Sony’s “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” is likely to win the crowded four-day Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend with around $29 million from 3,849 domestic locations, ahead of openers “The Post,” “Paddington 2,” “Proud Mary,” and “The Commuter.”
Fox’s “The Post” is set to lead the quartet of new releases in second place, with its wide release giving it 2,819 North American locations to draw in around $21 million. Lionsgate’s “The Commuter” should take third place with $14 million from 2,892 locations, with the fourth weekend of Fox’s “The Greatest Showman” battling for fourth place with Disney-Lucasfilm’s “The Last Jedi’s” fifth frame, each at around $13.5 million. Warner Bros.’ “Paddington 2” is set to vie with “Insidious: The Last Key” for fifth with around $13 million each from 3,702 and 3,150 sites, respectively, and Sony’s “Proud Mary” should slot into sixth, taking in about $12 million from 2,125 cinemas.
“Jumanji,” starring Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart, has been surprisingly successful for Sony since its Dec. 20 launch, crossing $300 million internationally with $12 million on its first day in China. The film has a 75% certified fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes and has totaled over $262 million domestically in 24 days.
“The Post” expanded from 36 sites, from which it brought in $4.3 million over two weeks. The film stars Tom Hanks as Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee and Meryl Streep as publisher Katharine Graham. The National Board of Review named it the best film of 2017, but it was denied nominations this week from the Directors Guild and Writers Guild. “The Post” has an 88% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
“The Commuter” stars Liam Neeson as a businessman who is drawn into a criminal conspiracy while on his train ride home. The film finished Friday with around $4.6 million, and has received a B CinemaScore and a 55% Rotten Tomatoes rating. The film kicks off a long-term partnership between Lionsgate and StudioCanal that will continue with “Early Man” and “Shaun the Sheep Movie 2.”
Warner Bros. acquired the North American rights for “Paddington 2,” the sequel film starring the popular British children’s literary character, from the Weinstein Company after the sexual harassment allegations against its former head Harvey Weinstein left the production company and distributor a toxic name. “Paddington 2,” in which Ben Whishaw voices the accident-prone bear, has already earned $125 million internationally and has garnered a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Sony is opening “Proud Mary” without previews or critics screenings through its Screen Gems label. Taraji P. Henson plays a hit woman working for an organized crime family in Boston, whose life is turned around when she meets a young boy after a hit goes wrong. The film also stars Billy Brown, Jahi Di’Allo Winston, and Danny Glover.
“Star Wars: The Last Jedi” has grossed $582 million domestically in its first four weeks and currently ranks as the sixth-highest domestic grosser of all time, behind 2012’s “The Avengers” $623 million. “The Last Jedi” has topped “The Fate of the Furious” at $1.238 billion for the 11th spot on the worldwide grosses list.
Fox’s “The Greatest Showman” has taken in over $85 million domestically in its first 24 days. The studio is holding sing-along shows with the soundtrack lyrics on the screen at 300 locations starting Friday.
