In its third weekend at the domestic box office, “The Batman” continues to stand atop the weekly charts. The film added another $36.8 million this weekend, pushing its domestic total to over $300 million. There is only one other film released in 2022 to earn over $100 million (“Uncharted” with $125 million), making this by far the highest grossing film of the year thus far. We will likely have to wait until “Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness” is released at the beginning of May for the next film to clear $300 million domestically. “The Batman”’s 44.8% weekend-to-weekend drop is pretty impressive for its third weekend, and it looks to continue that trend in the future. It faces some competition in the coming weeks with “The Lost City” and “Morbius,” though I think its legs will last and it will end somewhere around $390 million domestically.
Coming in second place is “Jujutsu Kaisen 0: The Movie” which grossed $17.7 million in its domestic opening weekend. This animated film first released in its native Japan in late December 2021 with rave reviews from audiences and critics. The film is a prequel to the anime television series “Jujutsu Kaisen” which in itself is an adaptation of a manga series of the same name. “Jujustu Kaisen 0” is also an adaptation of the eponymous prequel manga series, making this film both an adaptation and a prequel film to the television series. The film debuted in 2,286 theaters, which is a fairly small amount, as typically wide releases debut in the 3,500-4,000 theater range. Due to the oncoming of new releases and Oscar films taking over screens next weekend, I would be surprised to see “Jujutsu Kaisen 0: The Movie” in the top 5 again.
In third place is “Uncharted” which led the charts back in February, earning another $8 million this weekend. With an absolutely magnificent 13.5% 5th weekend drop, the film pushed its domestic gross past $125 million. This is an outcome many box office prognosticators did not see happening, as the film seemed to be destined to flop. But with strong audience reception, “Uncharted” appears to be the launch of a new franchise for Sony, which will please action-adventure fans around the globe.
In fourth and fifth place this week are two tersely titled films “X” and “Dog,” which earned $4.4 million and $4.1 million respectively. “X” is a slasher film that has earned rave reviews from critics. Horror films however usually have a large 2nd weekend drop-off, but perhaps “X” can use its first weekend as a launching point. “Dog” dropped only 21.4% this weekend, pushing its domestic gross to $54 million.
Next week brings the release of two new films – “The Lost City” and “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
“The Lost City” boasts a strong cast, with Sandra Bullock, Channing Tatum and Daniel Radcliffe leading the way, and Brad Pitt in a supporting role. The action-adventure comedy has a reported budget of $74 million. Considering marketing expenses and theaters’ share of revenues, the film likely needs to gross around $275 million worldwide (~ $150 million domestically) to break even. To gross that amount, the film likely needs to open north of $60 million, though I think this film will only open at $40 million next weekend.
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” will likely release on fewer screens, due to “The Lost City,” “The Batman” and Oscar-nominated films taking up most of the space, which threatens its opening weekend. I think the film will open around $5 million.
We will see next week, will “The Lost City” find its footing atop the charts or will “The Batman” continue its reign?
