Columbia/MRC’s “The Dark Tower” will take first place at a quiet box office, reaching Sony’s pre-weekend projections with an opening total of $19.5 million from 3,450 screens but taking the lowest weekend total for any No. 1 movie this year. Independent trackers had the $60 million film making $21-24 million.
This result means that the best opening weekend for a movie based on a Stephen King novel (unadjusted for inflation) is still MGM’s “1408” starring John Cusack, which made a $20.6 million opening in 2007. However, Village Roadshow’s remake of “It” will have a strong chance of beating that record when it hits theaters next month, as its trailers have been met with strong word of mouth. The same can’t be said for “The Dark Tower,” which earned a B on CinemaScore and 18 percent from Rotten Tomatoes.
In a close second this weekend is Warner Bros.’ “Dunkirk,” which passed the $300 million mark worldwide Saturday and will register $17.6 million in its third weekend in the U.S. to bring its domestic total to $133.5 million. Meanwhile, another WB film, the summer champion “Wonder Woman,” will reach $400 million domestic on Monday after adding $2.3 million in its tenth weekend. The film is also nearing $800 million worldwide with its release in Japan coming Aug. 25.
Finishing in fifth is Aviron Pictures’ new release “Kidnap,” making an estimated $10.2 million this weekend from 2,378 screens and receiving a B+ from CinemaScore and a 41 percent RT rating. The other new wide release out this weekend is Annapurna’s critically-acclaimed “Detroit,” which finished a disappointing eighth with $7.25 million this weekend. Annapurna, who is making its first foray into distribution with this release, will be looking to rebound from word-of-mouth among older audiences, who are more likely to see movies several weeks after their release. “Detroit” has received immense praise from people who have seen the film, with an 88 percent RT score and an A- from CinemaScore.
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In between “Dunkirk” and “Kidnap” in the top 5 this weekend are “The Emoji Movie,” which made $12.3 million this weekend for a 50 percent drop from its $25 million opening, and “Girls Trip,” which made $11.4 million to bring its domestic total to $85.4 million. In sixth place is “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” which has a domestic total of $295 million after making $8.8 million in its fifth weekend and will cross the $300 million mark this coming week.