In a weekend with a few different wide releases, Scarlett Johansson-starring thriller "Lucy" had no problem finding its intended audience, giving it one of the biggest R-rated openings of the year and knocking "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" out of the top box office slot. With "Lucy" putting together strong opening figures, Brett Ratner's "Hercules" posted just $29 million in opening revenue - a fairly weak total for a $100 million production with high commercial hopes from distributor Paramount.
Meanwhile, romantic comedy "And So It Goes" finished the weekend with a slim $4.55 million opening, pointing towards a minimal box office run for the latest from director Rob Reiner. Philip Seymour Hoffman-starring spy-thriller "A Most Wanted Man" also snuck into the top 10 in limited release, though its commercial upside seems to be limited despite very favorable critical reviews.
With Scarlett Johansson headlining the cast and positive reviews, "Lucy" played to mostly packed theaters over the weekend, which is especially impressive considering the competition from two other big-budget action movies. Costing just $40 million to produce, "Lucy" is already a considerable commercial success for distributor Universal and the biggest hit for writer/director Luc Besson in his career. "Lucy" even managed to easily top "Hercules" despite playing at 522 fewer venues - a clear sign of how well it's resonating with audiences.
"Lucy" is also a significant statement about the drawing power of Johansson on her own. Though she's co-starred in blockbusters like "Iron Man 2," "The Avengers" and "Captain America: The Winter Soldier," Johansson hadn't previously had an action hit with her in a leading role, pointing out that she's now one of the biggest female box office draws in Hollywood and has never been more popular. The strong opening also marks the fourth biggest weekend for an R-rated movie in 2014, trailing only significant hits like "22 Jump Street," "Neighbors" and "300: Rise of an Empire."
But while "Lucy" cruised to a nice opening weekend, "Hercules" continued the summer trend of expensive potential blockbusters underperforming at the box office. The $29 million opening of "Hercules" is one of the worst domestic openings for a 2014 release that cost at least $100 million to produce, surpassed only by lackluster releases like "Pompeii," "Transcendence," "Robocop" and "Edge of Tomorrow." "Hercules" should at least bring in some decent numbers outside of the U.S., though early domestic ticket sales suggest that "Hercules" won't be much of a box office factor for very long, particularly with "Guardians of the Galaxy" set to hit theaters on Friday.
Aiming at a mainly different audience over the weekend was "And So It Goes," a romantic comedy starring Michael Douglas and Diane Keaton that ended up with just $4.55 million at 1,762 theaters this weekend. Though director Rob Reiner has had hits in the genre like "When Harry Met Sally" and "The American President," his most recent efforts have fizzled at the box office, with "And So It Goes" likely to drop out of the top 10 fairly quickly. Though "And So It Goes" also cost just $30 million to produce, the opening ticket sales are low even with meager commercial expectations heading into the first weekend in theaters.
Also hitting theaters over the weekend was "A Most Wanted Man," a critically acclaimed thriller starring the late Oscar-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman. From lauded filmmaker Anton Corbijn, "A Most Wanted Man" brought in $2.72 million at 361 venues over the weekend, which is a somewhat decent weekend for a limited release. But even though "A Most Wanted Man" at least was able to sneak into the top 10, its noted slow pace and art house tone is likely to limit its upside at the box office, which also happened with Corbijn's 2010 spy-thriller "The American."
Next weekend, the box office could pick up a bit with the release of "Guardians of the Galaxy," an action-comedy that should bring with it some of the popularity of Disney's enormous Marvel Universe. Also hitting theaters next weekend will be "Get on Up," a biopic of legendary singer James Brown starring Chadwick Boseman ("42").
Early Studio Box Office Estimates for 7/25/14 - 7/27/14 (in millions), [RTT Prediction]:
1) Lucy (Universal): $44.03 [$26]
2) Hercules (Paramount): $29 [$25]
3) Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (Fox): $16.40 [$18]
4) The Purge: Anarchy (Universal): $9.90 [$13]
5) Planes: Fire & Rescue (Disney): $9.30 [$10]
6) Sex Tape (Sony/Columbia): $5.98 [$8]
7) Transformers: Age of Extinction (Paramount): $4.60 [$5.5]
8) And So It Goes (Clarius): $4.55 [$3.5]
9) Tammy (Warner Bros.): $3.40 [$4]
10) A Most Wanted Man (Roadside Attractions): $2.72 [N/A]
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