| Date | |
|---|---|
| Author | Mia Blakeney |
Box Office Round-up
Challengers ended Back To Black’s two week run in the top spot, opening with £1.6m, which includes £64k from previews. The last major film based around the world of tennis in cinemas was Battle Of The Sexes, starring Emma Stone and Steve Carell in 2017, which finished its run with £1.5m so Challengers has already surpassed that title.
After two weeks in the top spot, Back To Black fell to second but posted a terrific hold, falling just 25% to £1.4m. That takes its total after 17 days in cinemas to a shade under £9m. It looks like it’s going to finish with a total similar to Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody (£11.6m), if not slightly higher.
After taking a hefty drop last weekend, Kung Fu Panda 4 bounced back this weekend, increasing on last weekend’s total by 5% to £948k. That takes its total to £19.7m and cemented its position as the second-highest grossing Kung Fu Panda film to date, and it’s now nailed on to overtake the final total of the first Kung Fu Panda (£20.4m) to become the highest grossing film in the series.
Alex Garland’s Civil War also posted a strong hold in fourth, falling 29% to £755k. After three weekends in cinemas it has grossed £5.2m. Distributor, Entertainment Film Distributors have had a mixed time at the box office of late and this is now their highest grossing film since Guy Ritchie’s The Gentlemen in January 2020.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire rounded out the top five, adding £598k, a drop of just 9% from last weekend. That takes its total to £13.7m and it is the third highest grossing Godzilla film in the UK & Ireland, behind the 1998 version (£16m) and the 2014 version (£17.2m), and despite this late rally is still likely to finish as the third highest grossing Godzilla film.
Outside the top five, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire crossed the £15m mark in seventh, while the only other new entry in the top 10 was the anime SPY x FAMILY CODE: White which opened with £281k in eighth.
Next Weekend
The Fall Guy is a romantic action-comedy starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt. Gosling plays a down-and-out stuntman who must find the missing star of his ex-girlfriend's (Blunt) blockbuster film. It opens on Thursday.
Tarot is a new horror about a group of friends who recklessly violate the sacred rule of Tarot readings, and unknowingly unleash an unspeakable evil trapped within the cursed cards. One by one, they come face to face with fate and end up in a race against death. It opens on Thursday.
Love Lies Bleeding is a new crime-thriller from British director Rose Glass (Saint Maud). Gym manager Lou (Kristen Stewart) falls for Jackie (Katy O’Brian), a bodybuilder who is passing through town en route to a competition in Las Vegas.
Star Wars: The Phantom Menace is the 25th anniversary re-release of George Lucas’ sci-fi.
The Buzz
Horizon: An American Saga is the first film Kevin Costner has directed since the brilliant Open Range in 2003. It’s not just one film either, its coming in two parts to UK cinemas this summer and is surely one of the cinematic events of 2024. Costner also stars, co-writes and self-financed the project that chronicles a multi-faceted, 15-year span of pre-and post-Civil War expansion and settlement of the American west. The cast includes Sienna Miller, Danny Huston, Giovanni Ribisi and Jena Malone and Chapter One premieres at the Cannes Film Festival next month, before opening in cinemas on 28 June. Chapter Two is in cinemas less than two months later on 16 August and both films are going to be perfect for brands looking to reach middle-aged men everywhere.
Across The Pond
Challengers opened in the top spot in North America with $15m, the biggest opening of director Luca Guadagnino to date. Faith-based drama Unsung Hero opened in second with $7.8m. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire stayed in third, adding $7.2m, which takes its total to $181.7m. Alex Garland’s Civil War fell to fourth, adding $7m for a new total of $56.2m. Abigail rounded out the top five, adding $5.3m, which takes its total to $18.8m.