Jaap Buitendijk / Focus Features

This weekend’s box office charts were expected to be a log jam among the September releases, but one film has risen clear above the others: Focus Features/Carnival’s “Downton Abbey,” which earned a $31 million opening weekend from 3,079 screens.

“Downton Abbey” was projected before the weekend for an opening in the high teens and expected to leg out with older audiences well into October. But now it has passed the $23.6 million of “Insidious: Chapter 3” for the highest opening ever for a Focus release, setting it up for possibly an even longer run as a milder alternative to films like “Joker” that come out next month.

Also Read: 'Downton Abbey' Film Review: Adorable PBS Aristocrats Win the Class War, Again

“Audiences were clearly ready to come back to Downton and visit the Crawleys and all the familiar faces upstairs and downstairs,” said Focus President of Distribution Lisa Bunnell. “At its core, it’s a story about family, and audiences — both original fans and newcomers — are uplifted by that laughter and joy of the film.”

“We’re thrilled to be a part of something that began nearly 10 years ago with our friends and colleagues at NBC International and Carnival Films, and to have it remain with the NBCUniversal family with us now and do so well is amazing.”

With fans of the ITV/PBS series making up the overwhelming majority of its audience, reception has been predictably strong with an A on CinemaScore and a 4.5/5 on Postrak, joining an 85% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes. Audience breakdown was overwhelmingly female at 74%, with 60% over the age of 35.

Also Read: 'Downton Abbey' Mansion Now Listed on Airbnb, Open to Select Lords and Ladies

The film opened in 15 countries overseas and took in $10 million, including $3.6 million from the U.K. in its second weekend. It’s global total now stands at $61.8 million.

In a virtual tie for second this weekend are the other two new releases, Fox/Disney’s “Ad Astra” and Lionsgate/Millennium’s “Rambo: Last Blood.” Both films are estimated for a $19 million opening, meeting pre-weekend expectations.

With an $80 million budget before reshoots, “Ad Astra” is extremely unlikely to match that figure in domestic grosses given its tepid audience reception. While critics praised the film with an 82% Rotten Tomatoes score, Postrak polls sat at 2.5/5 and CinemaScore surveys yielded a B-, the lowest among this weekend’s new releases.

Also Read: 'Ad Astra' Film Review: Brad Pitt Journeys to the Edge of Space and the Depths of His Character's Soul

Overseas numbers were somewhat better with $26 million from all international markets except Taiwan, China and Hong Kong, where Disney is not handling distribution. That gives the Brad Pitt sci-fi adventure a global start of $45 million, 49% ahead of the pace set last year by “First Man,” which grossed $105 million worldwide.

A $19 million opening for “Rambo: Last Blood” just edges out the $18.2 million opening earned by the last “Rambo” released in 2008. The action film was panned by critics with a 30% Rotten Tomatoes score, but did solidly with a B on CinemaScore and an 85% Rotten Tomatoes verified audience score. Audience demographics were 66% male and 42% men over the age of 30.

September holdovers complete the top 5, as STX’s “Hustlers” and Warner Bros./New Line’s “It: Chapter Two” each grossed $17 million. While “Downton Abbey” brought a bit more competition than expected for female moviegoers, “Hustlers” still held well with a drop of just 49% in its second weekend and a 10-day total of $62.5 million. “It: Chapter Two” has a total of $179 million domestic after three weekends and a global total of $385 million.

9 Movies About Sad People in Space, From 'Gravity' to 'Ad Astra' (Photos)

What is it about the awe-inspiring infinity of space that makes movie characters feel so sad? Seriously, there sure are a lot of films about moping-around-the-stars. Take for instance the space exploration drama "Ad Astra," where Brad Pitt searches the solar system for his missing father while having an existential crisis. More like "SAD Astra." Get it? "Sad" instead of "Ad"? You get it. Anyway, enjoy this breakdown of films that use the stars as a backdrop for stories about depression and grief.
"Ad Astra" (2019)

