3 Takeaways From a Big Weekend for Box Office Recovery

It will be at least another month before the box office sees the kind of hopeful numbers that “Mortal Kombat” and “Demon Slayer” provided this past weekend, but getting not one but two films to earn $20 million-plus openings alongside each other is a big step forward in the post-COVID rebuilding process.

“Mortal Kombat” took No. 1 this weekend with a $23.3 million launch from 3,073 screens, well above the low-to-mid teens projections expected for the video game adaptation, as it received mixed reviews from critics and was simultaneously available on HBO Max. “Demon Slayer,” which has become known as one of the biggest pandemic box office success stories with over $450 million grossed worldwide and the title of Japan’s highest grossing film ever, nearly toppled “Kombat” with a $21.1