There was very little doubt as to which movie would win the box office this weekend. After all, last weekend's Sunday report was about how the latest MonsterVerse title managed to have the second-best opening of 2024 so far. Instead of wondering what title would get the number one spot, the big questions have been what kind of fall Adam Wingard will have. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire there would be and how Dev Patel Monkey Man and Arkasha Stevenson The first omen they would act as competing new releases.
Now, the numbers are in and there is much to discuss. Check out this weekend's full Top 10 below and join me as we break it down.
| QUALIFICATION | GROSS WEEKEND | DOMESTIC GROSS | L.W. | THTRS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire | $31,700,000 | $135,038,000 | 1 | 3,948 |
| 2. Monkey Man* | $10,150,000 | $10,150,000 | N/A | 3,029 |
| 3. Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire | $9,000,000 | $88,864,000 | 2 | 3,835 |
| 4. The first omen* | $8,363,000 | $8,363,000 | N/A | 3,375 |
| 5.Kung Fu Panda 4 | $7,850,000 | $166,057,090 | 4 | 3,398 |
| 6. Dune: Part Two | $7,200,000 | $264,859,000 | 3 | 2,836 |
| 7. Someone like you* | $3,002,382 | $3,002,382 | N/A | 1,800 |
| 8. Arthur the King | $1,540,000 | $22,205,856 | 7 | 1,704 |
| 9. Immaculate | $1,405,000 | $14,146,129 | 5 | 1,706 |
| 10. Late night with the devil | $1,114,000 | $8,451,251 | 8 | 1,159 |
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire Drops 60 Percent Weekend-Over-Weekend After Powerful Opening
At the beginning of last month, the president of Denis Villeneuve Dune: Part Two managed to achieve an astonishing feat: after its successful opening weekend, ticket sales alone fell 44 in its second Friday to Sunday. It was impressive to see it develop… and it was never going to be matched by Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. Despite being a hit with audiences, the new kaiju feature hasn't had the same kind of buzz on the big screen, so it's not too surprising that business is down 60 percent compared to its debut.
According The numbers, the latest entry in the MonsterVerse franchise added an additional $31.7 million to its domestic box office total over the past three days. This brings his total for the United States and Canada to just over $135 million, meaning he's already surpassed what Adam Wingard Godzilla vs. Kong presented during its theatrical run in the region three years ago (of course, it should be noted that the film hit theaters just as theaters were reopening during the pandemic and was released on streaming day and date).
Having also contributed more money than Michael Dougherty Godzilla: king of the monsters, the 2024 film is now the third-biggest MonsterVerse title domestically. He will need to make another $34 million to avoid the Jordan Vogt-Roberts crisis. Kong: Skull Island on the charts and $66 million to surpass Gareth Edwards godzilla since 2014. Despite the drop in numbers in Godzilla x KongIn the second weekend, both goals may be achievable.
The franchise's new release's positioning at the box office is a completely different story when talking about how the film is performing around the world. After its second weekend, the latest title is still at the bottom of the rankings… although that says more about the popularity of the canon than anything. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire has grossed $249.8 million worldwide so far, which is enough to already rank as the seventh-biggest film of 2024 so far, but it still has a ways to go before matching what Godzilla: king of the monsters made during its full theatrical run in 2019 ($383.3 million). Kong: Skull Islandwhich earned $561.1 million during its stay on the big screen in 2017, remains the continuity's leader.
Alex Garland Civil warwhich made a big splash at SXSW last month, will take over IMAX screens next weekend, but there will still be plenty of eyes on Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire in the next few weeks to see what kind of legs she shows. No big studio hits of this type will be released for the rest of April, so the franchise movie has an advantage in that regard.
Saved from streaming and praised by critics, Monkey Man off to strong start at the box office
like the one mentioned above Civil warDev Patel Monkey Man is another title that generated a lot of buzz early on thanks to its premiere at the SXSW Film Festival, and now it's benefited. The film is the directorial debut of Slumdog Millionaire/The green knight star Dev Patel, who has ambitions to unleash fury and mayhem as an action filmmaker, and was notably rescued by Jordan Peele from a fate as a streaming release. According VarietyUniversal (which has a partnership with Peele) got the distribution rights from Netflix for $10 million, and the title was able to recoup all that money in its first three days on the big screen.
Monkey Man has earned critical acclaim and audiences are liking it too: it earned an 83 percent audience score on rotten tomatoes and a “B+” grade in movie score surveys. The results are comparable to those of Chad Stahelski and David Leitch. John Wick could do when it was first released in theaters in 2014 (with the star power of Keanu Reeves, it grossed $14.4 million in its first three days), and although Monkey Man is not similarly set to flourish as a franchise, the results are expected to excite the industry about Dev Patel's potential as an action director and star.
The film's ticket sales were slightly below predictions (Deadline estimated a $12 million floor last week), but it's still easy to see the film as a win for a small, non-franchise genre title.
Despite good reviews, The First Omen has to settle for fourth place
As Monkey Man, The first omen is another title that was originally intended for a streaming release, but the call was made in post-production to give the film a chance in theaters. The situation is similar to what happened with Rob Savage. The bogeyman last year (which got a big behind-the-scenes push from Stephen King), but sadly the results aren't all that positive. While King's adaptation came out in the summer and grossed $12.4 million in its first three days, the new Omen The prequel failed to match that performance, earning just $8.4 million since Friday.
There are positive aspects to recognize. For one thing, the movie only cost $30 million to make (minus production and marketing expenses), so it's not a failure. And that $8.4 million is money that wouldn't have been made if the movie had been streamed directly (as The bogeyman, will eventually get a digital release and will probably do just as well online as if the title had skipped theaters). Any business you make now can be seen as an advantage before you can find a larger audience later, especially if it's available to Hulu subscribers during the spooky season.
That concludes this week's box office column, but be sure to come back here to CinemaBlend next Sunday to see how things change with the arrival of Civil war and director Wade Allain-Marcus's remake of Don't tell mom that the babysitter is dead. In the meantime, check out our 2024 Movie Release Calendar to discover all the movies opening in theaters and streaming in the coming months.
