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Ford v Ferrari overtakes competition at the box office with estimated $31 million

Ford vs Ferrari zoomed past the competition, taking the top spot at the box office this weekend with an estimated $31 million, according to Comscore. The Disney drama overtook the competition, including Roland Emmerich’s Midway, which battled its way to second place this week with $8.8 million.

Sony’s Charlie’s Angels came in at a disappointing third with an estimated $8.6 million. Rounding out the top five are the John Cena-led Playing With Fire earning $8.6 million, and the romantic dramedy Last Christmas with $6.7 million.

Ford v Ferrari is not only going the extra mile with moviegoers, but there are rumblings of possible Oscar contendership for the drama directed by James Mangold and starring Christian Bale and Matt Damon.

In the film, the duo brings to life American car designer Carroll Shelby (Damon) and British driver Ken Miles (Bale) and the real-life events surrounding the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans competition in France that saw the Ford defeat Ferrari. Jon Bernthal brings to life former Ford Vice President Lee Iacocca, the visionary behind the Ford GT40 and the drive to elevate the brand on the race track.

Josh Lucas, Ray McKinnon, Caitriona Balfe, Tracy Letts, and JJ Field also co-star.

EW gave the film a B+ calling it a “rare kind of David-and-Goliath story that actually asks you to root for Goliath.” Cinemascore confirms movie-goers loved it much more, the title earned an A+ from audiences. Overall, critics agree that Ford v Ferrari is a movie worth your money—it’s certified fresh by 92% of Rotten Tomato critics.

This is Mangold’s and Bale’s second collaboration, the pair worked together in 2007’s 3:10 to Yuma.

Elizabeth Banks‘s Charlie’s Angels is further proof that audiences love of nostalgia is flatlining. Based on the 1976 series of the same name, the reboot tells the story of three bad ass female detectives known as Angels who travel the world risking their lives to solve serious crimes and bringing bad guys to justice.

Newest franchise Angels Kristen Stewart, Naomi Scott, and Ella Balinska lead the continuation of the franchise, following the events that took place in 2000’s Charlie’s Angels and 2003’s Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle that saw Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz, and Lucy Liu at the helm.

The new generation of super spies, unfortunately, fell flat for moviegoers who have a multitude of options to drop dollars on. It scored a B+ on Cinemascore, and critics didn’t rate it much better. EW gave the action comedy a B- saying it took “almost a whole movie for the new Charlie’s Angels to get going.”

It’s $8.6 million earnings this weekend fall way short of the McG directed films, even without adjusting for inflation. In 2000, Charlie’s Angels earned $40 million during its opening weekend and the 2003 sequel raked in $37.6 million.

The only other new title in the top ten is the Helen Mirren and Ian McKellan led crime thriller The Good Liar, landing in the seventh spot earning an estimated $5.7 million. Directed by Bill Condon, the film tells the story of career con artist Roy Courtnay (McKellan) who is surprised when he starts caring for a well-to-do widow Betty McLeish (Mirren) who was meant to be his mark. Can feelings get in the way of Courtnay’s swindle, or will he forge ahead with the crime and ruin her life forever?

The Good Liar co-stars Jim Carter as Courtnay’s longtime business partner Vincent, and Russel Tovey as McLeish’s grandson Steven who knows something is not right with Courtnay’s story.

Audiences via Cinemascore gave the film a B, critics averaging around the same via Rotten Tomatoes who gave it a 64%.

Overall, box office is down 6.2 percent year-to-date, according to Comscore. Check out the Nov. 15-17 numbers below:

Ford v Ferrari—$31 million
Midway — $8.8 million
Charlie’s Angels—$8.6 million
Playing With Fire — $8.6 million
Last Christmas — $6.7 million
Doctor Sleep — $6.2 million
The Good Liar—$6.2 million
Joker — $5.6 million
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil — $5.2 million
Harriet — $4.8 million

Joker narrowly reclaims top box office spot from Maleficent sequel with $18.9 million

It’s a battle of the baddies at the box office this weekend with Joker narrowly reclaiming the top spot from Maleficent: Mistress of Evil.

