In a box-office showdown featuring a lethal assassin and a perplexed CG alien, “Lilo & Stitch” managed to maintain an edge. The Disney powerhouse celebrates the third weekend at the top of the charts with the “Ballerina” spinoff from the John Wick franchise, though high expectations were not met.
As per the studio’s estimated figures for Sunday, “John Wick: From the World of the Ballerina” grossed $25 million across 3,409 theaters in the US and Canada. Initial projections had expected an opening in the $30-40 million range, but those figures have been adjusted multiple times. Ultimately, the debut landed lower than anticipated. Directed by Len Wiseman, the film highlights side characters from Keanu Reeves’ John Wick movies, featuring Ana de Armas, and is set during the events of John Wick 3.
The box office performance is somewhat perplexing given that “Ballerina” received strong critical reviews and positive audience feedback. Conventional wisdom suggests that strong word-of-mouth could have enhanced its performance over the weekend. However, a weekend’s opening isn’t as definitive as it once was, indicating “Ballerina” might linger in the box office race for a while.
“While it’s part of the John Wick franchise, it feels like a genuine original. That’s a positive aspect,” remarked Paul Delgalavedian, senior media analyst at ComScore. “This isn’t a film that would launch like Mission: Impossible or another major franchise.”
The Lionsgate release, a product of Thunder Road Films and 87Eleven Entertainment, reportedly had a hefty production budget of about $90 million. However, much of that cost has already been mitigated through foreign pre-sales, with the film bringing in $26 million from 82 international markets, resulting in a global opening of $51 million.
As the first spinoff installment, it achieved the second-lowest opening in the five-film franchise, surpassing only the original film, which opened slightly over $14 million in 2014—not accounting for inflation. The entire franchise has grossed more than $1 billion globally.
Dergarabedian mentioned that the R-rated “Ballerina” could also witness a strong second weekend, following a family-targeted release of “How to Train Your Dragon.”
Leading the weekend was “Lilo & Stitch,” which added $32.5 million in North America, escalating its domestic total to $335.8 million and reaching a global tally of $772.6 million. Domestically, it has already outperformed the live-action adaptation of “The Little Mermaid,” which brought in $298 million in just 17 days.
“Mission: Impossible – Final Calculations” dropped to third place with $15 million, pushing its global total to $450 million. “Karate Kid: Legends” earned $8.7 million for fourth place, while “Final Destination: Bloodline” rounded out the top five with $6.5 million.
Wes Anderson’s latest film, “Phoenician Plans”, expanded to 1,678 theaters nationwide, moving beyond New York and Los Angeles, and debuted in sixth place with an estimated $6.3 million.
The R-rated anime “Dan Da Dan: Evil Eye” also entered the top ten during its opening weekend, earning $3.1 million from 1,080 theaters.
Overall, box office revenue has risen by more than 26% compared to this time last year.
Top 10 films by domestic box office revenue
According to ComScore, this list reflects estimated ticket sales from Friday to Sunday in US and Canadian theaters, with final domestic figures slated for release on Monday.
1. “Lilo & Stitch” $32.5 million.
2. “From the World of John Wick: Ballerina,” $25 million.
3. “Mission: Impossible – Final Calculation”, $15 million.
4. “Karate Kid: The Legend,” $8.7 million.
5. “Final Destination: Pedigree,” $6.5 million.
6. “Phoenician Scheme,” $6.3 million.
7. “Take Her Back,” $3.5 million.
8. “Dan Da Dan: Evil Eyes,” $3.1 million.
9. “Sinner,” $2.9 million.
10. “Thunderbolts,” $2.5 million.
Source: apnews.com