411 Box Office Report: The Nun II Clips Haunting In Venice To Stay #1

It was a photo finish at the box office this weekend but when the dust settled, The Nun II was still the reigning champion. The Conjuring Universe film kept onto the top spot this weekend with $14.7 million, down just 55% from its opening weekend.

That’s a better-than-expected hold for the film, which was expected to end up at #2 behind A Haunting In Venice. Instead, it had one of the better holds in its franchise, much better than the first The Nun’s 66% drop. It was also better than last year’s The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (57%), The Curse of La Llorona (69%), and The Conjuring 2 (63%).

We mentioned last week that The Nun II had slightly better word of mouth than the first one, and that combined with a fairly quiet weekend for the film’s stronger hold. As of now it is already another major hit with $56.5 million domestically and $158.8 million worldwide against a budget of just $38.5 million. It is still looking likely for a $80 million domestic total.

Meanwhile, A Haunting In Venice fell right around its modest expectations. Kenneth Branagh’s latest Hercule Poirot film grossed $14.5 million. That’s only slightly better than the last film in the series, Death on the Nile, which opened to $12.8 million in February of 2022 when the box office was still trying to get its legs back underneath itself from the pandemic lockdowns. It’s also well below the $28.6 million start that Murder on the Orient Express got off to in 2017.

Frankly, A Haunting In Venice’s very existence was always a bit of a surprise. Death On the Nile didn’t exactly set the box office on fire, grossing $45.6 million domestically and $130.3 million worldwide against a $90 million budget. But it also had that pandemic mitigating factor and showed strong box office legs, which led to 20th Century Studios greenlighting the threequel at a lower production budget of $60 million.

The lower budget combined with the higher opening gives the studio something to spin here, but it’s still not the best of news. There are plenty of good signs though; Haunting has the franchise’s best critic reviews at a 79% aggregated score on Rotten Tomatoes, while the B CinemaScore is equal to the past two films. (The RT audience score is 75%, right in the middle for the series.) Add in a couple of weak weekends to come and a decent overseas start of $22.7 million for a $37.2 million worldwide start, and this may have a path to profit. Domestically it should be able to hit $40 million to $45 million.

The Equalizer 3 stabilized a bit in its third weekend, down 40% to $7.3 million. The Denzel Washington-starrer is now at $73.7 million domestically and $132.4 million worldwide, looking like it is likely to make a bit of profit against its $70 million production budget when it is all said and done. The film is looking likely to end its domestic run around $90 million.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 was off 53% in its second weekend to gross $4.7 million. That’s not an awful drop, though it’s also not great for a film that didn’t open particularly well. It’s also a worse hold than the second film, which fell 37% in its second weekend. The romcom now has $18.6 million domestically and $23.9 million worldwide. We still don’t know its budget, but it looks likely to finish out around $30 million or so, significantly down from the second film’s $59.7 million domestic final.

Barbie held onto its spot in the top five as it was down just 30% in its nineth weekend with $4 million. That’s a particularly good hold considering the comedy hit digital last week. It has increased its totals to $626.1 million domestically and $1.407 billion worldwide, putting it ahead of The Avengers for the #12 domestic grossing film of all time. It is still looking likely to end its run at around $635 million domestically, a massive hit against its $128 million budget.

Jawan had a solid hold in its second weekend domestically, as it was down 59% to $2.5 million. While that would be a bit high for most action-thrillers, it is fairly good for a Bollywood film as they tend to be front-loaded in the States. Jawan is currently at $12.2 million domestically and $106.5 million worldwide, a hit for a film that reportedly cost around $40 million.

Blue Beetle was down 35% in its fifth weekend to $2.5 million. The DCEU film has now ammased $67.3 million domestically and $117.6 million worldwide, losing money against a $120 million budget. It still seems likely to close out its US run awith about $73 million to $75 million.

Gran Turismo dropped 3% to gross $2.4 million in its fourth weekend, moving closer to a likely profit. The racing drama has totaled $39.4 million domestically and $102.9 million worldwide and should finish off at around $45 million in the US. The budget was $60 million.

Oppenheimer is still clinging onto its spot in the top 10 as it was down 32% to $2.1 million. The biopic has reached $318.6 million domestically and $912.7 million worldwide, aiming for a $325 million domestic final gross. It’s a big hit for Universal against a $100 million budget.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem spent one last weekend in the top 10 with $2 million, off 28% from last weekend. The animated superhero film is at $114.1 million domestically and $167.2 million worldwide, somewhat profitable against a $70 million budget. It will finish off around $120 million.

Next weekend will likely see a new #1 as The Expend4bles is targeting around $10 million to $12 million.

BOX OFFICE TOP TEN (Three-Day Domestic Numbers)
1. The Nun II – $14.7 million ($56.5 million total, $158.8 million WW)
2. A Haunting In Venice – $14.5 million ($14.5 million total, $37.2 million WW)
3. The Equalizer 3 – $7.2 million ($73.7 million total, $132.4 million WW)
4. My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 – $4.7 million ($18.6 million total, $23.9 million WW)
5. Barbie – $4 million ($626.1 million total, $1.407 billion WW)
6. Jawan – $2.5 million ($12.2 million total, $106.5 million WW)
7. Blue Beetle – $2.5 million ($67.3 million total, $117.6 million WW)
8. Gran Turismo – $2.4 million ($39.4 million total, $102.9 million WW)
9. Oppenheimer – $2.1 million ($318.6 million total, $912.7 million WW)
10. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem – $2 million ($114.1 million total, $167.2 million WW)