Box Office: 'The Smurfs 2' bombs, while '2 Guns' takes #1
Credit: Universal
The weekend box office numbers are in, and the Smurfs are singing the blues (I make no apologies for my cheap puns!).
The sequel featuring the animated antics of the little blue creatures opened in third place, taking in $18.2 million for the weekend for a disappointing five-day total of $27.3 million, which is well below the $35.6 million opening of The Smurfs in late July 2011. Sony is banking on The Smurfs 2 making up the difference in overseas ticket sales. The film premiered in 42 markets this weekend, raking in $52.5 million for a worldwide total of $80.3 million, which softens some of the damage at the box office back home.
According to one insider for The Hollywood Reporter, a worldwide gross of $500 million isn't out of the question for The Smurfs 2, based on the international first-week numbers. So while the first weekend has been disappointing domestically, the film is still likely to turn a profit and justify the second sequel, which has already been given the greenlight and a release date of July 24, 2015.
As for the success stories at the box office this weekend, Mark Wahlberg and Denzel Washington's 2 Guns took the top spot with $27.4 million. The R-rated action film only cost $61 million to make, and audiences are much fonder of the film than critics have been (and since audiences are the ones actually paying to see the movie, I'm sure the studio privileges their opinion above those of critics). So it's not all that difficult to think that the film will likely make all its money back, in addition to turning a healthy profit before it's all said and done. Whether that will be enough for a sequel remains to be seen, but it looks as though Denzel Washington may have found his first real franchise role.
"We're very happy to have the No. 1 opening in North America for the seventh time this year," said Universal president of domestic distribution Nikki Rocco. "I think the chemistry between Washington and Wahlberg was a big draw. Adults really enjoyed the film."
Rocco wouldn't be wrong either, as the research shows that 77 percent of those buying tickets were over the age of 25, suggesting that older couples were the sizable portion of the ethnically diverse audience, with African-Americans accounting for 28 percent of the audience while Hispanics brought in 14 percent. Most interestingly, women came out in force for the film, making up 49 percent of the film's audience.
The Wolverine took #2 in its second weekend with $21.7 million for a domestic total of $95 million, while its foreign total soared to $160.2 million, The Hugh Jackman superhero pic, continuing to do big business overseas, upped its foreign total to $160.2 million for a worldwide gross of $255.2 million.
Meanwhile, the story behind Guillermo del Toro's Pacific Rim continues to intrigue: as its stock falls domestically, it only grows more popular internationally, to the point where sequel talks are already underway, despite the fact that the film has still yet to make back its budget. The robots vs. interdimensional aliens pic took the No. 1 spot at the international box office, grossing $53 million from 58 markets -- with the sizable majority coming from its debut in China, where the film was a monster hit, taking in roughly $45 million. Pacific Rim has taken in close to $295 million worldwide, with overseas sales accounting for $200.4 million, but the question remains whether the film will break even, between its production budget and advertising.
For the rest of the weekend box office, check out the totals below via Deadline / The Hollywood Reporter
1. 2 Guns ($27.4 million)
2. The Wolverine ($21.7 million)
3. The Smurfs 2 ($27.8 million)
4. The Conjuring ($13.6 million)
5. Despicable Me 2 ($10.3 million)
6. Grown Ups 2 ($8.2 million)
7. Turbo ($6.5 million)
8. Red 2 ($5.8 million)
9. The Heat ($4.9 million)
10. Pacific Rim ($4.5 million)