With only one new release entering theaters, expectations were for that film to dominate the weekend. It seems that Madea had other plans though, repeating in the top spot. Boo! A Madea Halloween earned 16.7 million dollars this weekend.
A 41% drop off from last weekend is impressive, with it being clear that both the Halloween tie-in and positive audience reviews have helped a great deal. Just when many thought Tyler Perry’s star power was beginning to fade, he releases what is on track to be his second-highest grossing film (Madea’s Witness Protection currently is with 65 million). Boo has earned 52 million dollars so far on a 20 million dollar budget.
Failing to garner the top spot and under-performing compared to expectations, Inferno was a massive letdown this weekend. The third Dan Brown adaptation earned 15 million dollars. That isn’t even in the same league as the first two films in the series (77 and 46.2 million respectively), and pales in comparison to the other adult-oriented films that opened this month.
There are a variety of factors that led to this lackluster performance. The glut of adult-oriented films surely was one, with Jack Reacher and The Accountant taking up most the market place. An even larger factor is the lengthy seven year distance between this film and its predecessor Angles and Demons. That kind of distance is a lifetime in film, with audiences clearly having less fervor for the property.
Hope is not dead yet for distributor Sony, as the film is performing very well overseas (already grossing 132.7 million dollars). With a 75 million dollar budget, it looks like the film should able to breakeven worldwide, but there probably won’t be a sequel anytime soon.
Placing in third was Jack Reacher: Never Go Back, which clearly felt the effects of Inferno’s presence. The film grossed 9.8 million dollars, which is a shocking 58% drop off from last weekend. Poor reviews along with a competitive marketplace clearly had an effect on the film. At 39.8 million, its unlikely to break even with its 60 million dollar budget.
Here is the Top 10:
1. Boo! A Madea Halloween – 16.6 million
2. Inferno – 15 million
3. Jack Reacher – 9.8 million
4. The Accountant – 8.4 million
5. Ouija: Origin of Evil – 7 million
6. The Girl on the Train – 4.2 million
7. Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children – 3.9 million
8. Keeping Up with Jonses – 3.3 million
9. Storks – 2.7 million
10. Ae Dil Hai Mushkil – 2.1 million
Source: BoxOfficeMojo