Joker continues to dominate the box office in its fourth week in theaters, besting Maleficent: Mistress of Evil by a very small percent but just enough to return to the top. The Joaquin Phoenix-led film earned approximately $18.9 million over the weekend, while the Disney sequel took in $18.5 million.

This total adds to the Joker‘s box office domination, earning the title of highest-grossing R-rated film beating previous record-holders Deadpool and Deadpool 2. The Todd Phillips directed drama has earned an estimated $277.6 million domestically to date, according to Comscore.

The third and fourth spot are also returning titles that are perfectly themed for the spooky October holiday of Halloween. The Addams Family follows Angelina Jolie’s Maleficent: Mistress of Evil in third place with $11.7 million followed by Zombieland: Double Tap, which earned $11.6 million for fourth place.

Rounding out the top five is a new addition this week — Countdown earned an estimated $9 million during its opening weekend. Just in time for Halloween, the horror thriller, stars Peter Facinelli, Tichina Arnold, Elizabeth Lail, and Anne Winter. It tells the story of a nurse who discovers a phone app that tells her when someone is going to die.

Countdown raked in the dollars despite its bad reviews, with audiences agreeing, in hindsight, it was probably worth skipping. Filmgoers gave the Justin Dec-directed title a dismal C+ Cinemascore, while Rotten Tomato critics declared it decidedly rotten with a 26% on their Tomatometer.

Also making its debut in theaters this week is Deon Taylor’s Black and Blue led by James Bond star Naomie Harris and action star Tyrese Gibson. It earned an estimated $8.3 million at the box office, placing it in the number six spot at the box office and an opening spot in the weekend’s top 10.

The drama tells the story of rookie cop Alicia West (Harris), who is caught between a rock and hard place after witnessing corrupt cops killing an informant. With the help of her old neighborhood friend Mouse (Gibson), the pair race against the clock to get the evidence she caught on her body cam before the bad guys have a chance to destroy it.

Black and Blue is a balanced and timely story that proves that the only color that turns good people bad is green. The film co-stars Mike Colter, Frank Grillo, Beau Knapp, and Nafessa Williams.

EW gave the film a B, emphasizing that “Taylor’s rogue-cop drama still manages to land more visceral hits than other recent films that have tried and failed to do the same.”

Another new release for the weekend, Benedict Cumberbatch’s The Current War: Director’s Cut, nabs the ninth place spot, opening to an estimated $2.7 million across 1,022 locations. Cumberbatch brings to life Thomas Edison who is battling against time and two businessmen who think they have a better idea to bring electricity to the United States.

The businessmen, George Westinghouse and his partner Nikolai Tesla, are portrayed by Michael Shannon and Nicholas Hoult, respectively.

Originally to be distributed by The Weinstein Company, The Current War found its buzzy awards season release stopped in its tracks back in 2017 when the first allegations against Weinstein broke. The Current War was shelved until May when a new distributor announced the Alfonso Gomez-Rejon-directed historical drama would finally be released in October. Jake Gallenhaal was originally attached to the role of Westinghouse when the film was announced in 2012.

Overall box office is down 5.1 percent year-to-date, according to Comscore. Check out the Oct. 25-27 numbers below:

Joker — $18.9 million
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil — $18.5 million
The Addams Family — $11.7 million
Zombieland 2: Double Tap — $11.6 million
Countdown— $9 million
Black and Blue—$8.3 million
Gemini Man — $4 million
The Lighthouse—$3 million
The Current War: Director’s Cut—$2.7 million
Abominable — $2 million

Joker laughs at the competition with second winning weekend in a row

Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker continues to prove that movies rooted in comic books are not a fad, as it takes the top spot at the box office for a second week in a row.

The psychological thriller earned an estimated $55 million domestically, bringing its two-week total to $192.7 million. New releases rounded out the top three with animated The Addams Family nabbing second place with an estimated $30.3 million and Will Smith’s action thriller Gemini Man falling into third with an estimated $20.5 million.

