By I’ll be thrilled when we’re past the days of a $28 million debut being a total bomb. If you couldn’t tell from the headline, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom was released this weekend and claimed the number one spot at the box office. Despite that accolade, considering the film’s reported $205 million budget, this debut is dire. At least Christmas Day projections put the opening at $40 million, but that’s still not good.
Internationally, the film did a bit better, raking in $80 million to bring its total box office to just above $100 million. There’s still quite a ways to go before the film is profitable, but I don’t think Warner Bros. truly cares at this point. We all know the DCEU has been axed and James Gunn will be working on his version of a DC cinematic universe. That probably explains why fans simply didn’t show up for this one.
The rest of the top 10 is, surprisingly enough, a decent split between holdovers and new releases. Six of the 10 films made their debut this week and while the numbers aren’t huge, at least it’s something different to write about. Wonka took second place with $17.7 million, but then newcomer Migration debuted with $12.3 million.
Another new release, Anyone But You, opened with $6.2 million and was followed closely by Salaar: Part 1 Ceasefire with $5.48 million. Finally, The Iron Claw came in sixth with $5 million and managed to beat out The Boy and the Heron, which grabbed $3.1 million in its third weekend.
I’m happy I can finally write about other films! What joy! Here is the rest of the top 10 films for the weekend of December 22-24, 2023. All totals listed are domestic:
- Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom – $28.1 million
- Wonka – $17.7 million
- Migration – $12.3 million
- Anyone But You – $6.2 million
- Salaar: Part 1 Ceasefire – $5.48 million
- The Iron Claw – $5 million
- The Boy and the Heron – $3.154 million
- The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes – $3.15 million
- Godzilla: Minus One – $2.7 million
- Dunki – $2.6 million
