Having exceeded expectations to the point that it’s now doubling them — this is virtually unheard of, by the way — The Conjuring: Last Rites stunned competition in its opening weekend at the domestic box office. The horror movie, touted as the final installment of the hit franchise, grossed an estimated $83 million in its first three days of release. It was projected to generate around $40 million until a couple of days ago, and around $80 million worldwide. Instead, it made $187 million globally this weekend. The Conjuring 4 has not only topped the charts, but it has also delivered the biggest horror debut of the year and the top opening in the franchise’s history.
The Conjuring 4 beat out past Warner Bros. hits such as Sinners, Weapons, and Final Destination Bloodlines, continuing the studio’s hot streak this year. In fact, this is the second-biggest opening weekend haul for W.B. this year, behind only Superman. Directed by franchise veteran Michael Chaves and featuring Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga, The Conjuring 4 opened to mixed reviews. It holds a 56% score on Rotten Tomatoes, but audiences appear to be pushing back. They’ve awarded it a 79% on the aggregator website. The Conjuring 4 is all but guaranteed to out-gross each of its predecessors; in fact, it has already overtaken the lifetime hauls of Annabelle Comes Home and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It in three days flat.
In second place, the theatrical release of the filmed version of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton, which was released to massive success on Disney+ five years ago, grossed $10 million this weekend. This is higher than the $8 million that the 50th anniversary re-release of Steven Spielberg’s Jaws managed to gross last week. The Hamilton film debuted to near-universal praise on streaming in 2020 and is still sitting at a stunning 98% score on Rotten Tomatoes. This year marks the 10th anniversary of Miranda’s Broadway show, perhaps the biggest cultural sensation of the past decade.
‘Weapons’ Is Nearing Its Final Milestone
The third spot was claimed by Zach Cregger’s Weapons. The horror hit is set to debut on PVOD platforms in a couple of days, but is set to pass what will likely be its final domestic milestone: the $150 million mark. Weapons would’ve been the horror breakout of the year had W.B. not released Sinners a few months earlier; either way, it’s a massive win for the studio and for Cregger’s blossoming career. At number four, Freakier Friday continued its quietly successful run, grossing an estimated $3.8 million and taking its running domestic total to nearly $90 million. Does it have the juice to pass the $100 million milestone?
The top five list was rounded out by Darren Aronofsky’s Caught Stealing, starring Austin Butler. The movie made an estimated $3.2 million in its second weekend, pushing its running domestic total to almost $15 million. This isn’t the greatest result for the $40 million film, nor is it a promising sign for Butler’s career as a leading man. Elsewhere, the widely acclaimed Twinless, starring Dylan O’Brien, grossed nearly $500,000 from just over 550 locations.
via Collider