(AP) — Universal Pictures’ “Other Mommy” made an impressive $27.5 million in its opening weekend across 3,365 theaters, based on studio estimates from Sunday. The film, which features a dark supernatural entity haunting a young girl who believes it’s her mother, received quite poor reviews from critics and viewers alike.
It now shares a D+ CinemaScore with films like “Megalopolis” and “Hereditary.”
However, considering its production budget of roughly $19 million, it still stands as a success for the horror genre, particularly for Blumhouse Atomic Monster, the company behind “Backrooms” and “Obsession.” “Other Mommy” also debuted in 50 international markets, pushing its worldwide earnings to $45.2 million.
Jim Orr, who oversees domestic distribution at Universal, pointed out that the audience was evenly split between genders, and notably, about two-thirds of attendees were aged 18 to 34.
“No matter how you slice it, people showed up. It wasn’t limited to just one demographic,” Orr remarked. “That’s usually a great sign.”
‘The Social Reckoning’ misses the mark
On the other hand, “The Social Reckoning,” which was also released this weekend, had a tough time, bringing in an estimated $5.5 million from 2,606 North American theaters. Aaron Sorkin both wrote and directed this film centered on a Facebook whistleblower who provided critical documents to a Wall Street Journal reporter.
It’s worth noting that sixteen years ago, Sorkin’s “The Social Network” opened to over $22 million and ultimately made over $224 million worldwide, earning eight Oscar nominations and winning three. A similar trajectory seems a stretch for “The Social Reckoning,” which features actors like Mikey Madison, Jeremy Allen White, and Jeremy Strong, and has garnered mixed to unfavorable reviews. Audiences rated it a B- CinemaScore. The Sony Pictures release reportedly cost about $30 million to produce, excluding marketing expenses.
Paul Dergarabedian, who leads Rentrak’s marketplace trends, commented that October is a month when studios experiment, and not all attempts pan out.
“These topical films sometimes hit the culture right, and other times they miss,” Dergarabedian explained. “It’s hard to predict what will resonate with audiences.”
He drew a comparison between “The Social Reckoning” and “Digger,” which experienced a 60% drop in its second weekend.
Box office remains strong overall
“The Social Reckoning” ended up behind several films still holding their ground. The psychological thriller “Verity,” starring Anne Hathaway, took second place with $11.5 million, which is a 64% decrease from its debut weekend. “Resident Evil” came in third, adding $8.4 million, augmenting its domestic total to $138.5 million. The survival thriller “Heart of the Beast” rounded out the top four, earning $7.1 million.
Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey” also re-entered the top 10 after 13 weekends in theaters, bringing in $2 million from 560 theaters and nearing a domestic total of $623 million.
A few notable films also had limited releases this weekend. The Cannes Palme d’Or award winner “Fjord” grabbed $124,000 from four screens, while Alex Gibney’s lengthy documentary “Musk,” which runs close to four hours, brought in $68,900 from four locations. Chris Rock’s “Misty Green” also opened, making $85,716 from six theaters by Sunday.
In a broader context, the domestic box office crossed over the $8 billion threshold on Friday, reflecting a rise of over 19% compared to last year. According to Rentrak, this figure is roughly 8% behind the numbers from 2019.
Top 10 movies by domestic box office
With final domestic figures set to be released on Monday, this list accounts for estimated ticket sales from Friday to Sunday in U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Rentrak:
1. “Other Mommy,” $27.5 million.
2. “Verity,” $11.5 million.
3. “Resident Evil,” $8.4 million.
4. “Heart of the Beast,” $7.1 million.
5. “The Social Reckoning,” $5.5 million.
6. “Forgotten Island,” $4.5 million.
7. “Primetime,” $4 million.
8. “Digger,” $3.2 million.
9. “Angel and the Badman,” $2.1 million.
10. “The Odyssey,” $2 million.
