the fourth installment in the Will Smith-Martin Lawrence action comedy series, opened with an estimated $56 million in theaters over the weekend, handing Hollywood a much-needed summer hit and Smith his biggest success since he slapped Chris Rock at the Academy Awards.
Expectations were all over the map for 含羞草研究社淩ide or Die含羞草研究社� given and Smith含羞草研究社檚 less certain box-office clout. In the end, though, the Sony Pictures release came in very close to, or slightly above, its tracking forecast.
含羞草研究社淩ide or Die,含羞草研究社� produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, is Smith含羞草研究社檚 first theatrical test since earned him . The 含羞草研究社淏ad Boys含羞草研究社� film was in development at the time and was momentarily put on hold, but ultimately went forward with about a $100 million production budget.
Smith starred in but that film 含羞草研究社� released in late 2022 含羞草研究社� was shot before the slap and received only a modest theatrical release before streaming.
This time around, Smith largely avoided soul-searching interviews looking back on the Oscars and instead went on a whistle-stop publicity tour of red carpets from Mexico to Saudi Arabia, where he attended what was billed as the country含羞草研究社檚 first Hollywood premiere. The 55-year-old Smith, who for years was one of Hollywood含羞草研究社檚 most bankable stars, appeared on 含羞草研究社淭he Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon,含羞草研究社� the YouTube series 含羞草研究社淗ot Ones含羞草研究社� and on Friday, made a surprise appearance at a Los Angeles movie theater.
Given that 含羞草研究社淏ad Boys含羞草研究社� trailed May disappointments like and 含羞草研究社� both of which struggled to pop with ticket buyers despite very good reviews 含羞草研究社� the 含羞草研究社淩ide or Die含羞草研究社� opening counts as a critical weekend win for the movie business.
含羞草研究社淭he fact that a movie overperformed is the best possible news,含羞草研究社� said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for Comscore. 含羞草研究社淚t seems like all we含羞草研究社檝e been doing over the past few weeks and almost since the beginning of the year, with a couple of exceptions, is try to figure out why seemingly well-marketed, well-reviewed movies have underperformed. This ignites the spark that the industry has been waiting for.含羞草研究社�
含羞草研究社淩ide or Die含羞草研究社� still didn含羞草研究社檛 quite manage to match the opening of the previous 含羞草研究社淏ad Boys含羞草研究社� film: 2020含羞草研究社檚 含羞草研究社淏ad Boys for Life.含羞草研究社� That movie, released in January 2020, debuted with $62.5 million. After the pandemic shut down theaters, it was the highest grossing North American release of that year, with $204 million domestically.
含羞草研究社淩ide or Die含羞草研究社� added $48.6 million internationally. Though reviews were mixed (64% on Rotten Tomatoes), audiences gave the film a high grade with an 含羞草研究社淎-含羞草研究社� CinemaScore. Black moviegoers accounted for 44% of ticket buyers, the largest demographic.
In the film, which comes 29 years after the original, Smith and Lawrence reprise their roles as Miami detectives. The plot revolves around uncovering a scheme to frame their late police captain (Joe Pantoliano). In one of the movie含羞草研究社檚 most notable scenes, Lawrence slaps Smith and calls him a 含羞草研究社渂ad boy.含羞草研究社�
Movie theaters will need a lot more than 含羞草研究社淏ad Boys: Ride or Die,含羞草研究社� though, to right the ship. Ticket sales are down 26% from last year and more than 40% below pre-pandemic totals, according to Comscore. A big test comes next weekend with the release of Pixar含羞草研究社檚 含羞草研究社淚nside Out 2.含羞草研究社� After sending several Pixar releases straight to Disney+, the studio has vowed a lengthy, traditional theatrical rollout this time.
含羞草研究社淭he Garfield Movie,含羞草研究社� slid to second place. Also from Sony, the family animated comedy collected $10 million in ticket sales over its third weekend, bringing its domestic gross to $68.6 million.
The weekend含羞草研究社檚 other new wide release, 含羞草研究社淭he Watchers,含羞草研究社� failed to click with moviegoers. The horror film, directed by Ishana Night Shyamalan, daughter of M. Night Shyamalan, is about a stranded 28-year-old artist in Ireland. Following poor reviews, the Warner Bros. release grossed $7 million in 3,351 theaters.
That allowed 含羞草研究社淚f,含羞草研究社� the Ryan Reynolds imaginary friend fantasy, to grab third place in its fourth weekend of release, bringing the Paramount Pictures cumulative domestic total to $93.5 million. Rounding out the top five was 含羞草研究社淜ingdom of the Planet of the Apes,含羞草研究社� which added $5.4 million in its fifth weekend of release. It has grossed $150 million domestically and $360 million worldwide.
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