Since October is a great month for all things creepy, kooky, mysterious, and spooky, it’s no surprise that MGM’s animated The Addams Family took the number two spot with an estimated $30.3 million, though the film outpaced expectations. Unlike Joker and It: Chapter Two (currently in eighth place with an estimated $3.2 million), The Addams Family brings PG-rated fun that’s suitable for the whole family.

The film, which follows the family as they relocated to New Jersey, stars the star-studded voices of Oscar Isaac, Charlize Theron, Chloe Grace Moretz, Bette Midler, Allison Janney, Aimee Garcia, and Finn Wolfhard. The film drew mediocre reviews, but a more positive B+ CinemaScore. from audiences.

The animated take on the altogether ookie family performed better than either of the previous two Addams Family big-screen adaptations, 1993’s Addams Family Values, which opened to $14.1 million, and 1991’s The Addams Family, which opened to $24.2 million. However, this does not account for inflation. It’s likely the film could get a sequel with strong brand recognition and opening weekend numbers that exceeded projections.

Box office action star Will Smith takes the third spot with Gemini Man, earning an estimated $20.5 million. The action thriller, directed by Ang Lee, follows an elite assassin named Henry Brogan (Smith) who suddenly becomes the target of a mysterious young operative that somehow knows his every move. The film also stars Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Clive Owen, and Benedict Wong.

Gemini Man has been ravaged by critics, excepting praise for the de-aging technology on display, and audiences aren’t much more positive, bestowing it with a decent B+ Cinemascore. Though the film marked the largest ever opening for director Ang Lee, it’s less than stellar for Smith, marking it his sixteenth highest opening behind more somber, dramatic fare like The Pursuit of Happyness.

People put their mobile devices away to catch Lionsgate’s comedy Jexi in theaters, making an estimated $3.1 million during its opening weekend. Led by Adam Devine, the comedy tells the story of what can happen when you love your phone more than anything else in your life. It’s also a warning for those that can’t live without their virtual assistants, as they could surprise you one day and show you just how intelligent they really are.

Jexi co-stars Alexandra Shipp as Devine’s potential love interest, if only his assistant Jexi (voiced by Rose Byrne) doesn’t ruin his life first. Michael Peña plays his boss, and Wanda Sykes is a hilarious mobile phone company employee. Justin Hartley, Charlyne Yin, Ron Funches, and Kid Cudi also co-star

The Jon Lucas and Scott Moore-directed film has not received positive reviews from critics, earning a dismal 15 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes. And while it’s probably safe to say that Jexi won’t be winning any Academy Awards, Cinemascore confirms theatergoers are feeling tepid about this title, too—they gave it a B-.

Bong Joon Ho’s critically lauded Parasite had a big debut earning $376,264 with screenings available at just three theaters. This is the highest per-location opening of 2019, a huge feat for the foreign release that was awarded the coveted Palm d’Or from the 2019 Cannes Film Festival earlier this year.

The dark comedy follows Kim Ki-Taek (Kang-ho Song), an unemployed driver and his family. His luck drastically changes for the better when they’re employed by the Park family. But it’s short-lived as everything falls apart when they become entangled in a tragic series of events. The film has earned rave reviews and could be a strong contender in the Oscars race as awards season ramps up.

Holdovers round out the top five with animated flick Abominable taking fourth place with an estimated $6.2 million in ticket sales. Downton Abbey continues to prove its box office power, putting the feather in the cap of the top five, with a fifth-place finish of an estimated $4.9 million.

Overall box office is down 5 percent year-to-date, holding steady from last week, according to Comscore. Check out the Oct. 11-13 numbers below:

Joker — $55 million
The Addams Family—$30.3 million
Gemini Man— $20.5
Abominable — $6.2 million
Downton Abbey — $4.9 million
Hustlers — $3.9 million
Judy— $3.3 million
It Chapter Two — $3.2 million
Jexi— $3.1 million
Ad Astra — $1.9 million