Ralph Delivers Second Largest Thanksgiving Opening Ever while Creed II Punches Up $55M Debut
by Brad Brevet
November 25, 2018


It was a massive five days at the box office, the last three days of which resulted in the largest Thanksgiving three-day weekend ever with the top twelve films combining for over $206 million.

Leading the way was Disney's Ralph Breaks the Internet, which brought in the second largest Thanksgiving five-day gross of all-time followed by MGM's Creed II with the largest holiday opening ever for a live-action film.

Despite the performances of these two films, it wasn't all success stories, however, as Summit's big budget attempt at Robin Hood collapsed both with critics and audiences.







With a massive $84.5 million domestically in its first five days, Disney's Ralph Breaks the Internet easily topped the weekend box office with what ranks as the second largest Thanksgiving five-day opening of all-time.

This gives Walt Disney Animation Studios the top three Thanksgiving debuts ever while Disney overall holds eleven of the top thirteen Thanksgiving five-day debuts. By comparison, Ralph's debut is $2.5 million more than Moana's five-day opening back in 2016 before it went on to gross nearly $250 million domestically.



Ralph was a hit with critics heading into the weekend — 33 on Metacritic and 86% on RottenTomatoes — and audiences agreed, giving the film an "A-" CinemaScore.

Internationally, Ralph delivered an estimated $41.5 million from 18 markets for a $125.9 million global debut.







Finishing in second is MGM's Creed II with a massive, $55.8 million five-day debut. The performance is not only the seventh largest Thanksgiving five-day opening of all-time, but the largest opening for a live-action film over the Thanksgiving weekend ever. The performance is also $16 million ahead of the original, which finished with $109.7 million domestic.

Audiences gave Creed II an "A" CinemaScore, matching that of the original, which means word of mouth on the sequel is likely help this one as much as it did the first.







WB's Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald landed in third for the five-day holiday, narrowly edging out Universal and Illumination's The Grinch.

The Fantastic Beasts sequel delivered an estimated $42.9 million for a domestic cume that now stands at $117.1 million. With an additional $83.7 million internationally this weekend, the film was once again the #1 film globally for the second weekend in a row with a worldwide cume that now totals $439.7 million.







As for The Grinch, it brought in an estimated $42 million over the five-day holiday frame for a domestic cume that now totals over $180 million as it will soon find its way into the yearly top ten.

Internationally the film opened in 11 additional markets and brought in $7.6 million from 33 total markets for an international cume that now stands at $35.3 million.







Fox's Bohemian Rhapsody rounds out the top five with an estimated $19.37 million over the five-day holiday for a domestic cume that now totals over $152 million.

The film also added an additional $38 million internationally this weekend, pushing its global tally to $472.1 million.







It isn't until seventh position that we find Lionsgate's release of Summit's Robin Hood, a film that carries reported budget around $100 million, which means its meager, $14.2 million five-day opening makes it one of the biggest busts of 2018.

Critics panned the film, which scored a 33 on Metacritic and a 11% on RottenTomatoes, and while the "B" CinemaScore isn't disastrous, the opening result shows there just wasn't much of an audience for this one in the first place.

Internationally, the film didn't fair much better, bringing in an estimated $8.7 million from 33 markets.







In ninth position we find Universal's expansion of Green Book into 1,063 locations (+1,038) after its limited bow last weekend. The film brought in an estimated $7.4 million for the five-day.

Carrying a reported budget of $23 million, it would appear the studio may have gone a bit too wide too soon with this one, which is a hit with critics at 82% on RottenTomatoes and audiences also love what they're seeing, giving the film an "A+" CinemaScore, but is there enough word of mouth to propel this one over the coming weeks?







Rounding out the top ten is WB's A Star is Born, which now carries a domestic cume totaling $191 million. This makes the film the eighth largest domestic release that never hit #1 at the domestic weekend box office.

The film also added another $3.5 million internationally this weekend as its global cume now stands at an impressive $353.4 million.







