Posted on 10/13/2018 8:13:41 AM PDT by EdnaMode
Unless Saturday brings a course change, Universal's critically acclaimed astronaut drama First Man is headed for a muted domestic debut of $16.8 million after earning $5.9 million on Friday from 3,640 theaters. The hope is that the adult-skewing film will be buoyed by a long run throughout awards season.
Conversely, Sony's Venom and A Star Is Born continue to rock the October box office in their sophomore outings with a projected weekend haul of $30 million-plus and $28 million-plus after grossing $9.8 million and $8.5 million on Friday, respectively.
Reuniting Oscar-winning filmmaker Damien Chazelle with his La La Land star Ryan Gosling, First Man is a visceral retelling of Neil Armstrong's journey to the moon in 1969. Heading into the weekend, the biographical drama was tracking to open in the $18 million-$20 million range (some services had it slightly higher). Audiences liked the film less than critics, giving it a B+ CinemaScore.
It's not clear so far whether a dust-up over Chazalle's decision not to show the famous image of Armstrong planting the American flag on the moon is impacting the film, whose theater count includes Imax runs.
Comparisons to La La Land (2016) or Chazelle's Whiplash (2014) are tough, since both of those films debuted first in select cinemas. First Man, costing a gross $70 million to produce (and $60 million net), co-stars Claire Foy, Jason Clarke, Kyle Chandler, Corey Stoll and Lukas Haas.
One comp Universal is using internally is Ben Affleck's Oscar-winning Argo, which started off with $19.5 million in October 2012 and Bridge of Spies ($15.4 million). First Man is expected to be more of an adult-skewing title than space epics Gravity (2013) or The Martian (2015), which likewise launched in October, opening to $55.8 million and $54.3 million, respectively.
First Man looks to place No. 3 for the weekend, followed by Sony's new animated family pic Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween, voiced by Jack Black. Goosebumps 2, earning an estimated $4.8 million Friday from 3,521 locations, is now projected to open to $16 million.
20th Century Fox's period thriller Bad Times at the El Royale, another new title on the crowded marquee, is on course for a $7.8 million debut from 2,808 locations, despite relatively strong reviews and a star-studded cast that includes Dakota Johnson, Chris Hemsworth, Cynthia Erivo, Jeff Bridges, Jon Hamm and Nick Offerman.
El Royale earned a B- CinemaScore and Goosebumps 2, a B.
A slew of movies are also rolling out in select theaters at the specialty box office, including Sony Pictures Classics' The Happy Prince, directed by and starring Rupert Everett as Oscar Wilde; Roadside Attractions' The Oath, toplined by Tiffany Haddish and Ike Barinholtz; and Amazon Studios' father-son drama Beautiful Boy, starring Steve Carell and Timothee Chalamet.
Beautiful Boy, playing in four theaters in New York and Los Angeles, looks to post the top opening screen average of the year so far, or a projected $84,400.
Like First Man and A Star Is Born, Beautiful Boy made the rounds at the fall film festivals in hopes of whipping up awards attention. Ditto for Paul Greengrass' terrorist drama 22 July, which opened date-and-date on Wednesday on Netflix and in a smattering of theaters. Netflix doesn't report grosses.
Maybe they will create an American flag scene and insert it into the movie. That would save their ratings.
Die, Hollywood, Die!
I guess the only way to revive Hollywood will be the much-anticipated Marvel Comics/Star Wars crossover quadruple trilogy. I’m sure the idea is making its way up the chain.
I find Lady Gaga strangely attractive
Honestly, flag scene or not, I have no confidence that any Ivy League 33 year old, working for Hollywood, is capable of producing anything but another angst filled dramatic snark-fest.
Such a missed opportunity. If they hadn’t so blatantly pandered to foreign audiences, I would definitely have gone to see this in theaters.
His “Whiplash” was a GREAT movie.
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Have any freepers seen the film? I am considering checking it out, I was a Space Nut when I was a kid, and remember watching the landing with my dad.
You’re not the only one. But only when she’s Stefani, not all bizarrely made up.
I have 2 friends ready to go see Gosnell but it isn’t showing near me.
Heard the critic on Fox say there were plenty of flags in the movie just did not show the planting. That would have been fine...it was the exclamation of why they did not show is why I will not go see it!!!
I find it kind of funny that both major versions of Star is Born have leading ladies with, shall we say, non traditional noses.
It probably would have.
But then you decided to give the finger to your target audience.
A major case of stupid.
Saw a commercial for “First Man” the other night, with a very brief flash of the classic pic showing the lander on the moon’s surface and lo, they had not edited out the flag. A little tiny “apologies and please come see our movie” ploy? Jack@sses.
I saw “A Star is Born” last weekend and really liked it. Well done. Cooper and Gaga are great in those roles. No politics outside of a few gay bar scenes, but they are amusing in the vein of that hilarious movie “The Birdcage”.
Have not seen it though all this space talk has me wanting to watch The Right Stuff again. That was a great movie that was unabashedly pro-American.
I’m going to see “A Star is Born” tomorrow——looking forward to it.
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