Alien: Romulus is off to a strong start with $6.5 million in previews, and critic and audience ratings for the Ridley Scott-produced, Fede Alvarez-directed version remain strong, at 82% and 88% on Rotten Tomatoes, respectively.
In terms of comparisons, Alien: Romulus isn’t far behind A Quiet Place Part 2 ($6.7M previews, $52M debut), Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes ($6.6M, $58M debut), and Bad Boys 2: Ride or Die ($6.1M, $57M debut). Set between Alien and Alienism, the Cailee Spaeny-starring film is expected to debut at #1 with over $40M, making it a major hit that will last until September, when Warner Bros.’ Beetlejuice takes over. The film is scheduled to play in 3,885 theaters, including 400 Imax, 900 PLF, 275 D-Box/4D motion screens, and 90 ScreenX locations.
Meanwhile, Blake Lively topped Ryan Reynolds for her fourth daily box office lead of the week. It End With Us earned $4.9 million on Thursday, beating Deadpool & Wolverine’s $4.56 million. It End With Us earned $73.7 million, making it the highest seven-day gross for a non-sequel film this year. It End With Us has grossed $516.7 million to date. The film, directed, produced and co-written by Shawn Levy, is expected to bring in another $30 million this weekend. It End With Us is expected to hold its own at around $22 million, or even higher.
Fathom’s re-release of Coraline grossed $3.1 million from 1,570 theaters yesterday. Universal’s Twisters, which is incredibly already available for digital purchase and rental, grossed $1.3 million from 3,664 theaters, for a fourth weekend gross of $21.3 million, down 7% from Wednesday, and a cumulative gross of $228.6 million.
In fifth place was Uni-Illumination’s “Despicable Me,” with 3,009 box office receipts for a sixth weekend gross of $12.2 million and a cumulative gross of $334.4 million, up from Thursday’s $878,000, down 6% from Wednesday.
Borderlands, Lionsgate’s very expensive $110-120 million bomb, finished its opening weekend with $11.1 million, down 22% from Thursday’s $416,000.