Outside the top ten, Focus expanded their release of Boy Erased into 672 locations (+263) where it brought in an estimated $1.5 million over the five-day frame for a $4.5 million domestic cume after 24 days in release.

And Sony's expansion of The Front Runner into 807 locations (+785), following its Election Day limited bow, struggled to drum up any business, delivering just $885k for a dismal, $1,097 per theater average.







Elsewhere, Fox Searchlight debuted The Favourite in just four locations where the film brought in a hefty, $420,000 in its first three days for a massive, $105,000 per theater average, the best of 2018. The debut is enough to make it one of the top twenty-five opening averages ever.

The film will play in 25-30 locations next weekend as it is set to debut in San Francisco, Dallas, Austin, Washington DC, Boston, Chicago, and Phoenix.

https://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=4460&p=.htm









November 23-25, 2018 Weekend Studio Estimates:


1. Ralph Breaks the Internet $55,672,000
2. Creed II $35,293,000
3. Dr. Seuss' The Grinch $30,210,000 / $180,442,250
4. Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald $29,650,000 / $117,117,238
5. Bohemian Rhapsody $13,855,000 / $152,014,253
6. Instant Family $12,500,000 / $35,751,508
7. Robin Hood $9,125,000
8. Widows $7,955,000 / $25,585,819
9. Green Book $5,443,000 / $7,800,401
10. A Star is Born $3,005,000 / $191,005,173

Ralph Breaks the Internet Remains #1 with $26 Million Post-Thanksgiving Performance
by Brad Brevet
December 2, 2018


Outside of only a couple differences, this weekend's box office top ten almost mirrors last weekend's rankings exactly with Disney's Ralph Breaks the Internet securing the #1 spot for a second weekend in a row.

Among the differences, Universal's The Grinch switched places with Creed II as the animated feature took the runner-up position while topping $200 million domestically.

In the bottom half of the top ten Sony's release of the Screen Gems horror film The Possession of Hannah Grace outperformed expectations and earned a seventh place finish.







There was no change at the top of the box office, however, as Disney's Ralph Breaks the Internet is once again the #1 film in North America, delivering an estimated three-day totaling $25.75 million.

From a domestic perspective, the film's performance almost matches that of Moana's dollar-for-dollar after 12 days in release with a domestic total just shy of $120 million. Internationally, the film added $33.7 million this weekend for an international cume that now totals $87.7 million and a $207 million worldwide cume.







Landing in second place is Universal and Illumination's The Grinch, which brought in an estimated $17.7 million for a domestic cume that now totals $203.5 million.

Internationally, The Grinch added 20 markets this weekend for 53 total marketplaces now in play and delivered an estimated $27.1 million.







MGM's Creed II dropped 53% in its second weekend for an estimated $16.8 million and a twelve day gross that now totals over $81 million.

The drop is just a couple percentage points below the first film (which is to be expected given the sheer size of the sequel's five-day debut last weekend), while the twelve day total remains $17 million ahead of where the first film was at the same point in release.

Internationally, Creed II started playing in a couple of smaller markets last weekend, but this weekend expanded into 29 total markets and delivered an estimated $10 million for an international cume that stands at $11.4 million.







In fourth we find WB's Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, which kicked off its third week in release with an estimated $11.2 million and a domestic cume that is now just shy of $135 million.

While the film's domestic performance is a bit of a downer, it has now topped the global box office for three straight weekends as it added another $40.2 million internationally this weekend for an overseas running cume that is now $385.3 million for a global haul just shy of $520 million.







Rounding out the top five is Fox's Bohemian Rhapsody, which brought in an estimated $8.1 million as it kicks off its fifth week in release with a domestic total that is now just shy of $165 million.

The film is rocking audiences internationally as well, adding an additional $37 million this weekend from 72 markets for an overseas total that now tops $375 million and a global cume just shy of $539 million.







Outside the top five, in seventh position is Sony's release of Screen Gems's R-rated horror The Possession of Hannah Grace. Heading into the weekend expectations weren't that high, but the film managed a $6.5 million opening from 2,065 locations.

