Weekend Box Office Report: June 20-22, 2014

Think Too gets the jump on 22!

Comedy was the preferred option at theaters this weekend, and the sequel THINK LIKE A MAN TOO got the last laugh with an opening of $30 million!

Star Kevin Hart continues to prove his worth at the box office with his third 2014 release, after RIDE ALONG ($134 million on a $25 million budget) and the remake of ABOUT LAST NIGHT ($48.6 million on a $12 million budget). His latest, a follow-up to the hit 2012 ensemble comedy THINK LIKE A MAN (based on Steve Harvey's book), has already made more than its modest $24 million reported cost. Although it's not necessarily all about Hart's appeal — his THINK co-star Taraji P. Henson also has a considerable following on social media, which can't hurt.

The sequel came in a bit below the $33.6 million opening of the first THINK LIKE A MAN, which (like the sequel and Hart's RIDE ALONG) was directed by FANTASTIC FOUR helmer Tim Story. The original ended up with $91.5 million, but also opened in April and didn't have the strong summer competition to battle. 

THINK LIKE A MAN TOO also managed to inch past the #2 movie despite being on 1000 fewer screens, which is no small feat. It didn't tickle many critics (22% on Rotten Tomatoes) but paying crowds gave it an 'A-' CinemaScore.

In a close second was 22 JUMP STREET with $29 million (a 49% drop from its opening last week). The R-rated Channing Tatum/Jonah Hill sequel has already shot to a 10-day total of $111.4 million (21 JUMP STREET topped out at $138.4 million), so it stands a decent chance of ending up the summer's highest-earning comedy.

Landing in third place (despite being on 1000 more screens than 22 JUMP STREET) was HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON 2 with $25.3 million — also a 49% fall from its opening last weekend — and a $95.1 million 10-day total.

Initially the DRAGON sequel seemed like a reasonable guess to become one of the summer's highest-grossers, and while Toothless still has a couple of months to spread his wings, it's a long journey to the first movie's $217 million domestic and $494 million global totals (although it has yet to open in many major foreign territories).

Opening in fourth was the new musical JERSEY BOYS with $13.5 million. Adapting a smash Broadway stage production to the big screen doesn't always translate to a MAMMA MIA!-sized blockbuster (as also demonstrated by the 2012 flop ROCK OF AGES), and JERSEY BOYS didn't exactly start on a high note. Critics gave director Clint Eastwood's $40 million Four Seasons movie a 55% average at Rotten Tomatoes, but audiences hummed along with an 'A-' CinemaScore.

Coming in fifth was Disney's MALEFICENT with $13.5 million and Angelina Jolie's wicked villainess is up to $521 million worldwide, so sometimes it's good to be bad. In sixth was EDGE OF TOMORROW with $10.3 million and seems likely to be the latest Tom Cruise movie to fall short of $100 million domestic (it's nearing $300 million worldwide).

THE FAULT IN OUR STARS is just a few short breaths away from $100 million, and X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST is within a bone claw's reach of $700 million worldwide. Jon Favreau's CHEF is still cooking in the Top 10 on less than 1000 screens (interestingly, it's the only release currently on the chart that is not based on existing material), while GODZILLA is getting ready to stomp into the sunset.

Outside the chart, A MILLION WAYS TO DIE IN THE WEST is six feet under, and NEIGHBORS leaves the list with a respectable $145.7 million total. The Guy Pearce/Robert Pattinson post-apocalypse drama THE ROVER expanded to nearly 600 screens, but it must be a tough sell judging by the languid $590k total.

Next weekend delivers just one new wide release as the Autobots team with Mark Wahlberg for director Michael Bay's robo-explodo extravaganza TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION. And if you can find it, the Chris Evans sci-fi locomotive SNOWPIERCER opens in limited release.

How much do you think TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION will open with next weekend? VOTE HERE!