The astronaut Brad Pitt plays in James Gray's "Ad Astra" has to get a psychological exam each morning from a robotic prompter. He's famous for never having a heart rate that rises above 90 beats per minute. He scoffs when he sees that there's now a Subway on the moon. Who doesn't like low-g sandwiches? Even a trip to Neptune of all places can't help cure his serious daddy issues.
20th Century Fox/Disney
"Gravity" (2013)

In Alfonso Cuarón's Oscar-winning film, Sandra Bullock's astronaut hates pretty much everything about space, a feeling well justified when the Russians blow up one of their satellites, filling Earth's orbit with debris that kills all of her crew members. Stranded in space and thinking about her recently-deceased daughter, she considers shutting off her oxygen supply and drifting into oblivion. Luckily, she hallucinates a pep talk from George Clooney's very dead astronaut, and manages to crash somewhat safely to earth.
Warner Bros.
"Interstellar" (2014)

Even the robots in this Christopher Nolan sci-fi tearjerker are sad! Well sort of. Robots TARS and CASE are programmed to be jokey snarkers, which helps them bond with their human crew members. But even TARS (voiced by Bill Irwin) ends up depressed and lonely after being abandoned on a remote planet. (Luckily Matthew McConaughey comes back to rescue it and they presumably live happily ever after but still, very sad!)
Paramount Pictures
"First Man" (2018)

Damien Chazelle's Neil Armstrong biopic "First Man" is notable for avoiding patriotic cliches in favor of the human reality -- accidents, failures, tragedies and tireless hours -- it took to finally send Apollo 11 to the moon. And part of that comes from Ryan Gosling's performance which emphasizes Armstrong's stoic grief over his young daughter's death from brain cancer 7 years before the moon landing.
Universal
"2001: A Space Odyssey" (1968)

The weird as hell beginning and profound, yet ambiguous ending are what most people remember about Stanley Kubrick's and Arthur C. Clarke's groundbreaking masterpiece. But never forget that sandwiched between murderous apes and the Star Child is what amounts to a slasher movie in space, where an insane super computer slowly murders the crew of a scientific mission, then begs for mercy as he's lobotomized.
Warner Bros.
"Lucy in the Sky" (2019)

In Noah Hawley's upcoming drama "Lucy in the Sky," Natalie Portman's character loved being in space, but slowly loses her grip on reality as her personal life falls apart back on earth. Her story is loosely inspired by astronaut Lisa Nowak, about whom you can read about here.
Fox Searchlight
"Solaris" (2002)

The original Andrei Tarkovsky film on which Steven Soderbergh's "Solaris" is based is no barrel of laughs either, but George Clooney's character in "Solaris" is already messed up and depressed before he starts hallucinating and going crazy aboard the isolated, remote space station.
20th Century Fox
"Moon" (2009)

Sam Rockwell plays a man who mining helium 3 on the moon, his only companion a robot voiced by Kevin Spacey, whose two-year contract is about to end and he can finally return home. But then he learns the horrible truth: he's not "himself," he a clone illegally created by the mining company; instead of being sent home, he's going to be murdered and replaced by a brand new clone; and it's happened dozens of times before. Bummer!
Sony Pictures Classics
"Aniara" (2018)

In this underrated Swedish-Danish drama a massive ship full of people fleeing a ruined Earth find themselves adrift and watching their resources slowly deteriorate. It's an uplifting a heartwarming environmental parable about the inevitability that humanity will destroy whatever home they're stuck on.
Magnolia Pictures

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There’s a long tradition of depressing sci-fi in films like “Moon,” “Interstellar” and “2001: A Space Odyssey”

What is it about the awe-inspiring infinity of space that makes movie characters feel so sad? Seriously, there sure are a lot of films about moping-around-the-stars. Take for instance the space exploration drama "Ad Astra," where Brad Pitt searches the solar system for his missing father while having an existential crisis. More like "SAD Astra." Get it? "Sad" instead of "Ad"? You get it. Anyway, enjoy this breakdown of films that use the stars as a backdrop for stories about depression and grief.

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