Movie

The new musical take on the 2004 comedy film tops a sleepy box office and brings its domestic tally to $50 million, while sci-fi thriller 'I.S.S.' fails to soar on its opening weekend.

• Jan 22, 2024

AceShowbiz - "Mean Girls (2024)" cannot be dethroned at box office. The movie musical still tops the North American chart on its second weekend with an estimated $11.7 million, despite dropping almost 60% from its opening weekend.

The new take on Tina Fey's 2004 teen comedy film has accrued a total of $50 million domestically and $16.2 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $66.2 million so far. Despite its slow burn, the movie has turned a profit with a modest $36 million budget.

Holding on to its runner-up position, "The Beekeeper" added an estimated $8.5 million to its domestic gross. "Wonka" stays steady at No. 3 with approximately $6.4 million, only dropping 23.9% from last weekend despite playing in less theaters in its sixth week. It has so far collected $187.2 million domestically and $344.6 internationally for a global total of $531.8 million.

Remaining at No. 4 and No. 5, "Anyone But You" and "Migration" are going neck to neck with an estimated $5.4 million and approximately $5.3 million respectively. The rom-com starring Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell crossed $100 million globally in its fifth week of release, becoming the highest-grossing R-rated romantic comedy since 2016's "Bridget Jones's Baby".

With the lack of new releases in cinemas and the freezing winter, theaters were almost desolate in the last week. This weekend's only newcomer is "I.S.S.", a sci-fi thriller from director Gabriela Cowperthwaite, but it fails to fly high.

The movie starring Ariana DeBose and Chris Messina crash-lands in seventh place, collecting just $3 million from 2,520 theaters on its debut weekend. Expectations for the movie weren't high as it received negative reviews and a bleak "C-" CinemaScore from audiences.

"With no big studio release, this weekend is the kind of 'hole' in the 2024 release schedule left by the strikes and pandemic," says David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research.

Top 10 of North American Box Office (Jan. 19-21, 2024):

1. "Mean Girls (2024)" - $11.7 million
2. "The Beekeeper" - $8.5 million
3. "Wonka" - $6.4 million
4. "Anyone But You" - $5.4 million
5. "Migration" - $5.3 million
6. "Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom" - $3.6 million
7. "I.S.S." - $3 million
8. "Night Swim" - $2.7 million
9. "The Boys in the Boat" - $2.5 million
10. "Poor Things" - $2 million