Disney got more than the bare necessities at the box office this week.
The Jungle Book, a live-action reimagining of the 1967 animated film, grossed an estimated $103.6 million between Thursday and Sunday nights, which was way better than the $65 million to $70 million that some observers had predicted.
It was also better than the openings of other recent live-action Disney remakes such as Maleficent (2014, $69.4 million) and Cinderella (2015, $67.9 million), though it was behind the first weekend of Alice in Wonderland (2010, $116.1 million).
The film has earned another $187.4 million overseas since opening there last week. It is a particularly big hit in India, which is where the story is set. (In my corner of Canada, which has a strong South Asian population, the Cineplex theatre chain is offering bonus Scene points if you watch the film dubbed in Hindi.)
Needless to say, the film’s success bodes well for Disney’s other upcoming remakes such as Pete’s Dragon (August 12) and Beauty and the Beast (March 17, 2017).
And this wasn’t the only good news for Disney this week.
Zootopia is still in the top five after seven weeks, and this week it crossed the $300 million line. The film earned $8.2 million this weekend for a $307.5 million cume.
Zootopia has earned another $574.8 million overseas, which gives it a global total of $882.3 million and makes it easily the top-grossing film of the year worldwide.
The film is particularly popular in China, which is apparently disturbing some in the establishment there who find the film’s prey-over-predators theme subversive.
The other big new film this week was Barbershop: The Next Cut, which landed in second place with $20.2 million — slightly less than the $20.6 million and $24.2 million that the first two films opened to over a decade ago, but better than the $12.8 million that the female-themed spin-off Beauty Shop opened to in 2005.
The first two Barbershop films had, at the time, the best openings of Ice Cube’s career. They have since been surpassed by the Ride Along and Jump Street films. (Are We There Yet? also surpassed the total domestic gross of both Barbershops.)
Meanwhile, Criminal flopped in sixth place with $5.9 million, the lowest opening for a Kevin Costner film in wide release since 2005’s Rumour Has It… ($3.5 million).
Meanwhile, in other box-office news…
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice also crossed the $300 million line in North America this past week. It grossed $9 million this weekend for a domestic cume of $311.3 million. After four weeks in theatres, the superhero flick has still not yet doubled the $166 million that it made in its first weekend.
Batman v Superman has earned another $516 million overseas for a worldwide total of $827.3 million, which is well short of the billion-dollars-plus that the last two Batman films made, and that the studio was clearly hoping for here.
Miracles from Heaven grossed $1.9 million and ranked eighth in its fifth week, for a domestic total of $56.9 million. It has earned another $5.2 million overseas.
God’s Not Dead 2 grossed $1.7 million and ranked ninth in its third week, for a domestic total of $17 million. It has earned another $514,942 overseas.
There were no estimates for Risen in its ninth week. As of Thursday it had grossed $36.7 million in North American and another $7.8 million overseas.
The Young Messiah grossed only $12,000 in 55 theatres in its sixth week. It has earned $6.5 million in North America and another $701,211 overseas.
Now for a bit of extra data on the “faith-based” films:
Miracles from Heaven had the fourth-best first weekend of any film in this genre four weeks ago, and now it has the seventh-best fifth weekend:
- 2004 — The Passion of the Christ — $12.6 million
- 2014 — God’s Not Dead — $4.6 million
- 2014 — Heaven Is for Real — $4.4 million
- 2015 — War Room — $4.2 million
- 2011 — Soul Surfer — $2.3 million
- 2008 — Fireproof — $2.2 million
- 2016 — Miracles from Heaven — $1.9 million
- 2011 — Courageous — $1.8 million
- 2006 — The Nativity Story — $1.5 million
- 2002 — Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie — $1.5 million
Miracles from Heaven still ranks sixth among “faith-based” films domestically:
- 2004 — The Passion of the Christ — $370.8 million
- 2014 — Heaven Is for Real — $91.4 million
- 2015 — War Room — $67.8 million
- 2014 — God’s Not Dead — $60.8 million
- 2014 — Son of God — $59.7 million
- 2016 — Miracles from Heaven — $56.9 million
- 2011 — Soul Surfer — $43.9 million
- 2006 — The Nativity Story — $37.6 million
- 2016 — Risen — $36.7 million
- 2011 — Courageous — $34.5 million
Meanwhile, Risen still ranks eighth among recent Bible-themed films:
- 2004 — The Passion of the Christ — $370.8 million
- 1998 — The Prince of Egypt — $101.4 million
- 2014 — Noah — $101.2 million
- 2014 — Exodus: Gods and Kings — $65 million
- 2014 — Son of God — $59.7 million
- 2009 — Year One — $43.3 million
- 2006 — The Nativity Story — $37.6 million
- 2016 — Risen — $36.7 million
- 1981 — History of the World, Part I — $31.7 million
- 2016 — Hail, Caesar! — $30.1 million
- 2002 — Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie — $25.6 million
- 1979 — Monty Python’s Life of Brian — $20 million
- 1980 — Wholly Moses! — $14.2 million
- 2006 — One Night with the King — $13.4 million
- 1988 — The Last Temptation of Christ — $8.4 million
- 2016 — The Young Messiah — $6.5 million
- 1985 — King David — $5.1 million
- 2003 — The Gospel of John — $4.1 million
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