bond film held well once again, bringing in $14.6 million in its third weekend. It took a little bit of a hit in ticket sales due to the presence of Hunger Games, but it’s still going strong. 007’s new adventure is up to $153.7 million domestically (the fifth-highest grossing Bond film already) and has made $677.8 million globally. It’s no wonder series producer Michael G. Wilson wants Daniel Craig to return for another go-around.
The Peanuts Movie comes in third with $12.8 million. The family animated film has now grossed $98.9 million and should continue to do strong business as we progress through the holiday season.
New stoner comedy The Night Before (read our review) debuted at #4 despite being the weekend’s second high-profile release. The film brought in $10.1 million in its first three days, which is considerably below the expectations analysts had for it heading into the week. It is way below how previous Seth Rogen vehicles performed, failing to come within the ballpark of Neighbors ($49 million) or even This is the End ($20.7 million). Like Hunger Games, this is an instance where the commercial performance is somewhat surprising.
Nobody expected The Night Before to break any records, but Sony had to have been hoping for something higher than this. The reviews were mostly positive, painting the film as a zany fun time, even if it didn’t measure up to previous holiday classics. Maybe releasing it the week before Thanksgiving wasn’t the best move (since it’s Christmas-themed), but the film failed to attract a sizable audience heading into the holiday season. The only bright spot is that its production budget was just $25 million, meaning it doesn’t have a long road to go to reach profitability.
Rounding out the top five is Secret in Their Eyes (read our review), a new thriller starring Julia Roberts, Nicole Kidman, and Chiwetel Ejiofor. It made $6.6 million in its first three days. The film had a minimal marketing campaign, so distributor STX has to be pleased with the results.
Coming at #6 is Love the Coopers, which made $3.9 million in its second weekend. The film is now up to $14.9 million domestically.
At #7 is The Martian with $3.7 million. Ridley Scott’s latest has now grossed $213 million in the States, inching up Matt Damon’s all-time chart. It’s right behind Saving Private Ryan, which made $216.5 million.
Thanks to a nationwide expansion, awards contender Spotlight (read our review) made it up to eighth with $3.6 million. That’s modest, but it managed those numbers in only 598 theaters, meaning it could come to more locations soon. It’s now up to $5.8 million domestically.
At #9 is The 33. The film made $2.2 million over the weekend to bring its domestic total up to $9.9 million.
Finishing off the top ten is Bridge of Spies with $1.9 million. Steven Spielberg’s historical drama has now made $65.1 million in the States.
[NOTE: These are only weekend box office estimates — based on Friday and Saturday ticket sales coupled with adjusted expectations for Sunday. Official weekend box office results will be released on Monday, November 23 — at which time we’ll update this post with any changes.]
