NEW YORK — With much of Hollywood's attention focused on the wildfires that continue to rage in Los Angeles, studios estimate Lionsgate's “Den of Thieves 2: Pantera” will be released on a quiet weekend in movie theaters. It debuted at number one with box office revenue of $15.5 million. Sunday.
Mid-January is often a slow period for moviegoing, but the situation worsened slightly with the closure of about 10 theaters in Los Angeles, the country's largest box office market.
Gerard Butler's 2018 heist thriller sequel Den of Thieves 2 performed as well as the original.
STX's first release opened seven years ago with $15.2 million. O'Shea Jackson Jr. co-stars in the sequel, which premiered in 3,008 theaters in North America.
Butler's movies are becoming something of a January tradition. He also starred in “Plane,” which was released on January 13, 2023 and managed $32.1 million.
“Den of Thieves 2” was made for about $40 million and cost a little more to produce. Audiences thoroughly liked the film, earning it a CinemaScore of “B+.”
Reviews (58% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) weren't particularly good. However, it is Lionsgate's first No. 1 opening since November 2023's The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
Robbie Williams' film “Better Man,'' also released widely over the weekend, with one of the boldest twists in a music biopic in recent years.
Rather than following the traditional path of Elton John (Rocketman) or Elvis Presley (Elvis), the British pop star is portrayed by a CGI chimpanzee in Michael Gracey's film.
Produced by Paramount Pictures for $110 million and acquired by Paramount for $25 million, the film did not receive the same acclaim as Williams' previous American forays.
Ticket sales plummeted, reaching $1.1 million from 1,291 locations. Gracie's previous film, 2017's The Greatest Showman ($459 million worldwide), did much better in theaters. However, the reviews for “Better Man” were very good.
The Las Vegas drama “The Last Showgirl'' starring Pamela Anderson was the best. The release of Roadside Attractions expanded to 870 theaters and raised $1.5 million.
Also beating “Better Man” was Brady Corbet's “The Brutalist.” The postwar blockbuster “A24,'' which won the Golden Globe Award for Best Drama, grossed a whopping $1.4 million from just 68 theaters. We will expand further in the coming weeks.
Holiday holdovers such as Mufasa: The Lion King, Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Nosferatu and Moana 2 dominated the weekend box office.
In its fourth week of release, Barry Jenkins' Mufasa continued to perform well, adding $13.2 million to its worldwide total of $539.7 million.
Also in its fourth weekend, “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” increased its worldwide total by $11 million to $384.8 million.
Robert Eggers' “Nosferatu” was a surprise hit during the Christmas period, raking in $6.8 million in ticket sales, and the vampire tale reached $81.1 million domestically.
Walt Disney Co.'s “Moana 2” added $6.5 million in its seventh week of release, bringing its worldwide total to $989.8 million.
In the coming days, the film will become the third Disney movie released in 2024 to reach $1 billion at the box office, joining “Inside Head 2” and “Deadpool & Wolverine.”
Final national figures will be released on Monday. According to comScore, estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday in U.S. and Canadian theaters are:
1. “Den of Thieves 2: Pantera,” $15.5 million.
2. “Mufasa: The Lion King,” $13.2 million.
3. “Sonic the Hedgehog 3,” $11 million.
4. “Nosferatu,” $6.8 million.
5. “Moana 2,” $6.5 million.
6. “The Complete Unknown,” $5 million.
7. “Wicked,” $5 million.
8. “Baby Girl,” $3.1 million.
9. “Game Changer,” $1.9 million.
10. “The Last Showgirl,” $1.5 million.
