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 Going into the weekend, it looked like "Mamma Mia! 2" would
easily debut at No. 1. Final numbers won't come in until Monday,
but weekend estimates show Sony's "The Equalizer" sequel opened
above estimates with $35.8 million when it launched in 3,388
locations, while Universal's highly anticipated follow-up to
"Mamma Mia!" debuted with $34.4 million from 3,317 screens.
"Equalizer 2," the first sequel of Denzel Washington's nearly
four-decade long career, launched ahead of its predecessor.
2014's "The Equalizer" opened with $35 million and went on to
generate $192 million worldwide, including $101 million
domestically.
Antoine Fuqua returned to direct "The Equalizer 2," which also
stars Pedro Pascal, Ashton Sanders, Melissa Leo, and Bill
Pullman. Though it got a head start on the original film,
reception has been less enthusiastic for the sequel, which
currently holds a tepid 50 percent average on Rotten Tomatoes.
Though "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again" couldn't dance its way to
the top of the domestic box office, its $34 million opening is
still a win. The original "Mamma Mia!" hit theatres a decade ago
with $27 million. It became a box office hit, amassing $615
million worldwide on a $52 million budget. Much like the first
film, the sequel will likely be a smash overseas, where Swedish
pop group ABBA has a huge following.
Much of the star-studded cast -- including Amanda Seyfried,
Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Stellan Skarsgard, Colin Firth,
Christine Baranski, Julie Walters, and Dominic Cooper --
returned for the second film. Lily James made her debut as a the
younger version of Meryl Streep's charming and carefree Donna,
while living legend Cher also joined the cast. Ol Parker, the
screenwriter behind "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel," took over
directing duties and penned the script.
The final wide release of the weekend, BH Tilt's "Unfriended:
Dark Web," got off to a scary start. The low-budget horror film
debuted way below projections with $3.5 million from 1,546
locations. That might not matter, considering the Blumhouse
title carries a $1 million price tag. "Dark Web" is a standalone
sequel to 2015's "Unfriended." That film became a cash cow,
opening with $15 million and going on to earn $64 million from a
$41 million budget.
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"The Grudge" and "Texas Chainsaw 3D" writer Stephen Susco made his
directorial debut with "Dark Web," which features Colin Woodell,
Rebecca Rittenhouse, Betty Gabriel, and Andrew Lees.
Among holdovers, "Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation" nabbed
third place during its second outing. Sony's animated sequel picked
up another $23 million from 4,267 locations, bringing its domestic
tally to $91 million.
In fourth, Marvel's "Ant-Man and the Wasp" pocketed $16 million from
3,778 screens in its third frame. In total, the Paul Rudd and
Evangeline Lily-led superhero blockbuster has made $165 million.
Disney-Pixar's "Incredibles 2" rounded out the top five with $11.3
million. In six weeks, the animated sequel has earned a massive $557
million in North America.
Meanwhile, Dwayne Johnson's "Skyscraper" continues to struggle in
North America. Universal's action adventure dropped 56% in its
sophomore weekend, collecting $11 million in 3,822 locations. The
studio is hoping for massive returns internationally, where it opens
this weekend in China.
At the speciality box office, Lionsgate's "Blindspotting" bowed with
$332,500 when it opened in 14 theatres. That's a solid
per-screen-average of $23,750. Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal
co-wrote and star in "Blindspotting, which debuted to raves at this
year's Sundance Film Festival.
Bleecker Street's "McQueen," a documentary chronicling the life of
iconic fashion designer Alexander McQueen, landed the top theatre
average of the weekend with $24,232. It scored $96,928 when it
opened in four theatres.
Another new offering, Amazon Studios' "Generation Wealth," bowed on
four screens with $33,602 for a per-theatre-average of $8,401.
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