Sony Pictures’ “Morbius” has finally landed in theaters after a two-year pandemic delay, earning $17.1 million from 4,268 theaters on Friday, with Sony broadening its weekend projections to the $38-41 million range.
Such a result would be close to what trackers expected for “Morbius,” having predicted a start in the low $40 million range. Though “Morbius” is significantly cheaper than other Marvel films the studio has released with a reported budget of $75 million.
While the break-even point is relatively lower, “Morbius” may face an uphill box office battle in the coming weeks based on critical and audience reception. Critics panned the film with a 16% Rotten Tomatoes score, and audience reception is mixed at best with a C+ on CinemaScore and a 67% audience Rotten Tomatoes score.
Paramount’s “The Lost City” is in second place on the charts this weekend with $4.3 million grossed on Friday and an estimated second weekend of $14.6 million. It’s a decent hold for the Sandra Bullock/Channing Tatum romcom adventure, dropping 52% from its $31 million launch last weekend.
Warner Bros./DC’s “The Batman” is in third place with $3.1 million, continuing its strong run with an estimated $11 million in its fifth weekend. With that result, Matt Reeves’ superhero film will reach the $350 million mark at the domestic box office on Monday.
Sony’s “Uncharted” and “Jujutsu Kaisen 0” complete the top 5 with “Uncharted” earning an estimated $3.7 million in its seventh weekend to bring its domestic total to $139 million. “Jujutsu Kaisen 0,” which Sony released through Crunchyroll, is earning an industry estimated $2 million in its third weekend for a $31 million total.