A new number one is likely with this week’s debut of Call of the Wild starring Harrison Ford. It’s an adaptation of a well known novel by Jack London and the previews definitely sell it as a one-of-a-kind adventure between a man and his dog. Unlike this week’s other debut, Brahms: The Boy II, Call of the Wild is an original with a beloved star tackling a young audience with families going in tow. That should be enough for it to pull off a number one finish.
Our Highest Rated Films: Emma
Our Best Awards Ratings: Emma (Oscars)
OTHER LIMITED RELEASES
Acquitted by Faith (Limited)
Come and See (Limited)
Conundrum: Secrets Among Friends (Limited)
Corpus Christi (Limited)
Goldie (Limited)
Jinpa (Limited)
Just Don’t Think I’ll Scream (Limited)
Just One More Kiss (Limited)
Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and The Band (Limited)
Power of the Air (Limited)
Premature (Limited)
Ride the Wave (Limited)
Seberg (Limited)
Shooter (Limited)
True Fiction (Limited)
Viral: Antisemitism in Four Mutations (Limited)
Vitalina Varela (Limited)
Young Ahmed (Limited)
Four films will attempt to win the weekend in the wake of the minor debut that was Birds of Prey. Fantasy Island and Sonic the Hedgehog have the most potential, though being Valentine’s weekend, The Photograph could pull in enough on Friday to top the others. Maybe, but doubtful. Sonic probably has a better shot because it will appeal to kids, but the film looks like a dud, which may be reflected in a decent Friday and a plummeting Saturday and Sunday. Fantasy Island promises to have a consistent weekend for a horror film with a strong open and a quick fade away.
The latest film in the DC Extended Universe should easily top the week’s box office.
The holdovers are doing well and the new releases are doing poorly so far this year, which means that this week’s new releases aren’t likely to be box office toppers, though Gretel and Hansel has a better chance at it than does The Rhythm Section.
With two wide releases this weekend, we finally have some competition. After the superb debut of Bad Boys for Life last weekend, The Gentlemen and The Turning will battle it out for number with the former having better options. The Gentlemen has a lot of well known actors and a popular director to give it a boost at the box office. The latter has no one famous and will have to rely on the premise to pull in audiences. Gentlemen should win easily.
Disney has a stranglehold on the box office throughout the year and every film it releases will dominate for at least a week. The same will be true of Dolittle whose only competition is the second week in wide release for 1917, meaning it’s going to dominate and probably for a two or three weeks after that.
With three new wide releases, the question is whether Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker can hold on to the top spot for a fourth week or if Like a Boss, Underwater, The Informer (which looks to have been pulled from the release calendar yet again), or one of the expanding releases (1917 or Just Mercy) can swing into the top spot.
There aren’t any other new wide release options, so the number one spot will go to Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker in its third week. How the latest version of The Grudge performs will depend on a lot of factors, but performing well isn’t likely.
With Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker dominating the box office for a second weekend, the only new wide release that has any chance of topping all other newcomers is Little Women. It seems the perfect family film for Christmas day, though it might be front-loaded mid-week rather than over the weekend.
The second major event of the year, the second historical culmination of a multi-year franchise. Capping Disney’s stranglehold on the U.S. box office this year, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker enters the fray as 2019 comes to a close and will surely send the year off with a bang.
The reign of Frozen II comes to an end this weekend with the sequel to the blockbuster Jumanji, which is sure to storm the box office and defeat everything in its way.
Here’s where Frozen II picks up its third weekend atop the box office as the two new wide releases don’t look like they’ll be more than lackluster performers. The Aeronauts is the kind of movie that might have done well twenty or thirty years ago, but which won’t draw as much interest as the studio is hoping by putting it into wide release instead of platforming it. Playmobil: The Movie on the other hand, is the kind of film that should automatically do well, since it’s animated, but I highly doubt that will happen since the film hasn’t gotten nearly as much press as it should and it looks an attempt to hone in on the Lego Movie game without the underlying power property to back it up. Ultimately, Playmobil will probably end up in second place, but it doesn’t have a prayer of topping Frozen II.
There are two wide releases and neither will top the second weekend of Frozen II, but with the all-star cast of Knives Out, it’s very likely that film will win the weekend among new releases over Queen and Slim.
There will be no competition for first place. Frozen II will annihilate all rivals. A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood could be a minor hit, but Frozen II will have a massive debut and top the chart for the next three weekends until Jumanji: the Next Level unseats it on the weekend of December 13.
The two best contenders for a #1 finish this weekend couldn’t be more different. Charlie’s Angels is a reboot of the popular TV show and its successful first adaptation. This one doesn’t have the bigger names like its predecessor film did, but it still has a lot going for it. On the other side of the coin is Ford v Ferrari, a racing drama about the attempts at Ford to stop Ferrari for eternally dominating racing. The two films are targeting vastly different audiences and while I suspect Ford v Ferrari will give the Angels a run for their money, I think, in the end, that Charlie’s Angels will eke out a narrow victory.