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 If those projections hold, it will be enough to narrowly
topple “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” from first place at
the weekend box office. As it stands, the superhero match-up
fell just short of retaining the top slot, earning $23.4 million
and bringing its total after three weeks to $296.7 million.
Given that this is essentially a statistical dead heat, it is
possible that those positions could shift once final numbers
roll in on Monday morning.
With “Spy,” “Identity Thief” and now “The Boss,” McCarthy has
become one of the most reliable comic draws in the movie
business.
“She has a hot streak going like no other comedian, male or
female, working today,” said Jeff Bock, an analyst with
Exhibitor Relations. “You have to consider the lineage of Eddie
Murphy in the ’80s, Jim Carrey in the ’90s and Adam Sandler in
the aughts. She is their heir apparent.”
Despite McCarthy’s popularity, “The Boss” could have trouble
showing endurance. The film’s middling C+ CinemaScore signals
that audiences agree with critics that the picture is flawed.
The film is a collaboration between McCarthy and her husband,
the director and co-writer Ben Falcone, who previously teamed on
2014’s “Tammy.” It centers on a business icon who is brought low
after she is convicted of insider trading. Universal distributed
the $29 million production across 3,480 theaters.
McCarthy is the film’s big draw, with 76% of ticket buyers
surveyed reporting that they turned out to see the comedian.
Women comprised 67% of the audience, with 51% of the opening
crowd clocking in over the age of 35.
“She is absolutely a bankable movie star,” said Nick Carpou,
president of domestic distribution at Universal. “It’s another
number one opening for her.”
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The weekend’s other new release, STX Entertainment’s “Hardcore
Henry,” struggled to break through, earning a feeble $5.1 million
from 3,015 theaters for a fifth place finish. The studio acquired
the point-of-view thriller in a bidding war at last year’s Toronto
Film Festival, paying a reported $10 million for the rights. The
opening weekend crowd drew heavily from the gamer set, with 72% of
ticket buyers saying they played first-person shooter video games
such as “Call of Duty” and “Halo.”
Disney’s “Zootopia” scored a third place finish with roughly $14.5
million, bringing its total to $296.2 million after six weeks in
theaters, while Universal’s “My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2” nabbed
fourth place with $6.4 million, taking its total to $46.7 million
after three weeks of release.
“Batman v Superman” has been something of a disappointment, given
that it is likely to fall short of hitting $1 billion globally — the
line that truly elite blockbusters have to cross to join a rarefied
club. However, it has done better than some major comic-book movies.
This weekend, it eclipsed “Man of Steel” ($291 million) on a
domestic basis and it should pass $300 million stateside at some
point this week.
“We’re on track to win the week three weeks in a row,” said Jeff
Goldstein, Warner Bros. distribution executive vice president.
Whatever the final outcome, neither “The Boss” nor “Batman v
Superman” seem likely to extend their rule into next weekend. That’s
when Disney releases a live-action version of “The Jungle Book.”
Bolstered by good notices and Disney’s marketing prowess, the fresh
spin on Rudyard Kipling’s story of the man cub, should hum “The Bear
Necessities” all the way to the bank.
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