This weekend, multiplexes were packed with audiences as a female-driven comedy and a male-skewing action adventure — both from known brands — joined forces to pump $115M into the North American box office by appealing to different demographic groups and expanding the marketplace.
Girls ruled as the highly anticipated a cappella sequel Pitch Perfect 2 shattered expectations taking the number one spot with an estimated $70.3M. Universal’s latest winner generated the third biggest opening of all-time for a comedy trailing only the $85.9M of 2011’s The Hangover 2 and the $73.1M of 2002’s Austin Powers in Goldmember. Pitch Perfect 2 has already surpassed the $65M made during the entire run of its 2012 predecessor.
The sequel brought back most all of the cast members, gave standout star Rebel Wilson a bigger role, and saw producer/co-star Elizabeth Banks take on directing duties. It was the biggest opening weekend ever for a first-time director. Playing in 3,473 theaters, the PG-13 hit averaged a sizzling $20,250 per location.
Studio data showed that the audience was 75% female and 62% under 25. Moviegoers liked what the singing gals had to offer as the CinemaScore grade was a solid A-. A run towards the $200M domestic mark could be possible for the $29M-budgeted film, with a third pic likely to be put on the fast track.
Thirty years after the last installment, Mad Max: Fury Road stormed the box office winning over film critics and debuted to muscular numbers in second place with an estimated $44.4M, the best opening weekend of the year for a number-two film. The fourth chapter in the Warner Bros. franchise averaged a stellar $12,004 from 3,702 locations. Director George Miller returned to helm once again but this new chapter went ahead without Mel Gibson in the title role. Instead, it was Tom Hardy as Max joined by co-headliner Charlize Theron adding some female muscle to the pic.
As expected, business was powered by older men. Studio research showed that the audience was 70% male and 54% over 35. 3D screens accounted for 46% of the gross which is a commendable figure by today’s standards.
With a splashy premiere at Cannes timed to coincide with the global launch, Fury Road opened to an outstanding $65M overseas from 68 markets for a global debut of $109.4M. The new Mad Max is set to open in Japan on June 20, but no China date has been secured yet.
Fury Road earned some of the best reviews ever for a Hollywood action franchise film. Ticket buyers were not as impressed but still gave a good B+ grade via CinemaScore, though online feedback from audiences compiled by Rotten Tomatoes and Fandango were both higher. Action films tend to fade quickly at the box office, but with positive buzz from moviegoers plus a major holiday weekend coming next week, Fury Road has a promising road ahead.
After its two-week reign, Avengers: Age of Ultron got bumped down to third place by the newbies. The super hero sequel dropped a reasonable 50% to an estimated $38.8M in its third round, lifting the total to a strong $372M. The decline was slightly higher than the 46% that The Avengers witnessed in its third weekend in 2012, and about the same as the 51% of 2013’s Iron Man 3. Ultron is currently running 19% behind the pace of Avengers, but 10% ahead of the third Tony Stark flick.
Age of Ultron has now climbed up to number 25 on the list of all-time domestic blockbusters sandwiched in between a pair of 2004 smashes — Spider-Man 2 and The Passion of the Christ. The new Avengers installment is still on a trajectory to finish its domestic run at about $450M. Though below most industry expectations, it would still be the third highest ever for any summer film in history after The Avengers and 2008’s The Dark Knight.
Overseas, Avengers: Age of Ultron continued to rake in the cash and was propelled this week by a massive opening in China which began on Tuesday. The six-day start brought in an incredible haul of $156.3M which pushed the international cume to $770.5M and the worldwide gross to $1.14 billion. It is the eighth highest-grossing film of all-time and has plenty of business left in China, plus its final market opening in Japan in July. Reaching $1.5 billion is very possible and edging out the $1.52 billion of the first Avengers is very much a possibility as well depending on how it holds up in China.
Taking a sharp nosedive after a soft opening, the comedy Hot Pursuit tumbled 59% to an estimated $5.8M in its sophomore session. The Warner Bros. release has collected only $23.5M to date and should finish up with around $33M.
Two spring sequels tied for fifth place. Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 dipped 32% to an estimated $3.6M raising Sony’s total to $62.9M. The year’s biggest global smash, Furious 7, followed with an estimated $3.6M in its seventh weekend, off 33%. Universal has upped the domestic total to $343.8M and the worldwide haul to $1.49 billion. It is now just $30M shy of matching the global tally of 2012’s Avengers. China has ended its run at a staggering $390.5M — the best ever for any film there — so other markets will need to kick in the balance.
Lionsgate’s The Age of Adaline saw much of its female fan base taken away by the collegiate singers. Falling 45% to an estimated $3.2M, the Blake Lively pic has banked $37.1M to date. The DreamWorks toon Home dropped only 12% to an estimated $2.7M in its eighth round to raise the cume to $165.6M for Fox. It continues to benefit greatly from no kidpic competition.
Sci-fi pic Ex Machina grossed an estimated $2.1M, down 40%, for a new sum of $19.6M for A24. Rounding out the top ten was Fox Searchlight’s expanding indie Far From the Madding Crowd with an estimated $1.3M from 289 locations, an average of $4,498, and a total of $2.6M. The period film widens again next weekend to over 700 runs for the Memorial Day holiday frame.
The top ten films grossed an estimated $175.9M which was up 5% from last year when Godzilla opened at number one with $93.2M; and up 20% from 2013 when Star Trek Into Darkness debuted in the top spot with $70.2M.
