Bad Guys, Northmen, Nicolas Cage and A24: The Box Office Heads for Valhalla

Three premieres arrived this week at a significant number of theaters in the United States, in a strangely crowded weekend. And the three can be said to have fulfilled. Or that at least they have fulfilled the forecasts. ‘the bad guys‘ becomes the new leader in the North American box office with an estimated collection of 24 million (always) dollars (in 4,008 theaters), in what seems like the third best launch for an animated film in times of pandemic. The DreamWorks Animation film replaces ‘Fantastic Beasts: Dumbledore’s Secrets‘, third and perhaps, it is possible, that last installment of this franchise of the Wizarding World of JK Rowling. And it is that the film leaves 67% with respect to its already disappointing premiere last week, and in ten days on the North American billboard it accumulates less than it should have raised in its first three. The 280 million that it accumulates worldwide direct it towards a final collection of less than 400, well below the records of its predecessors. Taking into account that the cost of each film does not fall below 200 million, giving the green light to a fourth film now seems like a decision… really complicated. ‘north man‘ debuts with some 12 million (in 3,231 theaters) while Nicolas Cage grosses just over 7 (in 3,036 theaters) with ‘The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent‘. They are not great figures for either of them, but they are within expectations given the type of R-rated projects they are. Like the future classics they will become, they will make money in the long run. Perhaps little and very long, but they will give thanks to the most powerful weapon of any film: Being remembered. And the same can be said of ‘Ambulance – Escape Plan‘, whose North American box office exceeds 20 million that of the previous film by Michael Bay (whose name I barely remember anymore). For your part ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once‘ continues to stand as one of A24’s greatest commercial triumphs in its entire history. The film, which in Spain we will be able to see in a couple of months thanks to Movistar+, is barely 12% lower than last week and is already close to 27 million, a record that, adjusted in proportion, could be like the 100 that films like ‘Morbius‘, which did not even multiply by two what was collected at its premiere. “Here I see my father, here I see my mother, my sisters and my brothers. Here I see the lineage of my people to its beginnings. And here they call me, they ask me to take my place among them, in the courts of Valhalla, the place where the brave live forever.”