Weekend estimates show that Endgame’s second weekend total of $145.8 million lags just a bit behind the second weekend record of $149.2 million set by Star Wars: The Force Awakens, though final estimates may even give Endgame this record too. Even though it was the first film to ever drop $200 million between its first two frames, Endgame’s 59.2% second weekend drop in the domestic market is actually a very strong showing for a film that opened with over $357 million.
Endgame’s domestic total is now virtually tied with that of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, and it will soon pass The Avengers ($623 million), Jurassic World ($652 million), Titanic ($689 million), Avengers: Infinity War ($679 million), Black Panther ($700 million), and Avatar ($760 million). Even though Endgame has earned $79 million more than The Force Awakens had amassed in 10 days ($540 million), it still appears unlikely that it will be able to match The Force Awakens’ domestic record of $937 million.
Now none of the comparisons above have been adjusted for “ticket price” inflation, so it is important to note that even if Endgame performs more or less as expected and ends up with around $900 million domestic, it will only the #12 film of North American box office history in terms of the actual number of tickets sold.
But it is also important to note that with a global total of $2.2 billion Endgame has already surpassed the total of The Force Awakens, which made $2.07 billion worldwide. Only 28% of Endgame’s global tally comes from North America, whereas 45.3% of The Force Awakens’ grosses came from the domestic market. In fact Endgame has already surpassed Titanic to become the #2 global earner of all time (not adjusting for inflation). Endgame has made $575 million in China, nearly $90 million in the U.K., $82.1 million in Korea, and is the top Hollywood release ever in over 20 foreign markets. While it remains unlikely, Endgame definitely has a better chance at topping Avatar’s worldwide record total of $2.787 billion than it does of matching The Force Awakens’ domestic mark.
Second place this weekend went to Deon Taylor’s psychological thriller The Intruder, which earned $11 million from just over 2,200 theaters, posting the second best per-venue average in the top ten ($4.950 vs. $31.275 for Endgame). The Intruder had the lowest critical rating (just 27% positive on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes) of any of the three new movies, and it received a poor “B-“ CinemaScore from audiences that skewed female 59% and younger with 67% under 35, but it was the lone newcomer to surpass expectations.
Finishing third was the comedy Long Shot, which stars Seth Rogen and Charlize Theron, and which the critics loved. Long Shot has an 83% favorable rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but audiences gave the film a mediocre “B” CinemaScore, which doesn’t bode all that well for its chances. Long Shot earned $10 million from over 3,200 theaters, and attracted an audience that skewed female (56%), and older (68% over 35). Comedies can rebound from lackluster openings, but Long Shot will face more counter-programming competition over the coming weeks.
But the new film that fared the worst was the animated feature Uglydolls, an American/Chinese co-production that is extremely “toyetic” with a full line of merchandise and a 26-episode animated series heading to Hulu this fall, and over 100 promotional partners including McDonald’s, Carl’s Jr., Hasbro, and Walmart. The critics didn’t like Uglydolls, giving it just as 33% positive rating on RT, but audiences gave it an OK “B+” CinemaScore. Uglydolls did reach some of its target audience, with opening weekend crowds skewing heavily female (64%), with 25% in the 7-9 age bracket. The big problem is that the film only earned $8.5 million (against a $45 million cost), an indication that perhaps TV is right venue for this property.
The fifth spot went to Captain Marvel, which dropped 48.6% in its ninth week of release as it earned $4.3 million to bring its domestic total to $420.8 million. Captain Marvel has now surpassed Wonder Woman ($412.7 million) even adjusting for inflation to become the top female superhero film in the domestic market.
There is not too much of interest happening in the bottom half of the top ten, though Warner Bros/DC’s Shazam! did manage to earn $2.5 million to bring its domestic total to $135.2 million, and its global haul to over $350 million, which means that this $100 million production is a solid, but hardly spectacular success.
Be sure to check back here next week as Avengers: Endgame will face a serious challenge from Warner Bros.’ Pokemon-inspired Detective Pikachu, which bounces into over 4,100 theaters, while female-centric counter-programming continues with the Anne Hathaway/Rebel Wilson comedy The Hustle (a distaff remake of 1988’s Dirty Rotten Scoundrels), which sneaks into 2,750 locations, the Diane Keaton/superannuated cheerleader saga Poms, which will also hit 2,700 venues, and the biographical love story Tolkien, which will open on 1,300 screens.