The film received a "C-" CinemaScore from opening day audiences.
Internationally, Hannah Grace kicked off its overseas rollout with $4.1 million in 17 markets.







The best hold in the top ten goes to Universal's Green Book, which didn't have the breakout last weekend the studio might have hoped for, but with a 29% drop this weekend and a further expansion planned for next weekend it might still have some life.

The film took advantage of its National Board of Review award win for Best Film this past week to bring in an estimated $3.9 million for the weekend as its domestic total has now topped $14 million.







And topping the charts for a second weekend in a row based on per theater average is Fox Searchlight's release of The Favourite, which is now playing in 34 theaters and brought in an estimated $1.1 million for a $32,500 per theater average.

The film's first weekend average compared very well to 2014's Birdman (also from Searchlight), which first began its limited release in October and ended up hauling in over $42 million despite playing in a max number of theaters totaling just 1,213. The film eventually went on to win four Oscars, including Best Picture.

Look for Searchlight to follow a similar release strategy for The Favourite, which is expected to expand to 80-100 locations next weekend.







In limited release, Orion's Anna and the Apocalypse delivered an estimated $50,163 from five locations for a decent $10,033 per theater average. The film is expected to expand next weekend into approximately 30 locations.

Additionally, GKIDS released Mamoru Hosoda's MIRAI this weekend where it played in 780 theaters on Thursday evening and brought in over $210k. Following the preview event, the film played in a much smaller theater count over the weekend where it is expected to deliver around $62,000 from a varying count of locations. The film will continue to hold larger scale event screenings throughout the month and into January.

https://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=4462&p=.htm









November 30 - December 2, 2018 Weekend Studio Estimates:


1. Ralph Breaks the Internet $25,756,000 / $119,294,233
2. Dr. Seuss' The Grinch $17,730,000 / $203,507,195
3. Creed II $16,832,863 / $81,169,147
4. Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald $11,200,000 / $134,341,406
5. Bohemian Rhapsody $8,100,000 / $164,423,150
6. Instant Family $7,150,000 / $45,927,769
7. The Possession of Hannah Grace $6,500,000
8. Robin Hood $4,700,000 / $21,727,682
9. Widows $4,400,000 / $33,060,245
10. Green Book $3,900,000 / $14,016,491

Ralph Reigns over Slow Weekend at the Box Office while Aquaman Dominates in China Debut
by Brad Brevet
December 9, 2018


The domestic weekend was, for the most part, as light as was expected. While it wasn't the lowest grossing weekend of the year so far, it was the second lowest with the top twelve delivering a combined $77.8 million.

This is all in advance of what should be a profitable holiday season to come and we got a hint as to just how profitable it could be with the launch of WB's Aquaman in China this weekend where the film delivered a massive $93.6 million, becoming the #1 film globally from one market alone.







Beginning with the domestic box office, while it looked like it might be neck-and-neck between Disney's Ralph Breaks the Internet and Universal and Illumination's The Grinch at the top of the box office following Friday's estimates, Ralph carried the weekend as expected, though The Grinch wasn't far behind.

Ralph brought in an estimated $16.1 million for the weekend, pushing its domestic cume just over $140 million. Meanwhile, The Grinch had the second smallest drop in the top ten, dipping just 15% compared to last weekend for a $15.17 million three day and a domestic cume approaching $225 million as the holiday themed animated feature is taking full advantage of the season.

Internationally, Ralph added $18 million for a worldwide cume that currently totals $258.2 million.







As for The Grinch, it added nine markets this weekend including Mexico where it debuted with an estimated $5.2 million.

Overall, the film brought in $25.9 million from overseas markets this weekend for an international cume totaling $98.9 million and a global tally reaching $322.4 million.







In third, MGM's Creed II brought in an estimated $10.3 million for a domestic cume that now stands at $96.5 million.

Internationally, the film added an estimated $5.2 million from 31 overseas markets, bringing the overseas running cume to $23.2m million. The film's top market remains the UK with $8.9 million.







