The video game adaptation gave the Marvel movie a scare after winning the daily chart on Friday, but in the end the superhero film still reigns supreme over the weekend.
- May 13, 2019
AceShowbiz - "Pokemon Detective Pikachu" shot but missed in its first week at North American box office. The live-action/CGI movie gave "Avengers: Endgame" a scare after it delivered an impressive first-day opening on Friday with $20.7 million, but it wasn't enough to dethrone the superhero movie.
With an estimated $63 million on its third weekend, the latest Marvel blockbuster still holds the throne at the chart. It has now grossed $723.5 million domestically, officially passing "Avengers: Infinity War" ($679 million) and "Black Panther" ($700 million) to become the third highest-grossing movie of all time at the domestic box office. It has accumulated $2.48 billion so far, still placing second behind "Avatar" as the second-biggest film ever globally.
"Detective Pikachu", meanwhile, has to be content with landing at the second place on its debut weekend with approximately $58 million after a three-day run. Despite mixed reviews, averaging a 64% on Rotten Tomatoes, the Warner Bros. movie broke the record for the largest opening weekend for a video game adaptation ever, topping 2001's "Lara Croft Tomb Raider" ($47.7 million).
"It was fun to win Friday night, but as they say in golf, you play your own game and I'm thrilled with our result," said the studio's head of domestic distribution Jeff Goldstein. He went on gushing about the movie, "It worked because of the lighthearted nature of the film. You don't need to be a Pokemon fan to see the movie."
Boosted by an A- CinemaScore, "Detective Pikachu" could have a long run at box office and is expected to follow in the footsteps of previous video game adaptations with $145-165 million domestic run.
Not overshadowed by those two strong performers, another new release, "The Hustle", opens strong at No. 3 with approximately $13.5 million, despite lackluster reviews. The female-fronted spin on "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" starring Anne Hathaway and Rebel Wilson has a 16% on Rotten Tomatoes and got a B- CinemaScore.
Erik Lomis, head of distribution for United Artists Releasing, said they couldn't be more pleased with the result. "The critics don't always get to dictate what happens," he said. "We're very pleased with the results, particularly with all these huge movies like 'Avengers: Endgame' and 'Detective Pikachu' opening. We still hit the higher end of expectations, which comedies have not been doing lately."
The rest of the top five still belong to holdovers, with "The Intruder" falling two spots to No. 4 with an estimated $6.6 million. Charlize Theron and Seth Rogen-starring comedy "Long Shot" also drops two places to No. 5 with an estimated addition of $6.1 million.
Top Ten Movies at Weekend Box Office for May 10-12:
- "Avengers: Endgame" - $63 million
- "Pokemon Detective Pikachu" - $58 million
- "The Hustle" - $13.5 million
- "The Intruder" - $6.6 million
- "Long Shot" - $6.1 million
- "Poms" - $5.1 million
- "Uglydolls" - $3.9 million
- "Breakthrough" - $2.5 million
- "Tolkien" - $2.2 million
- "Captain Marvel" - $1.8 million