Meanwhile, 'John Wick: Chapter 2' attracts cult audience of its first movie and rounds out the top three by gaining $30.4 million domestically.
- Feb 13, 2017
AceShowbiz - Costumed Legos, kinky billionaire and ruthless hitman dominated North American box office over the weekend. "The Lego Batman Movie" successfully gained $53 million in its debut weekend, defeating "Fifty Shades Darker" which sat on the second place. "John Wick: Chapter 2", meanwhile, occupied the third place and gained quite a satisfying cume.
"The Lego Batman Movie" attracted moviegoers mostly in family demography, with 48 percent of its viewers under 25 years old. It also benefited from a lack of competitors of the same genre during its release. In addition, "The Lego Movie" spin-off got good reviews from critics, which seemingly became another reason of its success.
"Fifty Shades Darker", which continues Mr. Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele's erotic romance, only earned $46.6 million on Friday-Sunday frame. Its early income was almost a half of its first movie's, which debuted with $85.2 million in 2015.
Universal Pictures' president Nick Carpou suggested that "Fifty Shades of Grey" benefited from its perfect timing. With Valentine's Day falling on Saturday in 2015, the movie became a perfect choice for dating couple. This year's Valentine, however, falls on Tuesday, when theaters are not as crowded as those on weekend.
"John Wick: Chapter 2" occupied the third place of the chart. The movie centering on Keanu Reeves as a ruthless hitman gained $30.4 million, more than twice of the first movie which debuted to $14.4 million in 2014. Besides being advantaged by strong reviews, the second "John Wick" movie attracted cult audience which has been captivated by violence-filled universe offered by its predecessor.
"Split" dropped to the fourth place by earning $9.5 million domestically, followed by "Hidden Figures" which sat on the fifth place with $8 million. Meanwhile, *"The Space Between Us" didn't get any luck. The sci-fi romance dropped to the tenth place, earning only $1.7 million at the box office.
Top Ten Movies at Weekend Box Office for February 10-12: