(L to R) Lea Seydoux, Daniel Craig and Monica Bellucci pose for photographers as they attend the world premiere of the new James Bond 007 film “Spectre” at the Royal Albert Hall in London, Britain October 26, 2015.
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The name’s Bond: Spectre debuted with $73 million in North America to take the top spot at the weekend box office.
This total makes the film starring Daniel Craig as 007 the second-biggest opening in the series’ history behind its predecessor, “Skyfall”, which made $88.3 million in 2012.
Sony’s president Rory Bruer of worldwide distribution said that they never expected “Spectre” to open to the level of ‘Skyfall, ‘ but he is certain that the Bond franchise is as healthy and strong as ever. It was a very different scenario. While Sony (NYSE:SNE) played it safe and projected a $60-70 million haul, the industry went a little higher and predicted a total closer to $75 million.
“Initially no one can live up to Bond”, Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Rentrak, told Variety.
There has been a lot of speculation surrounding Daniel Craig’s continued association with the James Bond franchise after Spectre, especially after the movie was something of a disappointment to many critics.
The Peanuts Movie provided a family-friendly alternative to James Bond’s guns and martinis and took second place with a strong 45 million dollars (£29.8 million). Going into the weekend, tracking suggested that the film would debut to $80 million, but the strength of The Peanuts Movie and a few critical grousing may have depressed ticket sales slightly.
The Peanuts Movie brings to animated life the characters created by Charles M. Schulz in his famous comic strip and the script was co-written by his son Craig and grandson Bryan. After just ten days of release, Spectre sits at an estimated $223.1 million with the film still yet to open in France, Australia, South Korea, Japan and China.
In other competition, The Martian remains a force of nature at the box office, landing at No. 3 in Week Six with $9.3 million.
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On the surface, it seems like there should be nothing to complain about regarding this week’s box office. The look at the Boston Globe’s investigation of the Catholic Church sexual abuse scandal picked up $302,276 from five theaters. Spectre has a clear road ahead as the next blockbuster, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2, won’t be out until November 20. “This is good news for Hollywood to get things back on track”.
