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 The Paramount/Skydance tentpole generated $20.3 million at
the Friday box office, setting an opening day mark for the
sturdy franchise - and signaling that Cruise still carries
plenty of star power. Saturday's total hit $19.7 million.
The launch of "Mission: Impossible -- Rogue Nation" outperformed
forecasts by a significant margin. It had been on track for an
opening weekend of $40 million, according to recent studio
estimates.
It's the third largest opening for Cruise, following the $64.9
million launch for 2004's "War of the Worlds" and $57.8 million
for 2000's "Mission: Impossible 2."
"Rogue Nation" also opened in about 40 percent of international
markets with $65 million, led by South Korea's $17 million.
The fifth installment in the series, written and directed by
Chris McQuarrie, finds Cruise facing off against a squad of
special agents known as the Syndicate. Simon Pegg, Jeremy Renner
and Rebecca Ferguson also star.
"They have delivered a film that has such energy and
excitement," said Rob Moore, Pararmount's vice chair.
"Rogue Nation," which carries a $150 million price tag, is one
of a rare studio tentpoles that was moved forward rather than
backward. The original plan had been to open on Christmas Day
this year, but Moore noted that Cruise had asked during filming
- which started last August - could be moved up to avoid
competing directly against the next "Star Wars" movie (which
opens Dec. 18) and James Bond's "Spectre," which launches Nov.
6.
The first four "Mission: Impossible" films have grossed over $2
billion. In 2011, "Mission: Impossible -- Ghost Protocol" pulled
in $209 million in the U.S. and $485 million internationally.
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"Rogue Nation" took in more than triple the Friday-Sunday total of
New Line's "Vacation" reboot, which pulled in $14.9 million in 3,411
locations. The comedy, which launched Wednesday, has grossed $21.2
million in five days -- below recent forecasts of $30 million.
Still, the R-rated "Vacation" is a low-risk entry for New Line,
given its $31 million budget. Ed Helms, Christina Applegate, Leslie
Mann and Chris Hemsworth star. It generated an A- Cinemascore among
audiences under 35.
Disney/Marvel's third weekend of "Ant-Man" led the holdovers with
$12.6 million at 3,322 sites for a $132.1 million domestic total.
Universal's fourth weekend of "Minions" followed with $12.2 million
at 3,575 locations to lift its 24-day total to $287.3 million.
Sony's second weekend of Adam Sandler's "Pixels" showed only
moderate traction as the comedy slid 57 percent to $10.4 million at
3,725 theaters, bringing the 10-day total to $45.6 million.
A24's "The End of the Tour," which stars Jason Segel as David Foster
Wallace and Jesse Eisenberg as the reporter tasked with profiling
the author, launched impressively with $126,459 in four locations.
The overall box office for the weekend is down significantly
compared with the same weekend a year ago when Disney/Marvel's
"Guardians of the Galaxy" opened with a stunning $94.3 million
weekend.
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