‘Black Panther’ Headed for $63 Million in 3rd Weekend at Box Office
“Black Panther” crosses $450 million domestic while “Red Sparrow” underperforms
Jeremy Fuster | March 3, 2018 @ 7:39 AM
Last Updated: March 3, 2018 @ 10:03 AM
Marvel Studios
“Black Panther” will easily win the Oscar weekend box office again with an estimated third weekend total of $63 million. The Marvel movie added $16.3 million on its third Friday, pushing its domestic total past the $450 million mark.
“Black Panther” has now passed the $448 million domestic haul for “The Dark Knight Rises,” and today it will pass the $459 million made in North America by “Avengers: Age of Ultron” to become the third highest grossing superhero movie in domestic box office history. The record is held by “The Avengers” with $623 million, a total “Black Panther” is currently on pace to reach as it could pass the half-billion mark by the end of the weekend.
In second place is 20th Century Fox/Chernin Entertainment’s “Red Sparrow,” which is on pace to fall short of tracker projections with a $15-17 million opening from 3,056 screens, with pre-weekend expectations set around $20-22 million. It’s a hard fall for the $69 million Jennifer Lawrence spy thriller, which performed relatively well with audiences who gave it a B on CinemaScore but got mixed reactions from critics with a 51 percent RT score.
Outside of her performances as Katniss in the “Hunger Games” series and Mystique in the “X-Men” reboot saga, Lawrence’s filmography has been more experimental than populist, working with directors like David O. Russell and Darren Aronofsky. Unless “Red Sparrow” can perform better on Saturday and push the opening weekend total towards tracker expectations, it will fail to become Lawrence’s best opening for a non-franchise film. That record is currently held by “Joy” with $17 million, followed by “Passengers” with $14.8 million.
Also falling below tracker expectations is MGM’s “Death Wish” remake, which is currently tracking for an $11-12 million opening from 2,847 screens. Pre-weekend tracking had Eli Roth’s revenge thriller opening in the high teens. Critics panned the film with a 14 percent RT score, while audiences gave it a B+ on CinemaScore.
WB/New Line’s “Game Night” takes fourth with an estimated $9.8 million in its second weekend, keeping its drop-off to a solid 42 percent. “Peter Rabbit” is right behind in fifth with an estimated $9.5 million in its fourth weekend.
Outside the top five, Paramount’s “Annihilation,” which added 100 screens in secondary cities, is looking at a 54 percent drop off in its second weekend with an estimated $5.1 million. In seventh is “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle,” which will pass the domestic cume of “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” with an estimated $4 million in its 11th weekend, pushing its cume to $392 million.
What's Next for the Cast of 'Black Panther' (Photos)
"Black Panther" is a blockbuster watershed moment, smashing both box office records and expectations for what a majority African American film can do, and launching its brilliant cast to super-stardom. Here are the next projects the film's stars have lined up.
Marvel Studios
1. Chadwick Boseman (T'Challa/Black Panther) Boseman will next be seen reprising the role of "Black Panther" in Marvel Studios upcoming "Avengers: Infinity War" and "Untitled Avengers Part 4."
Marvel Studios
2. Michael B. Jordan (Erik "Killmonger" Stevens) Jordan, who brought gravitas and serious political significance to the role of villain Killmonger, will next make his second appearance as boxer Adonis Johnson in "Creed 2."
Marvel Studios
3. Daniel Kaluuya (W'Kabi) Kaluuya, already a Best Actor Oscar nominee for his breakout role in "Get Out," will next be seen in Steve McQueen's "Widows."
Universal
4. Lupita Nyong'o (Nakia) Oscar winner Nyong'o will next be seen opposite Josh Gad in the zombie horror-comedy "Little Monsters," and is attached to the upcoming "Charlie's Angels" reboot.
Marvel Studios
5. Danai Gurira (Okoye) Gurira practically steals the film as the head of the Dora Milaje, Wakanda's special forces. She'll be back in the role for "Avengers: Infinity War," opening in May. Until then, fans can still watch her in her breakthrough role as Michonne on AMC's "The Walking Dead."
Marvel Studios
6. Letitia Wright (Shuri) Another "Black Panther" co-star who practically stole the film, Wright will next been seen in Steven Spielberg's "Ready Player One," which hits theaters March 29. And yes, she'll also be back for "Avengers: Infinity War" in May.
Marvel Studios
7. Forest Whitaker (Zuri) The prolific Oscar winner has a busy slate with three more films lined up for 2018, including the thriller "How It Ends," and "LAbyrinth" about the murders of Tupac Shakur and the Notorious BIG.
Marvel Studios
8. Angela Bassett (Ramonda) Bassett won't be showing up in "Infinity War," but you can get your fix this July with "Mission: Impossible - Fallout," where Bassett stars opposite Tom Cruise and Henry Cavill.
Marvel Studios
9. Winston Duke (M'Baku) Duke, whose portrayal of the powerful Wakandan nobleman and uneasy ally of T'challa was a "Black Panther" fan favorite, will reprise the role in "Avengers: Infinity War."
Abrams Artists
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With “Black Panther” smashing through box office records, TheWrap takes a look at what’s next for the the cast of the global blockbuster
"Black Panther" is a blockbuster watershed moment, smashing both box office records and expectations for what a majority African American film can do, and launching its brilliant cast to super-stardom. Here are the next projects the film's stars have lined up.