‘Twisters’ Rocks Box Office With Powerful $80.5 Million Opening Weekend

As a die-hard movie enthusiast and someone who lived through the original “Twister” craze back in 1996, I can’t help but be thrilled by the success of “Twisters.” The excitement surrounding this sequel has taken me back to those nostalgic days when blockbusters were all about adrenaline-pumping action and edge-of-your-seat suspense.

“Twisters” is taking the box office by storm.

In its opening weekend at North American cinemas, the new movie, a continuation of the 1996 catastrophe hit “Twister,” raked in an impressive $80.5 million from 4,151 theaters. Experts had predicted the sequel to earn around $50 million to $55 million. This ranking places it as the third biggest debut weekend of the year, following “Inside Out 2” ($154 million) and “Dune: Part Two” ($82 million). Lee Isaac Chung, known for his work on “Minari,” helms this film. In the cast are Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell, and Anthony Ramos, who portray determined storm chasers battling to survive amidst the collision of numerous tornadoes in central Oklahoma.

Several factors fueled the strong initial sales of tickets according to analysts. Primarily, people seemed to really enjoy the movie as it received a grade of “A-” on CinemaScore. Moreover, there was a sense of nostalgia for the original film starring Helen Hunt, Bill Paxton, Cary Elwes, and Philip Seymour Hoffman. Additionally, the increasing popularity of its stars, Powell from “Top Gun: Maverick” and “Anyone But You,” and Edgar-Jones from Hulu’s hit series “Normal People,” generated significant interest.

I can’t speak for David A. Gross, but if I were to express his sentiment in my own words as a follower, it would be:

The production cost of “Twisters” amounted to $155 million, excluding marketing expenses which added up to more millions. Universal Pictures financed and distributed the film in the US market, while Warner Bros. secured the international distribution rights.

I’ve noticed an interesting shift in box office trends this summer. Last year around this time, “Barbenheimer” mania was at its peak and dominated the charts, making comparisons a tough act to follow for newer releases like “Twisters.” However, after a sluggish start to the season, things have picked up significantly with strong performances from movies such as “Inside Out 2,” “Despicable Me 4,” and “A Quiet Place: Day One.” As a result, the year-to-date deficit has narrowed down from a 21% gap to just a 17% difference according to Comscore.

“According to Paul Dergarabedian, a senior analyst at Comscore, the summer movie season began disappointingly with several underperforming films at the box office. However, this sluggish start was significantly improved by an influx of successful movies, leading to a surge in attendance during June and July. This unexpected success has been a welcome boost for studios and cinemas alike.”

In the second position, “Despicable Me 4,” produced by Universal and Illumination, made $23 million during its third weekend at 4,112 theaters. The sum of its earnings in the US up to now is $259 million. This franchise, which boasts the hit “Minions” movies, has set a new record as the first animated series to gross over $5 billion worldwide.)

In its sixth weekend at the box office, “Disney-Pixar’s Inside Out 2” earned $12.7 million from 3,625 locations, placing it third. The sequel is close to reaching the $600 million milestone in North America with a total of $596 million in ticket sales. With a global gross of $1.443 billion, “Inside Out 2” currently ranks as the second-highest-grossing animated film ever made. It’s expected to soon surpass “Frozen 2” ($1.45 billion) and become the top-grossing animated film of all time. Additionally, it is approaching the $1.446 billion earnings of “Barbie” to claim the position as the 14th highest-grossing movie in history.

As a film enthusiast, I’m thrilled to share that Neon’s horror hit “Longlegs” managed to bring in an additional $11.7 million during its second week in North American theaters, with a total of 2,850 screens. The decline in revenues from its opening weekend was a modest 48%, which is truly impressive for a horror movie. To date, “Longlegs” has earned an impressive $44.6 million at the box office.

The first spin-off of “A Quiet Place,” titled “Paramount’s A Quiet Place: Day One,” made $6.1 million in its debut at 2,913 theaters. After four weeks in theaters, this nearly silent sci-fi thriller has grossed a total of $127.6 million. For context, the first two movies in the series, released in 2018 and 2021 respectively, earned $188 million and $160 million domestically before leaving the big screen.

In other news, “Fly Me to the Moon,” a romantic comedy produced by Sony and Apple with a budget of $100 million, didn’t manage to take off at the box office after its disappointing opening weekend earnings of $11 million. The film’s ticket sales dropped by 68% from the previous week, bringing in only $3 million from 3,356 theaters. Starring Channing Tatum and Scarlett Johansson as a NASA director and marketing expert who fall in love during the Apollo 11 mission, the film has made a meager total of $16 million so far. This is one of the biggest flops at the box office this year.

More to come…

2024-07-21 17:47

‘Twisters’ Rocks Box Office With Powerful $80.5 Million Opening Weekend

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