The Conjuring sequel creeps into first place!
Horror remained the biggest attraction this weekend as THE CONJURING: THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT possessed the top of the box office with an estimated opening of $24 million!
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the ongoing cinema recuperation (75% of North American theaters are currently open), the third movie in the main CONJURING series got a slower start than the previous two entries, which each opened with around $41 million.
The 2018 spinoff THE NUN still holds the highest domestic opening in THE CONJURING universe with $53.8 million. The entire franchise (including three ANNABELLE movies) has collectively grossed nearly $2 billion worldwide.
The R-rated sequel, which of course brings back Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga as famed real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorrain Warren, also frightened $33.1 million out of international audiences for a worldwide total of $57.1 million.
Directed this time by Michael Chaves (THE CURSE OF LA LLORONA) but co-written and produced by the series originator James Wan, the new supernatural thriller cost a reported $39 million.
The Warner Bros. release was originally scheduled for September 2020 but was delayed due to the pandemic. As with all of the studio's 2021 releases, it also simultaneously debuted on their HBO Max streaming service this weekend.
Critics apparently weren't too invested in the Warrens' latest case, giving the movie an average of 60% on Rotten Tomatoes and a Metacritic score of 53. Grab your exorcism kit and check out the JoBlo review HERE.
Sneaking down to second place was the PG-13 horror sequel A QUIET PLACE: PART II with $19.5 million, ditching 59% of business from last weekend's #1 opening.
The $61 million Paramount release with Emily Blunt, Cillian Murphy and Djimon Hounsou has a ten-day domestic total of $88.6 million and a worldwide total of $118.1 million. A third movie is already planned for release in March 2023.
Disney's live-action CRUELLA was in third place with $11.2 million, getting skinned by 48% from its opening last weekend. The prequel with Emma Stone as the titular villain has a ten-day domestic total of $43.6 million and $87 million worldwide.
The PG-13 release (rumored to have cost as much as $200 million) was also made available on the studio's Disney+ platform for a $30 Premier Access fee. A follow-up movie is already in the works.
Trotting into fourth place was the animated DreamWorks feature SPIRIT UNTAMED with an opening of $6.2 million.
The PG-rated Universal release (a spinoff of the 2002 movie SPIRIT: STALLION OF THE CIMMARON), with voice work by Isabela Merced, Jake Gyllenhaal, Juliane Moore and Walton Goggins, cost a reported $30 million.
Critics seemed to think the horse should be left in the stable, giving it a 46% average on Rotten Tomatoes and a score of 48 on Metacritic. Saddle up with the JoBlo review HERE.
The Disney animated fantasy RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON was in fifth place with $1.3 million, and has now spent 14 weekends on the top half of the chart. The PG-rated adventure has a domestic total of $53.5 million and $114 million worldwide.
In sixth place was director Guy Ritchie's ation-thriller WRATH OF MAN with $1.27 million on its fifth domestic weekend. The R-rated Jason Statham movie has a domestic total of $24.6 million and $81 million worldwide.
The R-rated horror movie SPIRAL: FROM THE BOOK OF SAW was in seventh place with $890,000 on its fourth weekend, bringing the Lionsgate sequel/spinoff to a domestic total of $21.7 million and $30.4 million worldwide on a reported $20 million cost.
Wrapping things up on the list with less than half a million each was GODZILLA VS. KONG (still lurching toward $100 million domestic), R-rated anime DEMON SLAYER – THE MOVIE: MUGEN TRAIN and PG-rated comedy DREAM HORSE, while the Angelina Jolie action-thriller THOSE WHO WISH ME DEAD has disappeared.
Next weekend has the adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda's hit Broadway musical IN THE HEIGHTS, and the animated/live-action sequel PETER RABBIT 2: THE RUNAWAY.
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| # | MOVIE TITLE | WKND $ | TOTAL $ |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Conjuring 3 | $24 M | NEW |
| 2 | A Quiet Place Part II | $19.5 M | $88.6 M |
| 3 | Cruella | $11.2 M | $43.6 M |
| 4 | Spirit Untamed | $6.2 M | NEW |
| 5 | Raya and the Last Dragon | $1.3 M | $53.5 M |
| 6 | Wrath of Man | $1.27 M | $24.6 M |
| 7 | Spiral: From the Book of Saw | $890 k | $21.8 M |
| 8 | Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train | $576 k | $47.7 M |
| 9 | Godzilla vs. Kong | $521 k | $99.1 M |
| 10 | Dream Horse | $230 k | $2.3 M |