411 Box Office Report: The Super Mario Bros Movie Holds Well, Retains Top Spot

Mario kept on racing at the box office, with The Super Mario Bros Movie holding on very well to retain the top spot. The video game adaptation took in $87 million in its second weekend, down just 41% from last weekend’s record-breaking start to easily top the charts. The number represents the best second weekend ever for an animated film, beating Frozen II’s $85.9 million sophomore frame from November 2019 – and it’s important to note that Frozen II’s second weekend was a Thanksgiving weekend, when moviegoers are traditionally out in force.

Super Mario surprised last week with its $146.4 million opening, and it surprised this weekend as well. When fandom-heavy films overperform, they’re usually expected to have bigger drops because traditional wisdom says the film will be more frontloaded. Not the case here, as it held on much stronger than your average blockbuster which tends toward 55% drops or higher. As of now, Super Mario has grossed $347.8 million domestically and $678 million worldwide, making it the highest-grossing film of the year by both metrics. With a $100 million budget, this is already a massive hit and is now targeting at least $450 million domestically – and perhaps higher.

Coming in at #2 was The Pope’s Exorcist, which performed a little above expectations with $9.2 million. The Russell Crowe-starring horror film was projected to do in $7 million range coming into the weekend. While still a modest overall result, it reps the highest start for a film that Crowe has toplined since The Nice Guys opened to $11.2 million back in May of 2016.

Crowe may not have been bringing in big box office the last few years, but he’s still a star with massive name recognition and that’s what brought people out. The Pope’s Exorcist arrived within a bit of a glut of horror, opening opposite Renfield and Nefarious and with Scream VI still in a solid number of theaters. Sony Pictures marketed the film fairly well, which proved to counteract mild reviews (a 47% aggregate score on Rotten Tomatoes).

And fortunately for the film, once people got in they generally liked it. The film has a decent 83% audience score on RT and as usual, that translated into good word of mouth and solid holds throughout the weekend. The film opened internationally last week in several territories and has $27.4 million overseas for a $36.6 million worldwide take thus far. While it may not last too terribly long in theaters, the relatively low $18 million budget means that this one will probably be profitable when it’s all said and done. It should be able to cross the $25 million mark stateside, with $30 million a possibility if it holds better.

John Wick: Chapter 4 was down 45% in its fourth weekend with $7.9 million. The Lionsgate action sequel is now at $160.1 million domestically and the biggest worldwide grosser in the franchise at $349.7 million, though it must be said that it cost much more than previous entries at a reported $100 million budget. That’s not going to keep it from becoming a very big hit though, and it is currently looking at grossing around $180 million in the US, maybe more.

Coming in at #3 was Renfield, which is a minor disappointment considering projections. The film was pegged for a $10 million start or so, which is already a low number for what Universal probably needed from it. The Nicolas Cage and Nicolas Hoult-starring horror comedy was much more susceptible to its critical buzz, which was lukewarm at a 59% RT aggregate.

While Cage has been building his star portfolio back up over the last few years, he’s still not fully there. Renfield reps the best live-action start for him since Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance started with $22.1 million all the way back in 2012, and that film was considered to be a disappointment in itself. Much like The Pope’s Exorcist, fans like this more than critics and it has an 80% RT audience score, though Renfield was more frontloaded than its competition.

The horror comedy’s other problems are two-fold: the budget and the overseas gross. Renfield reportedly cost $65 million before marketing, and that’s a concerning sign. So are the overseas numbers, which are at just $2.3 million in a smattering of territories. More will be opening up over the coming weeks, but this film would need to have fantastic holds to escape the red. Domestically it should suffer falls – traditional with horror comedies, especially when big competition is coming next week – and should probably close out at around $25 million or so.

Ben Affleck’s Air was off 47% in its opening weekend, bringing in $7.7 million. The drama is now at $33.3 million domestically and $54.1 million worldwide, solid numbers but still needing plenty of gas in the tank due to the reported $70 million to $80 million budget. The film is currently looking to close out somewhere in the $50 million range domestically, and will struggle to hit break even before it leaves theaters although Amazon will probably be moderately okay with the performance since it will be a solid title for them when it hits streaming.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is likewise finding its road to profit narrowing. The fantasy action-adventure based on the RPG brought in $7.4 million, also down 47% from last weekend. The film has now grossed $74.1 million domestically and $157.1 million worldwide against a $150 million budget. Its domestic total seems likely to be in the $90 million range.

Sony Pictures brought the anime film Suzume to theaters this weekend, and it did well with a $5 million start. That’s right around where it was expected to open coming into the weekend, and ranks well above the starts for writer-director Makoto Shinkai’s other efforts in Your Name ($1.6 million in 2016) and Weathering with You ($1.8 million in 2019).

While the opening is well below recent anime releases by Crunchyroll like March’s Demon Slayer: To the Swordsmith Village ($10.1 million) and last year’s Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero ($21.1 million), those films market to a different audience. It is also important to note that any domestic money Suzume makes is just bonus money as it has already brought in a massive $256.1 million overseas for $261.1 million worldwide. This is a major hit obviously and while it will drop heavily in the US like all anime films, it’s big profit for the studios involved.

The same can’t be said for Mafia Mamma, which opened at #8 with %2 million. The crime comedy had virtually no buzz coming into the weekend and critical sentiment didn’t help at a lousy 21% CinemaScore. Audience rating isn’t great either at 62%, which means no word of mouth to help it overindex.

That said, even if it had been well-received it was simply released on the wrong weekend. All the demographics were taken by other, more high profile films and Bleecker Street didn’t have much of a leg to stand on here. This film is unlikely to make it far past $8 million and while we don’t know the budget, that’s probably not enough to make it a profitable film.

Scream VI was down 58% in its sixth weekend, grossing $1.5 million. The slasher sequel is now at to $106.8 million domestically and $167 million worldwide, putting it at the highest grosser domestically in the franchise and on track to top the 1997 Scream’s $173 million worldwide. Of course, this is a hit against a $35 million budget.

One more horror made a minor splash at the box office with Nefarious. Soli Deo Gloria Releasing’s faith-based serial killer flick (yes, you read that right) tallied $1.3 million. The film is not being well-reviewed on the whole with a 25% critical score, but as is often the case with faith-based films its audience loves it at a 96% RT audience rating. This one is going to vanish quickly and there’s no word on the budget, but it’s probably a pretty solid start for what was invested into it.

Next weekend will see a third frame on top for Super Mario Bros. Movie as another horror film seeks to make its mark in Evil Dead Rise. The latest film in the franchise is looking at $10 million to $15 million. In addition, Guy Ritchie’s military drama The Covenant is targeting around $6 million.

BOX OFFICE TOP TEN (Three-Day Domestic Numbers)
1. The Super Mario Bros. Movie – $87 million ($347.8 million total, $678 million WW)
2. The Pope’s Exorcist – $9.2 million ($9.2 million total, $36.6 million WW)
3. John Wick: Chapter 4 – $7.9 million ($160.1 million total, $349.7 million WW)
4. Renfield – $7.8 million ($7.8 million total, $10 million WW)
5. Air – $7.7 million ($33.3 million total, $54.1 million WW)
6. Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves – $7.4 million ($74.1 million total, $157.1 million WW)
7. Suzume – $5 million ($5 million total, $261.1 million WW)
8. Mafia Mamma – $2 million ($2 million total, $2 million WW)
9. Scream VI – $1.5 million ($106.7 million total, $167 million WW)
10. Nefarious – $1.3 million ($1.3 million total, $1.3 million WW)