Allow us to pour one out for this weekend of Nov. 3: Dune: Part Two was supposed to open this weekend until it shifted to 2024 due to the SAG-AFTRA strike. This SHOULD’VE been a big weekend but here we are with only the second weekend of Five Nights at Freddy’s to get us by. The film maintained the top spot this weekend but it definitely took a frontloaded tumble due to the fan rush and just the nature of it being a horror film.
Five Nights at Freddy’s is the number-one movie in America for the second week in a row with a gross of $19 million. That’s a steep fall of 76.2 percent which just shows that the $80 million opening last week was driven by the rush from all of the fans of the games. There is also the issue that the film is available on the Peacock streaming service so subsequent viewings of the film, from fans and casuals, could be happening on that platform rather than in theaters.
That is where the issues end though. The movie cost $20 million to make and has already grossed $116.1 million domestically and $220.9 million worldwide. Blumhouse and Universal Pictures are very happy with this performance and a franchise is still going to be born from this when it’s all said and done. Plus, having bragging rights for being number one two weeks in a row can’t hurt either.
Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour holds in second place with a gross of $13.6 million, down a slim 11.8 percent from the previous weekend. Originally it was reported this would be a three-weekend engagement but it appears this will still be playing into another week as it’s still pulling in significant money. To date, The Eras Tour has grossed $166 million at the domestic box office and $231.9 million worldwide. The real question is will it remain in theaters long enough to become the biggest concert film on the global level? It’s already taken the crown domestically but still needs to top the $261.1 million global take of Michael Jackson’s This Is It to win the worldwide title. Stay Tuned…
Maintaining third place is Killers of the Flower Moon with a gross of $6.8 million, down 26.2 percent from the previous weekend. The talk on this has changed a lot since its second weekend drop with some outlets wanting to label it a financial flop given its $200 million budget. As it stands now, this was a good investment for Apple for their bottom line. It will help market their products as well as attract big-name talent since it’s clear they still care about the theatrical experience while also building a library for their streaming platform. No losers here by any means. To date, Killers of the Flower Moon has grossed $53.9 million domestically and $120.7 million worldwide.
Moving up to fourth place after going wide is Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla, which grossed $5 million. That’s an increase of 3,747.9 percent after it added 1,355 screens to its showings. That’s better than the expansion for Coppola’s The Beguiled which jumped to $3.7 million at 674 theaters back in 2017. Even more impressive is that the increase almost topped the entire domestic run of Coppola’s The Bling Ring ($5.8 million). Where it goes from here we’ll have to see. It’s getting pretty good reviews but there might be bigger awards contenders out there that could overshadow it. We’ll call it a win for this weekend and see where it goes from here.
Rounding out the top five is Radical with a gross of $2.6 million. This is a Spanish-language film that managed to hit this gross at only 419 theaters. The film is benefitting from word of mouth in Latino and Hispanic communities after it saw a release in Mexico on Oct. 20. The movie received an “A+” CinemaScore so good word of mouth could continue in the weeks ahead.
What are your thoughts on this week’s box office? Check back next week when Marvel tests its strength at the box office with the release of The Marvels.
Hello! My name is Gaius Bolling: movie, TV, and pop culture junkie! The industry has been in my veins since I was a kid and I have carried that on through adulthood. I attended Los Angeles Film Academy and participated in their screenwriting and editing program. From there, I have learned to hone my skills in the world of entertainment journalism. Some of my favorite genres include horror, action, and drama and I hope to share my love of all of this with you.