Shazam! superpowers itself to second consecutive box office victory
Shazam! Just say the word and you’ll find yourself at the top of the box office.
For the second week running, the DC Comics film takes first place at the box office, taking in an estimated $25 million across 4,306 theaters. The kid-friendly film easily outpaced the other new comic book adaptation to hit theaters this weekend Hellboy, which took in a dismal $12 million in third place. Shazam! brings its global total to $94 million, proving its staying power.
The film follows streetwise 14-year-old Billy Batson (Asher Angel), who gains the power to turn into the adult superhero Shazam (Zachary Levi) by simply shouting out “Shazam!” — a superhero origin story that comes courtesy of an ancient wizard. Mark Strong, Djimon Hounsou, Adam Brody, and Ron Cephas Jones also star in the David F. Sandberg-directed movie.
Little scores the second place title for the weekend with an estimated $15 million across 2,667 theaters.
The weekend was jam-packed with new releases, all of which managed to take in enough to crack the top 10 this weekend. The buzziest release of the weekend was yet another comic book adaptation, this one a reboot of the Hellboy franchise with David Harbour (Stranger Things) as the titular half-demon hero. The hero, who previously appeared in two films in 2004 and 2008 directed by monster master Guillermo del Toro, proved to be a disappointment at the box office, taking in far under it’s expected $21 million gross.
The R-rated Neil Marshall film follows Hellboy as he is sent to England to battle three rampaging giants and finds himself facing off against vengeance-obsessed sorceress Blood Queen Nimue (Milla Jovovich). Ian McShane, Sasha Lane, Daniel Dae Kim, and Thomas Haden Church also star. Critics have lambasted the film, and its returns hardly stack up to del Toro’s box office hauls, considering that when not adjusted for inflation the original 2004 film took in $23.2 million opening weekend and the 2008 sequel an even more impressive $34.5 million.
That’s far from the only new release this weekend. There’s also Laika’s latest animated release Missing Link, which takes ninth place with an estimated $5.8 million across 3,413 theaters.
The film features the voice talents of Zach Galifianakis as Mr. Link, a furry take on mythical creatures like the Yeti. Mr. Link recruits legendary explorer Sir Lionel Frost (Hugh Jackman) to help him track down his long-lost relatives in the fabled valley of Shangri-La, along with the assistance of adventurer Adelina Fortnight (Zoe Saldana).
Then there’s the Regina Hall and Issa Rae starrer Little, which also marks a feature film splash for Black-ish’s Marsai Martin, who executive produced the film based on her own story idea. The inventive comedy, which feels like a reverse Big, takes second place with an estimated $15.5 million across 2,667 theaters. Martin stars as Jordan Sanders, the “little” version of a ferocious boss played by Regina Hall. When Jordan wakes up as her 13-year-old self, many hijinks ensue. This Is Us’ Justin Hartley also stars.
The final new release this weekend is YA romance After, based on the Anna Todd novel of the same name. It takes eighth place with an estimated $6.2 million across 2,138 theaters. The film’s debut was on pace with expectations for the indie project from distributors Aviron Pictures and Voltage. Josephine Langford and Hero Fiennes Tiffin star as two college-aged students who become embroiled in a passion-filled, explosive relationship, which only gets more tense with the revelation that Tiffin’s Hardin Scott harbors a dark secret. Selma Blair, Jennifer Beals, and Peter Gallagher also star in the Jenny Gage-directed film.
After often draws comparisons to Fifty Shades of Grey with its tale of forbidden romance and its darkly handsome hero. The Anna Todd novel similarly began on an internet platform, Wattpad, in 2014 before exploding into a viral success (similar to Fifty Shades which began its life as a massively popular work of Twilight fanfiction).
Pet Sematary and Dumbo round out the top five with $10 million across 3,585 theaters and $9 million across 3,706 theaters respectively.
Overall box office is down 16.7 percent year-to-date, according to Comscore. Check out the April 12-14 numbers below.
1. Shazam! — $25.1 million
2. Little — $15.5 million
3. Hell Boy — $12 million
4. Pet Sematary — $10 million
5. Dumbo — $9.1 million
6. Captain Marvel — $8.6 million
7. Us — $6.9 million
8. After — $6.2 million
9. Missing Link — $5.8 million
10. The Best of Enemies — $2 million