It is a less-than-stellar launch for a film well-received by critics, though not as poor as Disney’s “The BFG”, another live-action/CG hybrid from earlier this summer that earned only $53.3 million in the US against a $140 million budget.
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According to Box Office Mojo, Suicide Squad fell 67.3%, making an estimated $43.7 million. As for SUICIDE SQUAD, it did take the top spot despite losing almost 70% of its audience from last weekend.
“Sausage Party” is chomping away at the weekend box office, earning a higher Friday total than “Suicide Squad”. Disney Pixar’s Finding Dory is still the highest-grossing domestic release this year so far, with $473.8 million, and the R-rated Deadpool lands in the fifth highest debut spot with $132.4 million.
That was down sharply from its opening weekend take of $133.7 million, but still enough to edge out new releases “Sausage Party” and “Pete´s Dragon”.
On the worldwide front, with both The Secret Life of Pets ($40 million from 47 territories) and Jason Bourne ($18.6 million from 59 countries) feeding the beast, Universal Pictures global crosses the $1 billion mark for the 10th consecutive year. The film managed a B Cinemascore from audiences, but critics approved – Party is rocking an 82% approval rating on the review-aggregate site RottenTomatoes.com. Last week, Rogen spoke to Fandango (via /Film) about how hard it was to get Sausage Party made and what kind of ideas he has for the future of the animated medium.
Sausage Party, an adult animation in which Seth Rogen, Kristen Wiig and Jonah Hill give voice to foul-mouthed food products, raked in an estimated $33.6m (£26m).
Stephen Frears directed Florence Foster Jenkins, based on the real-life story of a NY heiress who bought a career as an opera star only to be ridiculed. produced by Pathe and BBC Films and distributed by Paramount. For the younger set is Pete’s Dragon, another re-imagining of a beloved Disney film.
In terms of solid variety at the cineplex, this weekend accounted for the best in new releases for 2016.
The heartwarming family films along the lines of Pete’s and Steven Spielberg’s The BFG “just aren’t doing the business at the box office anymore”, Bock adds.
“Pete´s Dragon” tells the tale of an orphan boy and the (computer-animated) dragon who befriends him. After its second week of release in China, “The Secret Life of Pets” has generated $49.1 million.
Meryl Streep’s latest offering, Florence Foster Jenkins, made a quiet debut in eighth place with $6.5 million.
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The modern-day Western, opening in both traditional art house theaters in NY and Los Angeles as well as in commercial theaters in the Southwest, debuted to $592,000 from 31 locations for a stellar location average of $18,500. It might be a little surprising to some, but that’s the way things played out in the box office this weekend. But Warner Bros.is in an increasingly tough spot with its Hollywood investment in DC Comics. At this point the film is still on par for about $350 million to $360 million as a final domestic take.
