NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� Francis Ford Coppola鈥檚 decades-in-the-making, flopped with moviegoers, while the acclaimed DreamWorks Animation family film soared to No. 1 at the weekend box office.
鈥淭he Wild Robot,鈥� Chris Sanders鈥� adaptation of Peter Brown鈥檚 bestseller, outperformed expectations to launch with $35 million in ticket sales in U.S. and Canada theaters, according to studio estimates Sunday. 鈥淲ild Robot鈥� was poised to do well after critics raved about the story of a shipwrecked robot who raises an orphan gosling. Audiences agreed, giving the film an A CinemaScore. 鈥淲ild Robot鈥� is likely set up a long and lucrative run for the Universal Pictures release.
Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for Comscore, predicts 鈥淭he Wild Robot鈥� 鈥渕ay take a page from the 鈥楨lemental' playbook by opening to respectable box office and then looking toward long-term playability.鈥� Pixar's 鈥淓lemental," which like 鈥淭he Wild Robot" wasn't a sequel, debuted with a modest $30 million but went on to gross nearly $500 million worldwide.
Family movies, led by the year's biggest hit in 鈥淚nside Out 2,鈥� have particularly powered the box office this year. David A. Gross, a film consultant who publishes a newsletter for Franchise Entertainment, said the genre should reach $6 billion worldwide in 2024 鈥� which, he noted, "is back to pre-pandemic levels.鈥�
鈥淢别驳补濒辞辫辞濒颈蝉,鈥� , was never expected to perform close to that level. But the film鈥檚 $4 million debut was still sobering for a movie that Coppola bankrolled himself for $120 million. Following its critics have been mixed on Coppola鈥檚 first film in 13 years. Audiences gave in a D+ CinemaScore.
By any financial measure, 鈥淢egalopolis鈥� was a mega-flop. But from the start, the 85-year-old Coppola maintained money wasn鈥檛 his concern. Coppola fashioned the film, which he first began developing in the late 1970s, as a grand personal statement about human possibility.
鈥淓veryone鈥檚 so worried about money,鈥� Coppola told The Associated Press in an interview ahead of the film鈥檚 release. 鈥淚 say: Give me less money and give me more friends.鈥�
Studios passed on 鈥淢egalopolis鈥� after Cannes. Lionsgate ultimately stepped forward to distribute it, for a fee. Coppola also picked up the tab for most of its $15 million in marketing costs. The film, which stars Adam Driver, Nathalie Emmanuel and Aubrey Plaza, also played in about 200 IMAX locations, which accounted for $1.8 million of its ticket sales.
After three weeks atop the box office, slid to second place with $16 million in its fourth weekend of release. The Warner Bros. sequel to the 1988 鈥淏eetlejuice,鈥� starring Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder, has amassed $250 million domestically in a month of release.
Third place went to the Transformers prequel starring Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry. After its lower-than expected debut last weekend, the Paramount release collected $9.3 million on its second weekend.
鈥淢egalopolis鈥� was even bested by the Indian Telugu-language action film 鈥淒evara: Part 1.鈥� It grossed $5.1 million in its opening weekend, good enough for fourth place.
Also debuting in theaters was an affectionate dramatization of the sketch-comedy institution on the night it first aired in 1975. On the same weekend the NBC series Reitman鈥檚 movie launched in five New York and Los Angeles theaters and collected $265,000, good for a strong $53,000 per-theater average. 鈥淪aturday Night鈥� goes nationwide in two weeks.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. 鈥淭he Wild Robot,鈥� $35 million.
2. 鈥淏eetlejuice Beetlejuice," $16 million.
3. 鈥淭ransformers One," $9.3 million.
4. 鈥淒evara: Part 1," $5.1 million.
5. 鈥淪peak No Evil," $4.3 million.
6. 鈥淢egalopolis," $4 million.
7. 鈥淒eadpool & Wolverine," $2.7 million.
8. 鈥淢y Old Ass," $2.2 million.
9. 鈥淣ever Let Go," $2.2 million.
10. 鈥淭he Substance," $1.8 million.
Jake Coyle, The Associated Press
