|
 Johnny Depp's fifth outing as Jack Sparrow is looking at a
three-day total of $62.2 million from 4,276 locations, and a
four-day holiday weekend sum of $77 million. If not for
international appeal, that would be a let down for a movie
riding on a $230 million production budget.
The first place finish also can't cover up a serious case of
franchise fatigue. "Dead Men Tell No Tales" is the lowest
opening for a Pirates movie apart from the original, which
earned over $46 million in its first weekend (and was also the
only installation approved by critics). Last time out in 2011,
"On Stranger Tides" pulled in $90 million in its opening
weekend. That's still less than 2007's "At World's End" ($114.7
million) and 2006's "Dead Man's Chest" ($135.6 million). But
it's no question why Disney is still churning out sequels --
combined, the movies have made $1.3 billion domestically and
$3.8 billion worldwide.
"Dead Men Tell No Tales" centers on Sparrow battling deadly
ghost sailors, led by the Javier Bardem's Captain Salazar.
Joachim Ronning and Espen Sandberg directed the film, which also
sees the return of both Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley, who
were absent from the fourth installment.
Over time the "Pirates" franchise has become more reliant on
overseas ticket sales, and that's certainly the case this time
out. The studio should make back its production budget this
weekend once worldwide ticket sales are taken into account.
Since the franchise still makes money (even if U.S. grosses are
dwindling) this may not be the last we see of Captain Sparrow.
Meanwhile, Paramount's "Baywatch" was hoping to make an oceanic
summer splash, but looks to have ended up in the kiddie pool.
The rebooted property should land a three-day total of $18.1
million from 3,647 locations and end the four-day holiday
weekend with $22 million. That's far below early estimates. The
movie carries a $60 million production budget.
This is the latest in a string of misses for the studio this
year including "Ghost in the Shell," "Rings," "XXX: The Return
of Xander Cage," and "Monster Trucks."
[to top of second column] |
Dwayne Johnson and Zac Efron star in the comedy that spawned from
the 1990s NBC drama starring David Hasselhoff and a team of
lifeguards who patrolled the beaches of Los Angeles. This time
around it's Johnson, an experienced and devoted lifeguard, who butts
heads with a new recruit, Efron, until they uncover a criminal plot.
Priyanka Chopra, Alexandra Daddario, Jon Bass, Kelly Rohrbach, and
Ilfenesh Hadera also star. Seth Gordon directed the film based on a
screenplay by Damian Shannon and Mark Swift. Jay Scherick, David
Ronn, Thomas Lennon, and Robert Ben Garant all have story credits.
"Baywatch" will land in third behind Disney's "Guardians of the
Galaxy Vol. 2," which has proven to be the only major hit to emerge
from the summer box office so far. The sequel looks to pull in
another $24.2 million over the four-day weekend, raising its
domestic total close to $340 million.
Fox's "Alien: Covenant" should end up in fourth during its second
weekend in theaters. The latest installment in the Alien franchise
is looking at $13.1 million over the four-day stretch. Rounding out
the top five, the YA adaptation "Everything, Everything" looks to
have been a solid low-budget investment for Warner Bros. Its four
day total should be about $7.6 million.
[© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2017 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