WB's Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald dipped 40% for an estimated $6.8 million weekend for a domestic cume that now stands at $145.2 million.

The film also brought in $22 million overseas this weekend for a global cume that now totals $568.5 million.







Rounding out the top five is Fox's Bohemian Rhapsody with an estimated $6 million as the drama is now just shy of $175 million domestically as it enters its sixth week in release.

The film also continued its scorching performance overseas with an estimated $29.2 million this weekend for an international cume totaling $423 million and a worldwide tally that is now just $3.5 million shy of $600 million as it becomes one of the top ten worldwide releases of 2018.







Outside the top five, Universal's Green Book took advantage of its five Golden Globe nominations and recognition from the National Board of Review and American Film Institute.

In fact, the film showed a fractional increase versus last weekend, bringing in an impressive $3.9 million for a domestic cume that is now just shy of $20 million. The film is currently playing in 1,181 locations nationwide.







Just outside the top ten, WB gave A Star is Born a little push this weekend, bringing it back to 1,631 theaters (+550) where it brought in an estimated $2.5 million. The film's domestic cume is now less than $3 million shy of topping $200 million.

Internationally, A Star is Born has now brought in $172.6 million for a global tally just shy of $370 million.







Fox Searchlight's The Favourite delivered an estimated $1.4 million from 91 locations (+57) for a domestic cume that now totals $3.5 million.

The film will expand into approximately 525 theaters beginning next weekend.







Additionally, Universal's re-release of Schindler's List in celebration of the film's 25th anniversary brought in an estimated $551k from 1,029 theaters for a minuscule $535 per theater.

In limited release, Focus Features's Mary Queen of Scots began its run in four locations with an estimated $200,000 for a chart-topping $50k per theater average. The film will expand next weekend into approximately 70 locations.







Also in limited release, Neon's Vox Lux open in six locations with an estimated $162,252 for a $27,042 per theater average; Roadside's Ben is Back debuted in four theaters with an estimated $80,972 ($20,243 PTA); and Hannover's Frank and Ava opened in one theater with an estimated $3,062.

Of the lot, Ben is Back will be expanding to 30 locations next weekend in five additional markets.







Beyond the domestic box office, the biggest news of the weekend is probably the debut of WB and DC Comics's Aquaman in China where the film debuted two weeks ahead of its domestic release to a monster $93.6 million.

The performance represents 85% of the total market share for the weekend weekend in China while serving as the studio's largest opening weekend ever in China as well as the largest industry opening in the market for the month of December. The film will continue its international roll out next weekend, opening in 40+ more overseas markets, including the UK, Russia, Mexico and Brazil.

The film opens domestically on December 21.







Also getting a head start on its domestic release, Universal's Mortal Engines debuted in 43 markets this weekend with an estimated $17.9 million. Leading the way was a #1 opening in Russia with an estimated $4.1 million followed by Indonesia ($1.6m), South Korea ($1.6m) and Australia ($1m).

Key upcoming releases include the December 12 opening in France followed by Italy (Dec 13), Germany (Dec 13), UK (Dec 14), Spain (Dec 14), Mexico (Jan 4), Brazil (Jan 10) and Japan (Mar 1).

https://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=4464&p=.htm









December 7-9, 2018 Weekend Studio Estimates:


1. Ralph Breaks the Internet $16,141,000 / $140,858,885
2. Dr. Seuss' The Grinch $15,175,000 $15,175,000 / $223,463,175
3. Creed II $10,322,515 / $96,471,912
4. Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald $6,805,000 / $145,207,524
5. Bohemian Rhapsody $6,000,000 / $173,569,170
6. Instant Family $5,600,000 / $54,160,742
7. Green Book $3,935,000 / $19,976,911
8. Robin Hood $3,585,000 / $27,289,193
9. The Possession of Hannah Grace $3,175,000 / $11,506,549
10. Widows $3,100,000 / $38,155,806